Jersey

[jennaboo88]

Hi everyone,

Here is my latest scratchboard piece of a handsome Jersey steer. With the smooth, gradual shift of browns to blacks in his hide, it was a unique opportunity to suggest tone with nothing but scratched marks. I used mostly tattoo needles with some use of X-Acto blades for the bright pops here and there. The original scratchboard is just 5x5 inches, so it was interesting to pack a big animal into a tiny space. This one was fun!

C&C welcome. Thank you for looking!

A few close-ups.

 

[Schuee]

He’s wonderful, Jenna! I am always in awe of your beautiful work.

 

[Donna T]

So beautiful! Thanks for the detail shots. I can’t believe how fine those lines are!

 

[pcj]

Absolutely stunning ! Just beautiful !
You are very talented.
Cheers,
Patricia

 

[joe1It]

is wonderful

 

[snoball]

Hi Jenna. Beautiful work on the steer!! I see you are still at scratchboard. I haven't done any for a while but do have some boards stashed back so I need to get an inspiration and get busy.

 

[OliveOyl]

What a handsome guy. Or gal. (Are cows males and females? Geesh. How come I don’t know that?) Anyway, this is nicely done. Impressive!

 

[jennaboo88]

He’s wonderful, Jenna! I am always in awe of your beautiful work.

Penny, thank you so very much!

 

[jennaboo88]

So beautiful! Thanks for the detail shots. I can’t believe how fine those lines are!

Thanks very much, Donna! That's what is so rewarding about scratchboard - those miniscule details that build up into an image...it's a process that never gets old.

 

[jennaboo88]

Absolutely stunning ! Just beautiful !
You are very talented.
Cheers,
Patricia

Hi Patricia. Thank you very much!

 

[jennaboo88]

is wonderful

Thanks so much!

 

[jennaboo88]

Hi Jenna. Beautiful work on the steer!! I see you are still at scratchboard. I haven't done any for a while but do have some boards stashed back so I need to get an inspiration and get busy.

Thank you very much, snoball! Yes, I'm still doing scratchboards - they are so much fun, aren't they? I hope you find the inspiration to tackle the medium again. I hope we see a new scratchboard by you soon.

 

[jennaboo88]

Th

What a handsome guy. Or gal. (Are cows males and females? Geesh. How come I don’t know that?) Anyway, this is nicely done. Impressive!

Thank you so much! That's a common question about cattle. The species are called cows but ask a farmer about his herd of "cows" when he's raising steers (or heifers), and he'll give you a funny look, because then they are not cows, but steers, or heifers, or calves...depending. I'm a farm girl, and even I find it easier to just refer to them as cattle. Covers all the bases that way. It's a whole issue, really. Then, don't get me started on counting heads. If you see a herd of, say, 25 cows in a pen, you don't say "25 cows", you said "25 head of cattle." And if you're trying to call the cows over to feed them, you don't call them cows, you call them Boss. "Come Boss! Come Bossy!" As you can imagine, there's a great deal of lingo that goes with farming.

Well, that was a whole lot of backstory! Your first instinct was correct - this is a guy. He's a steer (a bull that's been fixed), so technically not a cow. Thanks so much for your nice comments! It means a lot.

 

[laika]

Outstanding! The intricacy of the detail work is just amazing!

Oddly enough, I bought a new scratch-knife tip (#113, think - the one with slightly curved edges) a couple of days ago, but I've never used scratchboard. I tend to scratch into every medium that i use.

 

[jennaboo88]

Outstanding! The intricacy of the detail work is just amazing!

Oddly enough, I bought a new scratch-knife tip (#113, think - the one with slightly curved edges) a couple of days ago, but I've never used scratchboard. I tend to scratch into every medium that i use.

Thank you very much, Lamar! How interesting that you use scratching techniques in other mediums! I'd love to hear more - are you working with paintings or drawings to achieve texture with blades? It sounds really creative!

 

[laika]

I'd love to hear more - are you working with paintings or drawings to achieve texture with blades?

Below are the only examples for which i had pics:

A failed, unfinished alkyd oil portrait of H. P. Lovecraft, in which you can maybe see that I started to scratch out the highlight/shading on his neck and to scratch back to some color variation on the tie. (I gave up on the painting when I realized the lips were irredeemably messed up.) The rough texture of the canvas was not the best for scratching.

Also, a scratched rough drawing as the basis for a comic portrait of a friend. I think the scratched drawing is more interesting than the water-soluble oil painting that resulted!

I first fell in love with scratching back with oil pastels; they beg to be scratched

 

[Joy]

Jenna - exceptional, as usual. You must have a very steady hand and a lot of patience. I swear I could see the nose move with his breaths!

 

[Artyczar]

Yes, exceptional is the right word! This is just superb. It's awe-inspiring. What an incredible talent you are.

 

[jennaboo88]

Below are the only examples for which i had pics:

A failed, unfinished alkyd oil portrait of H. P. Lovecraft, in which you can maybe see that I started to scratch out the highlight/shading on his neck and to scratch back to some color variation on the tie. (I gave up on the painting when I realized the lips were irredeemably messed up.) The rough texture of the canvas was not the best for scratching.

Also, a scratched rough drawing as the basis for a comic portrait of a friend. I think the scratched drawing is more interesting than the water-soluble oil painting that resulted!

I first fell in love with scratching back with oil pastels; they beg to be scratched
View attachment 19171View attachment 19172

I love that use of sharp tools! It has a lot of potential. That first portrait is too cool! Thank you for sharing.

 

[jennaboo88]

Jenna - exceptional, as usual. You must have a very steady hand and a lot of patience. I swear I could see the nose move with his breaths!

Thank you so much, Joy! I love working those tiny, miniscule details, so I don't mind the long process of scratchboard. Your comments mean a lot. Thank you!