The list of invited artists to the Colored Pencil Society of America 19th Annual Exhibition is finally out! I'm thrilled that my piece "Social Network" has been juried into the show by juror Bob Malenfant, director of South West Gallery in Dallas. The exhibition will be at the Charles W. Eisemann Center in Richardson, Texas, from June 29 to July 31.

On Saturday, July 16, from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, I will have a booth at the Convention Trade Show, where representatives from many companies will be showing off new products and old favorites. I will be working with the Icarus Drawing Board to demonstrate how to use it and be available to answer all your questions. Please stop by to say hi and to play with the Icarus board.

Social Network

The Icarus Art April 2011 Newsletter was just sent out. If you’d like to register for the newsletter, you can go to the homepage of Icarus Art and click the sign-up button on the top right corner.

I just posted a new playlist of 17 video clips on our Icarus Art YouTube Channel. It's a condensed, sixty-minute video library of  a project called "Mussel Shell" from my 2010 CPSA workshop "Wax and Heat, a Match Made in Heaven".

For my workshop attendees this is a great opportunity to review the techniques learned last summer. For everybody else it's like taking a workshop for free. All voiced-over video clips are available in high definition and come with a downloadable supply list, an outline of the project, and an image of the finished mussel shell.

I hope you all enjoy practicing and/or learning the Icarus technique. You are always welcome to post comments and ask questions either on this blog or on YouTube.

View this playlist on Youtube.

The 2011 Pencil Painting Exhibition, presented by the Los Angeles Colored Pencil Society Chapter 214, is in full swing at the Cypress Community Gallery, 5700 Orange Avenue, Cypress, California. This is an outstanding exhibition of colored pencil paintings and drawings that represent the diversity of techniques that can be obtained by using colored pencils as a fine art medium. The gallery will be open until April 14 - Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.

My artwork "River Odyssey" received an Honorable Mention.

Jane Shibata, Me, Barbara Rogers, Betzi Stein, Jeff George, and Betsy Holster

Elaine Lapidus, Barbara Rogers, Elizabeth Patterson, and Betzi Stein

Barbara Rogers and Me with Our Respective Honorable Mention Winners

Linda Rahl

Ruth Anisman

Jeff George

Lupe Backe - First Place Winner

Standing by "The Butterfly Effect"

Betzi Stein and Me

Social Network

22" x 28" - Wax-based Media (Colored Pencil and Artist Crayon)
Created with the Icarus Drawing Board.

I finished this piece just in time to enter it into the 19th Annual CPSA Juried Exhibition. There's something about this group of pebbles, linked together by water, that reminded me how we are all connected, socially and otherwise.

This year the Colored Pencil Society Convention will be in Dallas, Texas. I will be demonstrating the Icarus board at the CPSA trade show Saturday, July 16, from 9:00 to 2:00.

I have a short demonstration coming up on Saturday, April 30th, in conjunction with the Los Angeles CPSA district chapter meeting. Click this link for directions.

I promised to some of you to put together the step-by-step directions for building a media organizer like mine. Please refer to my previous post for images and description of the unit. Following are detailed instructions on how to build it.

Materials:

• 6 sheets of  foam board 30" x 40" x 3/16" thick
• 1 piece of plexiglass (clear acrylic) 12" x 24" x 1/8" thick (0.125")
• glue gun, acrylic cutting knife
• white artist tape
• non-slip liner (optional)

Steps:

1. Cut the foam board
2. Build the main structure
3. Build the trays
4. Cut and glue the plexiglass
5. Cut non-slip liners to size (optional)

1. CUT THE FOAM BOARD

Use the four drawings below as guidelines. The white areas represent all the foam board pieces that you'll need for this project, while the gray areas are the left-overs. Remember that if you use smaller foam boards (20" x 30") you will have a lot more waste. Be very precise when you measure, draw, and cut your pieces.

Each drawing is a scaled representation of a 30" x 40" foam board. Drawing A needs to be repeated on three separate foam boards. Drawings B, C, and D are only used one time each (six boards total).

The media organizer is composed of two parts:

• the main structure, made of 15 shelves, two sides, and one back
• 14 removable trays, each one made of one bottom, one back, two sides, and a plexiglass front

Main structure dimensions:

• 15 shelves: 22 3/4" wide x 7 3/4" each
• 2 sides: 15 3/4" high x 7 3/4" each
• 1 back: 15 3/4" high x 23 1/8"

Trays dimensions:

• 14 bottoms: 22 1/4" x 7 1/2" each
• 14 backs: 22 1/4" x 11/16" each
• 28 sides: 7 1/2" x 1/2" each

Drawing A

Drawing B

Drawing C

Drawing D

2. BUILD THE MAIN STRUCTURE

This is the most challenging part of the project. I hope that by explaining how I did it, I can make it a little easier for you.

