Black on Grey on White

Big, strong, playful and sadly missed! My pencils were given the mission of portraying immortalising Aloïs in action... "deep water stick fetching" Aloïs pencil on paper, 60x44cm Sheona Hamilton-Grant.  All rights reserved. SOLD Drawing this commission was a fantastic experience. I love the forward movement the slight tilt, shift to the left. Both implying life and the past, both so symbolic and fundamental in a tribute portrait. Aloïs is no longer but has left without a doubt the biggest paw print on his family's heart.

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.

Mention "big black fluffy Newfoundlands" you can be sure you are referring to cuteness overload :D This, a big mixed media (graphite and charcoal) drawing of mother and son Newfoundland pooches, was created in stages.  The most important stage: deciphering shapes through bundles of deep black fur.  Once the noses, ears and eyes were pin pointed and sketched in: the real scribbling began.   The final stage involved a layer of Nitram charcoal to create more oomph and depth. William & Nikita graphite/charcoal on paper 41x50cm SOLD Loved discovering and developing a new approach to my work and the best... the unequaled feeling of success! Next up on the board: equine with a somewhat shorter coat ;)

This wee bird is proud (I can totally relate) and relieved (food on the table tonight). Pride should be (sporadically) experienced, savoured, shown-off. Pride is a good (in healthy amounts) it is proof of self-respect. Pride is the main content of this post. Yep! feeling very pleased with my second bird study . A few new boxes have been ticked: Better rendering of the lay of their feathers understanding the tilt of the head learning the insectivore subtleties of their diet cornering their temperament  depth (and the best box of all) hesitation dissipated: each stroke knew where to go Bird study #2 "Early Bird" Pencil on Paper 23x19 cm P.S: Postponing my artistic discovery of the bird world for a while, new (featherless) commission on the board. Before I start,  great big thank you to  Donna Ridgeway  for the use of the her fab swallow photographs.

I was curious (and still am!)  Curious to see how my brain (and pencils) would deal with drawing something so small, so delicate, so elusive. How it would feel to get lost in feathers as opposed to hair. How it would feel to render something you are only able to touch with your eyes and heart. The great news is: these amazing sophisticated little creatures have offered to show me a whole new world... and I have agreed ;) Watch this space! Bird study #1 Pencil on Paper 19x26 cm

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

Sometimes (well actually most of the time!) my mind will ponder and "sit-on" an image, a concept for years, waiting until the time is right. Nothing different with this drawing. I shot the references back in 2011... After 5 years of pondering, my pencils have been on active duty for the last 2 weeks, working hard to get this big-new-in-between-commissions-drawing of Cornado NRW (super good German Warmblood show-jumping stallion) out of my head, on and off the board and into the world. The hard work and the strange facial expressions have paid off! All of us here in the studio are relaxed and grinning with the sweet sense of a job well done. Think I'll go and start another one ;) Grey 40x34 cm graphite on paper

A classic head portrait. Sound boring? Yep, but not if you push the contrast, the size and sprinkle it all over with relevant details. This guy is gorgeous and was dressed up to the nines for our photoshoot. You can really tell: he looks a million dollars. "Jack Sparrow" Pencil on Paper 36x40 cm SOLD

After a very enjoyable encounter and "get to know you" drawing sessions, Wilma is off the drawing board and leaving the studio. Drawing those big honest eyes, getting right into the thick of her facial structures has been an amazing experience. My scribble friends had their work cut out deciphering which way to turn, where to emphasise, what to highlight and what to adjust.  However, I have it on good authority that the challenge was well received by all and they are now lined-up at the board impatiently waiting to get dug into the next one... Wilma graphite on paper 26x23cm p.s: If you would like a more in-depth view into the process, three progress timelapse videos can be viewed on my Youtube channel   :)

After 8 weeks of giving them all the cold shoulder, I warmed up my scribble friends and got tucked into a new compositionally unusual dog portrait. The reason threefold: I hadn't drawn a dog for ages wanted a break from the traditional head portrait Couldn't resist those wee eyes. The result threefold: pencil shavings on the floor once again back in the groove new drawing on the board What's Up 21 x 29 cm Pencil on Paper Available  Up next a horse, a beautiful bay stallion. Back soon ....

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

This "in-between commission" drawing has been fantastic learning curve. Very intense. I pushed myself out of the very comfy zone I always draw in into a new dimension. Gave myself the challenge of portraying a stunning horse in all its beauty and strength through a dramatic cropped composition. All I had to play with loads of textures, light and lines. Very addictive way of working. Can't wait to re-offend! Intensity 34 x 54 cm Pencil on Paper Sheona Hamilton-Grant. All rights reserved.

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

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.

The happy dances have subsided and the mad wide grins relaxed enough to get a few coherent words down. Three of my drawings ( The Hug , Chinese Whispers & Unstuck ) have been juried in to the inaugural PAS international exhibition.  Woot!!!!! PAS 14 is to be held in Quebec Canada for 6 weeks throughout the summer. This is exciting news. Pencil artists are on the rise and thanks to the internet and social media sites starting to get increased attention. Shows of this caliber will show the public the scope and beauty of pencil art .  Show just how phenomenal and exceptional our medium is. The work of 59 talented artists hanging together in one place is bound to be quite inspirational . Must get cracking on designing a crate with extra passenger space. Just like my drawings I've never been to Canada.... The Hug Pencil on Paper 40x53 cm Chinese Whispers Pencil on Paper 30x59 cm Unstuck Pencil on Paper 48 x 42 ...

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...