Fire and Ice
Stinging and relieving
Movement and Stasis
Heat and Cold
Emotion and Stoicism
Two sides of the same coin
Balance
Anger resides within me. It has grown roots of embarrassment, self-pity and shame with me. It whispers malice in my ear, suggests wicked ideas, takes control of my words. It does not allow me to be happy.
Innocence dwells in me. It closes my eyes to bad news, shields my ears from sarcastic comments, opens my eyes wide at the sight of cotton candy. It forces a smile for no reason.
How much ice and how much fire?
Everyone's mental balance is in a different place. For some, it is a place where they are almost overflowing with emotion for others, when they give them up in favour of nirvana. Just as steel needs both heat and ice - we need to temper our bodies and emotions. When the blood does not boil or freeze from time to time - we miss a very important lesson - that of controlling our behaviour. And I deliberately don't use the term 'self – control' term here.
Controlling one's emotions takes a lot of work. On the surface, it may seem that it is just a matter of keeping calm in certain - particularly stressful - situations. No. It is about making our behaviour appropriate to the situation we are in. Calm is not always contagious. Sometimes it act like a rag to the bull and we need to be aware of this.
Read the room
We are designed in the way that we often lose our balance. But - the more we test ourselves, the easier it is to regain our stability . Running away from stress, but also running away from blissful joy - robs us of important life lessons. And practice makes perfect... supposedly.
It's all @emanate-artworx's fault!
She used candle crayons to make one of her recent works. What's more, she did it brilliantly! I'm not surprised that Emma is so good at drawing, just that she was able to get such a great effect with such an ungainly tool. I remember those wretched crayons from my childhood and hated them with the force of a thousand suns. I thought about it for a long while and remembered the 'Bambino' crayons I used in primary school. I remember that my art teacher was crazy about them. On the list of "school supplies" there were always these crayons with the words BAMBINO in capital letters next to the card stock and poster paints.
Thanks to @emanate-artworx, I was reminded of this medium and thought it would be an interesting experiment to return to the days when I drew people in the form of bulging, clumsy circles.
Bambino crayons are not your typical candle crayons. They are made of kaolin clay.
Kaolin clay, also called Kaolinite white clay, is a powdered white chalky rock consisting of kaolinite, quartz, mica and several other minerals with silicon and aluminium as the base. It is digged in mines. Its name comes from the Chinese town of Gaoling, where there are large and long-established deposits of the mineral.
Although this material is as safe for children as wax crayons - it allows the crayons to be far more strongly pigmented. The crayons produce very bright, vivid colours and allow the creation of soft transitions between colours.
But that's all theory... Time for practice:)
About the drawing
I must admit that the beginnings were terrible. I had great difficulty in sketching accurately because of the form of the crayons - a slim, cylindrical stick. I think if I had switched to a larger format, biger even than A2(42 x 59,4 cm ), I would have found it much easier to work.
For the first time since art school it occurred to me that I might need an easel after all.
I started tw A3(29.7 x 42 cm ) works which I abandoned after about 20 minutes of drawing. I wasn't happy with the result at all, and I was distracted by the excess of colour. Yes, that''s what I said – excess of colour :D
I work very little with colour, and I'm still learning to use with it prperly. My boyfriend suggested using a limited colour palette to avoid the 'rainbow' or 'childish' effect that had really annoyed me before.
I also took it a step further - and used alcohol to dilute and smudge the crayons to get a more uniform colours. I hope you'll forgive me for this little 'cheat' ;)
I'm very curious what you think:)
Have a lovely weekend,
Yours,
Strega Azure
These crayons Bambino, Polish product I would like to point out:)
I was really surprised that I was able to order them in the UK:)
Drawing & pictures are my authorship if not stated otherwise.
All rights reserved @strega.azure ©
All rights reserved @strega.azure ©
https://leofinance.io/threads/strega.azure/re-strega-azure-2kfap5g2t
The rewards earned on this comment will go directly to the people ( strega.azure ) sharing the post on LeoThreads,LikeTu,dBuzz.
Ohmahgosh, my internet is not cooperating right now - your pics are not loading 😤😑.
But what a deep theme for primitive little crayons 🥲, Strega! I'm definitely going to circle back around in the morning to leave a proper comment. : )
Edit: Wow, wow!! You nailed it with the Bambino!
The colors are so intense and rich - beautifully executed. The way the figures look like they're "pouring", that's a great effect.
You're so good at combining your theme with your visual elements. I feel like I always learn something when I read your posts. I'm so glad you could explore something old and find something new in it. Thanks for the tag!
I don't think it was your internet though, I had major problem with uploading pictures yesterday, and day before. I've re-uploaded pictures in my previous post, becouse they go missing completely.
I am so glad you liked it. I honestly had rough time at first, but in time I think I can make this work. Those crayons are really cool, but I prefer to be able to work on details too, and with such thick tip it is really difficult.
