Black on Grey on White

Success. Months of pain have been dealt with! All the demons faced heads on, pencils in hand. Scribbling through physical pain, soothing the emotional turmoil, relayering confidence. A new drawing: Long Rein, the result. Inspiration and a new gritty feeling, the outcome. Will be interesting to see if 2017 will see another new drawing. Watch this space: pencils are sharpened. Long Rein pencil on paper 2017 Sheona Hamilton-Grant all rights reserved.

Seriously all it takes is a casual lean against the wall or being simply displayed with a couple of design books (and a watering can ?), artwork doesn't need to be in colour  hanging on a wall to look good. Who knew? You can set the tone with a few alternative display ideas and voila! ... framed drawings can really kick %*§!!! With a few tricks and magic wand waving, I have been able to prove my wee theory with two of my drawings "Buckled" and "Cornado" . Can you picture them in your home?   "Cornado" for sale  Equis Art Gallery "Buckled" for sale Equis Art Gallery  P.S: Take advantage of the 20% discount (whole of March) on my work represented at the  Equis Art Gallery. 

and has been an inspiring muse for my latest equine portrait. That's right: no capital city but a beautiful bay mare. Scribbling has begun in earnest again this year and Canberra is the first off the drawing board. Isn't she gorgeous? Up next: also dark and also super cute ;) Canberra pencil on paper 25x15 cm SOLD

Hurricane sprinkled in colour. Simply the best way of breathing in beauty, soaking in power, of falling in love...

but all to do with art, pencils and horses. Time and inspiration collided and this black and white image came to life.   Inspiration stuck around until the signature made it onto the paper. I love this drawing. Not sure if it's the subtle twist on a classic portrait (rider tightening girth), the look in his eye or all the unfinished edges. What do you think? A la Carte NRW pencil on paper 49x31 cm

It was time to reassess just what (art-wise) I could achieve in one-ish sitting. Seriously, each non commissioned drawing takes me between 80-120 hours (maybe more). Translated: weeks of work. The one question that I have not wanted  been to scared to answer  face but wich I have been asking for a while now, has been tackled and ... answered. Am I able to produce a wee bit quality in one day? Can I "perform" without all the time and detail and work and rework and endless thought? Can I get to the important nitty gritty and feel pleased with the result? Can I quieten the nagging "you -can-you-only-draw-slowly-and un-sponteneously" voice? Yes, yes, yes and YES! Here's the proof: Snaffles. Upping the anti (no comfort zone for me!), I used new paper (Fabriano), a new medium (Nitram Charcoal) and a new time frame (one day i.e: 6 hours drawing time). Drank two coffees, pumped up the volume and got cracking... Super chuffed with the result! Snaffles ...

One thing I knew: it had to be big, bold and dramatic. The concept and image had been floating banging around in my mind for a couple of years (constantly drawing even without pencils in hand!) Daring to crop harshly and spend the better part of a month scribbling a high risk composition was, until a few months ago, way too far out of my comfort zone. With age and maturity there seems to be serious rebirth in my "go get ya!" streak. It's rubbed off on my scribble friends and three weeks ago we got to work. The result: "Focus", an image full of power, beauty & silky smooth equine brilliance. Hope you all like it too ;) "Focus" pencil on paper 39x50 cm Available Sheona Hamilton-Grant © all rights reserved.

Hot off the board and freshly signed. This is "Racing Ready" a wonderful moment captured by fellow artist and friend  Linda Shantz on one of her very early morning escapades in Keenland a few years ago. She gave me the green light allowing my pencils have a wee bash at rendering this amazing athlete (speaking of the horse of course!) I miss the horses, daily, and wanted to feel one near me. I figured putting down an extra layer of detail and sharpened the pencils that wee bit more might do the trick. "Racing Ready" Pencil on Paper 37x41 cm Reference courtesy of Linda Shantz Available

Been a good week. Pencils were on form. (Has to be down to the imminent start of spring: it affects us all!) Their form was such that they rustled up this portrait of beautiful Fiona effortlessly, composed, working untiringly with a steady daily tempo. A rarity of late. It felt exceptional. Fiona Pencil on Paper 23 x 27 cm SOLD

Massive mistake! I never introduced you to Cherry. I had the pleasure of spending time with her image in the studio at the end of last year. The wee lass is an amazing 32 years young. An impressive fact that qualifies her as the oldest horse I have had the honour of drawing. This mare's honest, charming and friendly nature were a joy to render. Quite frankly, interpreting and immortalising this gentle soul is what makes my job plain fantastic. Cherry Pencil on Paper Sold

Tender and trusting. I met Ally last year. Outside. free as a bird but never further than a metre away from us (and the camera lens). She was a sensational model, posing beautifully with an air of elegance and wisdom. Displaying an air of such grace and peace that instinctively the only way forward was to reach out and hug her. And hugged she was. "Ally" Pencil on Paper 42x48 cm Sold

