Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Daily Sketch Reprise: Long Morning Shadows, 2014

charcoal drawing of cat in morning sunshine
“Long Morning Shadows”, white and black and soft, vine and compressed charcoal on toned paper, 5.5″ x 8.5″ © Bernadette E. Kazmarski

It was decidedly difficult to choose which one of Mimi’s wanderings in the sunlight this morning I would sketch. She wandered around making the most wonderful elongated and distorted shadows of herself in the long streams of sunlight and they were all wonderful. Of course, this has been going on for days. Interpreting this morning sundance at the back door has been years in the making and sketched in pencil, ink, pastel and more.

I chose the toned paper because of the mid-range warm tone and the ability to blend on it, though I wish it had been darker to start with; the lightness kind of threw me off at first. The base in shadow is entirely vine charcoal which dusts off but repeated layers can be built up and burnished into the paper surface. I then applied soft 6B charcoal pencil atop that and blended for extra darkness right around the edges of the shadows, and drew Mimi’s tiny shape entirely in that pencil, blending and filling two or three times to make sure she was darker than the background and solid. A few highlights distinguish Mimi from her shadow.

Looking at it full size I can see it still needs some refinement but while I’d been picturing something more smooth and clear I like it for its roughness, especially where it blends out around the edges.

I left it as it was. When I went back to it, I liked it just as I[‘d done it.


Click here to see other daily sketches.

For a gallery of the ones available for sale, visit my Etsy shop in the “Cat Art and Prints” section.

Read about the reason for the daily sketches in Three Years of Daily Sketches, Awards and Collections.

And download your free desktop wallpaper calendar for computer or mobile, usually based on a daily sketch.

"Black and Light" desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens.
“Black and Light” desktop calendar 2560 x 1440 for HD and wide screens.

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A collection of 34 images of feline artwork

Feline Style Sampler

Daily sketches, illustrations, commissioned portraits all in a small coil-bound gift book.

Click here or on the image to read more

or find this book in my Etsy shop and on Amazon.com.


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All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.


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Monday: Adoptable Cats, TNR & Shelters
Tuesday: Rescue Stories
Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork
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Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats
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Bernadette

From health and welfare to rescue and adoption stories, advocacy and art, factual articles and fictional stories, "The Creative Cat" offers both visual and verbal education and entertainment about cats for people who love cats, pets and animals of all species.

2 thoughts on “Daily Sketch Reprise: Long Morning Shadows, 2014

    • Hello Monni! I love your blog too and your art–I wish I could translate it easier! Thanks for visiting!

      Reply

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