Choosing Your Next Coloured Pencil Journey
I bet there's a special reference photo you have saved, or a technique you've admired in others' work but haven't dared try yourself... It's tempting for us to stick with safer projects, to wait until we feel truly ready. My most significant growth as an artist, however, has come from BIG projects that felt just beyond my comfort zone...
What makes a project ‘BIG’? For me, it's not necessarily about physical size (although even 8 by 12 inches can feel very large when drawing a full background..!). Instead, it's a term I use to describe the ambition and investment of time; it's about choosing a project that pushes you to grow, that keeps you engaged over weeks or months, that challenges you to develop in new ways.
Over the years, my big projects have each served different purposes in my artistic journey. Sometimes it's been about technical growth - like when I limited myself to just Derwent Lightfast pencils for 'Five Minutes', forcing myself to really understand what that range could do (quite a lot). Other times, I've challenged myself with a specific artistic constraint, like creating 'Monty in the Winter Sun' as a monochrome piece (only cool greys, white and black here).
One of my favourite projects came from facing artistic fears head-on (rah!). Take 'Snack Break' - it was all about tackling grasses, something I used to actively avoid (to pet portrait clients, I would hear myself say: "no, I don't think full body is necessary - let's go with a nice headshot!"). The real challenge here was to find techniques that would allow me to capture the seemingly endless detail without drawing every. single. blade. of. grass. In other words, I wanted all time spent drawing to be enjoyable (and it genuinely was).
‘Snack Break’
Once I found a method that worked for me, it became a slow dance on the paper and I began to enjoy slowing down. I’d put music on, think less, and almost slip back into the memory. I felt enormous pride and yet a significant loss (of the experience) when I had finished. It wasn’t long before I started a new ‘big project’ - again, taking a treasured snapshot and transforming it into artwork years later. This time revisited walking in the woods with my daughter in a piece later called ‘Hide and Seek’.
My most recent big project, 'Girl on a Swing', emerged from a different need. After completing several commissioned pieces, I wanted a comfort piece - something just for me, with no deadline pressure.
What I found was a project with enough variety that I could work on whatever called to me each day - sometimes losing myself in the meditative process of drawing tree bark, other days experimenting with cloud formations or playing with the textures in the grasses. Having this flexibility within one piece meant I could follow my creativity (and avoid monotony) while still moving the project forward.
Why Start Your Own Big Project?
There are so many reasons to embark on a big coloured pencil project. Perhaps you want to:
Master a specific set of pencils or colours, or a new surface
Challenge yourself with a new technique or subject
Overcome an artistic fear
Capture a special memory
Create something meaningful for family
Prepare for a competition
Simply have a personal piece that brings you joy
Finding Your Starting Point
As you consider starting your own big project, think about what would serve your artistic journey right now:
Is there a technique you've been wanting to master?
A special photograph you've been dreaming of turning into art?
A creative challenge you'd like to tackle?
Whatever your motivation, choose something that genuinely excites you. Big projects take time, and that initial spark of excitement will help carry you through the challenging parts of the process.
Do not wait until you feel confident. Confidence is at the finish line - bravery is the springboard.