And I think, I will try even bigger format next time too but with some more relaxed style, rather than colour 'explosion'. But this one was fun though:)
During my work on drawing I usually would come up with some sentences or just loose words. I would just do a note of those - and then I would write a post. I don't think I could do it other way around.
That was necessary, you are one to blame!!!
Thank you very much @emanate-artworx!
I have also had issues here with uploading and loading pictures in the past. Glad that it worked, though because this was a great experiment.
Yes, the lack of details and roughness is one of the "downsides" of the medium. But, like you said, a larger size does help with that problem. And yes, there are so many color possibilities aside from the uber-bright rainbow splash! I have heard that if you put crayons in the fridge before you use them, it's easier to get delicate layers, i.e. more blending possibilities.
Ah, thanks for sharing some insight on your process. The art seems easy compared to writing the text! Well, in my experience, anyway.
Haha, I'll gladly take the blame for getting you back to the crayon 😆. Take care!
I have to try this way with the fridge, never hear that before.
Thank you for your visit and for inspiration! Cheers!
Really love the crayons effect, they aren't easy to use and get the effects you want, but you have done a great job. Somehow, there is something satisfying in using them though I think.
It was long time since I used kids art-supplies. I was always adamant to use good quality pencils and crayons. Snobbish even about it. So that was really cool experiment:) And now I have new medium/tool, and quite cheep one:)))
It is somehow liberating, yeah:)
Thank you for your visit @mypathtofire!
This is my first time hearing of these crayons. You certainly have used them well, your artwork is beautiful. I am always in awe of people that can draw and paint :)
I don't think they are popular outside Poland, really. Would have to look into that, becouse the quality is great!
I am glad you like my work, I will definitely do some more work with those very soon:)
Thank you for your visit!
I am just thinking about what to say. I am impressed because of writing and art both. I don't know how you draw such kind of masterpiece art and your writing perfectly matches with it.
!PIZZA
Thank you very much @intishar for your kind words.
To be fair - for me it is way easier to draw something than to write :D
I know you love to draw more than writing but in my opinion, you are an amazing writer also. So I am just appreciating. Nothing more.
It is so nice to hear stuff like this from brilliant writer like yourself! Thank you very much, really appreciate it!
$PIZZA slices delivered:
@intishar(5/5) tipped @strega.azure
Congratulations @strega.azure! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain And have been rewarded with New badge(s)
Your next target is to reach 2000 comments.
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPCheck out our last posts:
Bravo! Bravo!
This indeed is a masterpiece @strega.azure
I love how you showed us the process of the drawing step by step.
Good job !LUV
Always a #dreemerforlife
@strega.azure, @ibbtammy(1/3) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoThank you very much, Very glad you liked it:)
Thank you for visiting my blog:)
You are most welcome🥰🥰
I'm lost of words; this is too good
This is a raw talent
Don't you think this artwork needs to be sold to foreigners because it is so extraordinary?
Thanks to #dreemport #dreemerforlife for allowing me to come across this great work.
Thank you very much! Still plenty to learn.
I do sell my works from time to time:) but what I mostly care about is just get better in what I am doing:)
Thank you for your visit:)
these almost don't even look like crayons! the color reminds me of chalks!
my mom used to use chalk and it was SO vibrant like this hehehe
I was following along with the process - and i had no idea where it was going... i'm amazed that you started with her first... and then added the ice man. and then added hair! hahaha I just don't SEE things this way - hehehe i see the whole and then into more and more focus as I do more passes.
when i see in part - i never KNOW its part. until later. hahaha and then my brain says shhhh i saw it this way all along and kept it from you until the proper time LOLOL
but i don't PLAN in parts.. hehehe so it amazes me when I see the actual process of building something IN PARTS like this - to form such a masterpiece in the end
i have to admit - when you added the black - i got scared hahahaha
i was like oh no.. oh no... i'm not sure i like this! hahaha
I DID end up liking it hahahaa but... i'm not sure if i liked it better without the black.
there is something about it that.. oh - its the blue light around him. it doesn't look like like filtering over black. it looks more like... separation for me. or something! you know what i mean???
it almost feels like it should still have that intensity of light - but then somehow transparent too??? i don't know - seems almost opaque and my brain is having trouble with it.
you know what??? maybe its only becuase i saw it being built that way hahaha maybe if i justsaw the image first - without the process - my mind would have made the leap???
interesting hahaha
and i thoroughly enjoy when you take the photos at the end from different angles!!!! hehehehe it makes the piece come to life in new ways - almost seems like i'm walking around INSIDE the picture hehehehe
amazing. always. amazing :)
love you! and congrats on your new record hehehe
So those crayons have actually way more in common with chalk than with traditional wax crayons, becouse they are made with kaolin clay, which is a lot like chalk, chemically speaking. Although I am thot huge fan of colours, and as I said - it distracts me during the process - there is something liberating and freeing about working with them:)
I know, I was too. I added black day after I nearly finished the picture. There was something missing. And you are right - I should add glow, like prana or something surrounding those two silhouettes to 'brake' the black, and show how they affect the darkness around them. I think I will actually add that for you. I'll come back to you this evening with it @dreemsteem!
