Portrait Artist

Portrait Artist, specializing in pencil and pastel portraits

*Dusts off this blog*...

Please excuse the dust. I am still drawing, by the way.

www.portraits-by-sheri.com

or visit me on facebook for my latest projects under "portraits by sheri"


The human form

It is important to understand the human form if one wants to draw it. I used to dance and am familiar with dancer musculature. I would LOVE an opportunity to draw your little dancer, your little sport, performer, or even reader! Spontaneous pictures are also fun and make excellent art pieces. The above picture was drawn with colored pencils. I drew it on a slow day at work in the mid 1990's with paper and colored pencils available in the copy center where I worked. Although I should have been cleaning or making myself otherwise useful, I cannot say I regret starting this picture. I graphed and enlarged it from a small 2 inch picture of Russian dancers on the bottom of the Dancer's Magazine page.

Introductory pricing






There is still time to get your favorite photo drawn under the special introductory pricing:

5x7 $35
8x10 $50
11x14 $75

$15 for extra subject per portrait

Pastel portraits


Some examples of pastels I'm doing; notice I am working from dark to light. On pencil portraits, I do just the opposite, working from light to dark.

The eyes have it.




































My favorite part of portraits are the eyes. It is most important to me to capture the eyes above and beyond all else. I have seen portraits done where the eyes look like a doll...or flat in effect. The secret to a successful pencil or pastel portrait is a subject's picture where the eyes are clearly seen in detail. The difference between a good pencil portrait and a so-so portrait is the picture it was drawn from. If you are considering a portrait, consider the lighting and detail. No matter the artist's technique, there is only so much that can be done where lighting and detail lack.

Here are some good examples where the detail in the eyes have the potential for a great pencil or pastel portrait

I love to draw people...

I have always had an interest in faces. Ever since I was young, I could sit and draw made-up faces. Now as an adult, I love the opportunity to draw real people. I am excited to jump back into art. I took some time off back in 2005 after the birth of my first child, simply because I was working outside the home and there just wasn't enough time in the day. Now after having my second child with my first going to school this year, I quit my job to be a stay at home mom (yay!)and got back into doing the thing I loved to do since I was four...to draw.

Pastel portrait

Here's a portrait I did for my sister some years ago.
I duplicated this from a famous oil painting. I was trying it in acrylic. This was done at a community art class.

Welcome!






Here are some examples of my work in pencil portraits. The portrait to the right is of my daughter.










Here is a pencil of a child out of my imagination.















This pencil was done trying a different technique. This was from a live model in a college art class.














Here is a pencil I did in High School in the mid 1980's.















Here is a pencil I did of Marilyn in high school. I was sixteen.