Sketchbook Challenge for May, and other stuff.

The topic for the May Challenge is Fruit and Vegetables. I lined up a banana, pear, mandarin and tomato to make a nice contrast in colours. This is in watercolour pencil, a medium that I have had very little practice with, so I've got a lot to learn. I took the photo below so I could make some improvements to my sketch without having to leave the fruit on my desk, or go and find it again when I wanted to work on the picture.

An artist friend has offered to set me a challenge, and have a look at my work when I've done it. She said to paint someone in one colour acrylics, using light and heavy applications of paint to create shade and depth. This is my husband asleep on the sofa last night. I had a lamp behind me, otherwise the room was in darkness, so it was pretty hard to see his features. But White Feather thought it was great! The cat was curled up beside me on the couch, so I painted him as well, but that was not successful at all.

I invited another artist friend to come over so I could paint her portrait - also in acrylics. It was great having someone who is an experienced portrait artist, to critique my work. She offered points for improvement as I went along, and while my husband says it still doesn't look like her, I'm still pleased with the result. I had planned to leave it as black and white, but G. suggested bringing one colour into it, and as she has auburn hair, I chose that to use.