First you need to draw on both sides and on the back of the main structure the guidelines for the shelves.

Please note that the 15 shelves are a little less than one inch apart from each other. Sorry, I don't have the measurements for this step; you'll have to do the math.

When you have all your guidelines drawn, you can start gluing.

Gluing technique:

• place a strand of glue at the seam where the two surfaces meet

• do not place the glue directly on the foam of the board - the heat will melt the foam

• hold the foam board pieces in place until the glue cools down and feels solid

Begin by gluing together the two sides onto the back of the main structure. Then move on to the shelves.

Proceed by gluing one shelf at a time. Make sure the shelf is in the right position. Place your glue strands on the three seams. Wait for the glue to cool down and move on to the next shelf until you are finished. Remember to place the glue only on the top side of the shelves, not the bottom (see picture #1 and #2).

Picture #1: Main Structure Close-up

Picture #2: Main Structure

3. BUILD THE TRAYS

Glue the back of each tray to the bottom. Then glue the two sides over the bottom. See pictures #3 and #4.

Picture #3: Tray Side View

Picture #4: Tray Top View

4. CUT AND GLUE THE PLEXIGLASS

Do not remove the protective film from the plexiglass. You need 14 strips, each measuring 22 1/4" x 11/16". Draw your guidelines directly on the film.

If you have never cut plexiglass before, please practice a little before cutting the strips. I use the "score and snap method" with this type of knife.

When you glue a plexiglass strip to a tray, it will look as in picture #5 where the glue is completely visible. I hid the glue with white artist tape for aesthetic reasons (picture #6).

Picture #5: Tray Front Showing the Glue

Picture #6: Tray Front with Tape

5. CUT NON-SLIP LINERS TO SIZE

This is an optional step but I highly recommend it. I purchased the non-slip liner from my local home improvement store. It keeps pencils and other media from rolling even if the tray is on a slant (see pictures #7 and #8). The measurements of each liner are: 21 3/4″ x 7 1/4″.

Picture #7: Tray with Liner

Picture #8: Close-up

Last but not least, turn your main structure upside-down so that the glue strands of the shelves are on the top, not on the bottom of the slots. This way there's no interference with the sliding of the trays.

After filling your trays with colorful media, from pencils to crayons and pastels, you can place them inside their slots (picture #9 and #10). Now you can finally enjoy your creation.

Let me know if this was helpful. Feel free to ask any questions along the way.

Picture #9: Media Organizer

Picture #10: Trays Pulled Out

Everybody has a different way to relax; mine is to build something with my hands. That's how this new media organizer came about. My previous one was old and frail and after five years of daily use I could definitely envision a much improved model. I spent a full day planning, cutting, gluing and I'm very pleased with the results.

Media Organizer

Front View

Close-up

My media organizer is a shelf unit with 14 movable trays where I store all my wax-based drawing media (colored pencils, artist crayons, and oil pastels). I place it on top of my taboret right by my desk .

One of its best feature is the plexiglass on the front of each tray. It lets you get a clear view of what's inside without having to pull the tray out.

Trays Pulled Out

Two Trays Out

Top View

The trays can be pulled out together for complete accessibility of media or individually. They are deep enough that they can hang from the unit without falling.

Colored Pencil Trays

Artist Crayon Tray

Oil Pastel Tray

Sometimes I prefer to place several trays directly on the desk. I usually do this when I select the main colors of my drawing.

Empty Tray

Side View

Close-up

Tray dimensions:
bottom - 22 1/4" x 7 1/2"
back - 22 1/4" x 11/16"
sides - 7 1/2" x 1/2"
plexiglass front - 22 1/4" x 11/16"
non-slip liner - 21 3/4" x 7 1/4"

Structure dimensions:
15 shelves - 22 3/4" x 7 3/4"
sides - 15 3/4" (high) x 7 3/4"
back - 15 3/4" (high) x 23 1/8" (corrected - was 22 3/4")

Materials: foam board (3/16" thick), plexiglass (the thinnest you can find), non-slip liner, and a glue gun.

Having my media accessible and organized makes my workflow so much more fluid. I can concentrate on my art and don't have to waste time looking for things.

Feel free to ask questions if you need more clarifications.

Edit (2/27/2011): for step-by-step instructions visit this blog post.

River Odyssey

14" x 22" - Wax-based Media
Created with the Icarus Drawing Board.

Looking Back at 2010

Below are some highlights from my first year of blogging.

You can click on any image to visit the related post.

Studio Swing

Speckling Technique

Best of Show

Glassless Framing

Sanded Pastel Paper

Pratiques des Arts

CPSA Convention

CPSA Workshop

Sanford Prismacolor Award for Exceptional Merit

Shortcut for Details

Icarus Art's YouTube Channel

Thank you for visiting my blog. Your feedback is always appreciated.

May the Spirit of Christmas be with you always!

Christmas 2010