Couldn't do it! Five posts without showing a wee bit of pencil work. Undo-able! Here's a mini selection of a couple of my favs. All are special, all mark important turning points, all are small personal victories All proof that pencils rock !!! Quality Time Pencil on Paper 2008 Not for Sale Agape Touch Pencil on Paper 2011 Sold Hurricane Pencil on Paper 2010 Sold Torn Pencil on Paper 2014 1.550 Euros Buckled Pencil on Paper 2014 950$ Available through the Equis Art Gallery 

Last week, like so many weeks, went by in a bright spinning flash (there is such a thing... really!) The trendy "dreaded lurgy- virus thingy" paid us all individual visits and tried it's damnedest to cool my hard fought back resolution of getting back into the swing of things. It tried... and failed. Now finished, with revisited lessons in mental focus, how to embrace loose strokes, speeding up, drawing from the "gut" and foreshortening, is Pull Forth. A fab way of warming up the pencils! "Pull Forth" Pencil on Paper 38x26 cm Up next: one gorgeous mare

In the end the pressure got me.  Really got to me. I fell off the face of the world and focused on survival. Long story cut short: tough personal goals and challenges reached and mastered successfully. One very direct result is a brand new studio in our brand new house. So with great gusto I have picked up my neglected pencils and put them back where they belong: in the limelight. Here's a wee peek from the drawing board to prove it. Watch this space: I'm back! p.s: Wishing you all a mega ace 2015. Have a goal, focus and go for it! It's truly worth it.

Here's the utterly gorgeous Dama. A very fluffy Icelandic Pony. Leading my scribble friends through the intricacies and complexities of her thick mane and coat was a new and very zen adventure. There are portraits, despite their innate complexity and numerous subtleties that just instinctively fall into place. Dama's large portrait was one of them. Dama Pencil on paper 44x37 cm Sold Sheona Hamilton-Grant. All rights reserved.

Honour and humility come in multiple forms. One of them is being invited to be a part of something new , being invited to be a part something of great quality, being asked to be part of something you know is going to be big ! The   Equis Art Gallery , owned by the very talented Fine Art Photographer and Director of the ex Arte Equinus International equine art competition Juliet Harrison ,  is in the run-up to its GRAND opening on Mai the 24-26 and judging by the wee-behind-the-scene-peeks I've been able to enjoy, I can confirm this gallery is going to be a force to be reckoned with . Focusing on representing equine artists who excel in working in non-traditional  mediums and styles, the Equis  art gallery  offers art collectors a varied selection of equine artwork that  step  well beyond  the realms of the "traditional" into the contemporary and new . Equis Art Gallery 7516 North Broadway Red Hook, New Y...

Over 200 photographs, many blurred due to nosy-foal intervention , led to this final drawing. This moment really did happen . It's not a "photoshop special". The four babies stood together , safe in their own proximity, attention and curiosity divided between a waving branch and a very strange sounding photographer. Drawing this piece has been a bundle of fun , from start to finish.  By the end of the very first line I knew it would all fall into place. Working out of my comfort zone and approaching it with a different goal in mind, the overall effect is looser, not as tight and detailed as I have been drawing. Being a study of a moment , of a scene that was not staged but left to fate, s pontaneity and movement had to take centre stage. Detail really welcome only as a (VIP) backseat passenger. The choice of paper helps tremendously in staying looser. For "Get together", I went with  Hahnemülle Nostalgie  and smooth flowing strokes of 6B, 2B and...

a work in progress that lead to my new drawing "Buckled". "Buckled" Pencil on Paper 35x26 cm Sheona Hamilton-Grant. All rights reserved. Pencils: 2b, 2h and a 6b Paper: Mellotex Size: 37 x 26 cm (pretty much lifesize)

This year, the focus is on daring to spice things up, dramatically. "Cornered", in my mind for over 4 years, as seen the light and I love it. My scribble friends have delivered. They have dared to push compositional boundaries, over-use negative space, confront the viewer with a new phenomenon, highlight a slice of the bigger picture. Successfully cornering reality. "Cornered" Pencil on Paper, 17x21 cm 950 Euros Sheona Hamilton-Grant. All rights reserved.

Last week I was sure it had seen the last pencil stroke, this week I  stand by my initial decision and have signed my latest drawing "Weymouth". Part of the daring mistakes challenge. Looking for inspiration deep within. Thinking unconventional. Digging deep. Going in close. Staying personal. Cropping, mercilessly . Highlighting, contrasts. Drama, angst and power. Really liking the result. "Weymouth" Pencil on Paper. 17x30 cm Sheona Hamilton-Grant. All rights reserved.