It is truly impossible to show the actual colours with one picture. Scanner would make better job, but the picture is 4 times bigger than working space on my scanner, I would have to putt picture together later on.
Plus - I like what perspective is doing with the picture. I am planning to so some experiment with that, like on the 'Ambasadors' picture by Hans Holbein, with the scull :)
image source
image source
Thank you so so much! Really appreciate! 🖤
hahahaha that skull thing is SO cool!!!!!!!!!!! hahahahaha
Penderis sent me something like that the other day - and its not appropriate to send on blockchain HAHAHAHA so i'll send it to you on whatsapp LOLOLOLOLOL you will laugh hahahahah seriously - i laughed so hard LOLOL
and that makes sense now about the crayons being closer to chalk!!!! hehehe
also - I'M EXCITED to see the glow now - i LOVE glow in everything hahaha it used to be a joke with all th epeople that used to do graphic design for me. whenever they came to me for final checks.. i would either say i need more drop shadow - or want more glow ROFLLLLLLLLL something about the glow just... gets me! hehehe
and drop shadow always makes me have hearts in my eyes heheh
have you ever seen those exquisite tattoos where the artists make it look like its popping right off the skin because of the drop shadow??? oh mygosh =its so beautiful. now i'll have to look for one - hold on hahaha
seriously!!! gahhhhhhhh i think i would only want one like this now hahahaha i LOVE the way it looks. oh... but.. hmmm now that i'm thinking about it - it probaby only looks that way in ONE perspective hehehe hmmm now i have to think about it LOL
Shadow usually make all the difference, and make stuff 3D, that's for sure.
Paper refuse cooperation with crayon. To many layers there already, and would not absorb much. I was able to add slight glow though :) @dreemsteem and @samsmith1971
Next time!
I have given this drawing a long and deep stare, and I just wonder how you managed to use such crayons to produce such beautiful piece. Not the regular pencil crayons that has shape edge, easy to navigate.
#dreemerforlife #dreemport
They are truly difficult to work with, but just for the sake of experiment and those crazy colours - definitely worth it! I will give another go very soon:)
Thank you for your visit @ginika!
I am looking forward to it.
Oh wow, love the interplay between the two elements on your drawing! I'll say it turn out great despite the terrible beginnings :)
We definitely need to experience both in our lives to develop into a well rounded person. I enjoy getting off balance especially when it's because of ice, that state of passivity can be very interesting.
#dreemport brought me here :)
Oh, yeah, wasn't easy. Not gonna lie :D I will have another go, but I need to give myself recover time from all those colours! :D
I agree, we need both. To act and to reflect. And repeat:)
Thank you for popping by!
Right, it'll definitely take some time to readjust back from the excess of color. Looking forward to the next one :)
Absolutely! it's a cycle that keeps continuing and we keep getting better after every cycle completion.
You're most welcome :)
Kaolin Clay!
Oh my goodness, I just ordered some, but for an entire different reason. In the gardens, we mix with water and spray Kaolin Clay onto fruit to keep pests from eating, or, for squash, zucchini and pumpkin, spray on the base of plants to avoid squash vine borer pests from eating into the stems.
Oh and I should also say, you have such an amazing eye for human figures. your studies are breathtaking.
Thank you very much @bluefinstudios! It is my favourite 'subject';), not gonna lie:)
Honestly, one of the two in that image is my favorite "subject" too!
Although I can appreciate beauty in both forms
You cracks me up each time :D
Glad to see you around @bluefinstudios!
So that is the purpose! I've seen kaolin clay in bulks on ebay, and was wondering what people do with such huge amount of it :D I have to check this out next year, see to be good idea!
Very very nice... you've used colour well here... not sure if I prefer the dark or light background. Actually, I think I know the point at which I loved it most hehe... half black half white although that part wasn't quite shared but from the just before pic, I can imagine it. I find it interesting that it is Ice that is bearing up the strongest and is able to sustain and support Fire. I love flipped narratives 💗
Metaphors have this advantage that you can go with them far and beyond, and that a beauty of it.
Instead elements you can go for masculinity and femininity. I write about what I have in mind, but it is impossible to enclose all in one post, so am always happy when people see many ways to read what I am drawing :)
Oh, me too, so so much. From chaos to order and back :)
hehe yeah I get that :-) I just loved that you used fire and ice in the female/male presentation. it was interesting! Always an interesting and thoughtful post from you to digest 💗 !LUV
@strega.azure, @samsmith1971(2/10) sent LUV. | connect | community | HiveWiki | NFT | <>< daily
! help(no space) to get help on Hive. InfoThere was good deal of projection there, not gonna lie :D
Thank you for your comments!
🤗 !Hug
I sent 1.0 HUG on behalf of @samsmith1971.
(1/3)