scratchboard

If you’d like to see some samples of the world’s most amazing scratchboard art, I’ll take you there! The International Society of Scratchboard Artists (ISSA) has posted its 2020 Online Show, and I am in awe of the creativity and artistic talents of scratchboard artists. As a new member at the “active” level of the ISSA, I was allowed to enter two of my scratchboards into the annual non-juried show. I entered “Purple Cow” and “Heart To Heart.” Even at the … Read More

Some organizations allow you to join simply by paying your membership fee. For me to become an active member of the International Society of Scratchboard Artists (ISSA) it wasn’t that simple. To achieve active member status, an artist is required to submit 5 images of their scratchboard artwork, prepared to the organization’s sizing and file naming specifications… along with a fee for the review. A juror analyzes the work, rates it and provides a critique as feedback for the submitting … Read More

I was ready to try a large watercolor portrait on white Aquabord™ and hunted through my reference photos for an inspiring subject. I had taken some photos of my 3 year old great-niece Emma a month earlier when we took her to a terrific children’s museum. She is cute, bubbly, and a happy little girl; she was excited and animated with the fun activities at the museum. I got some good photos of her but none of them jumped out … Read More

Earlier this month I received an invitation to be an “Ampersand Artist Ambassador” and I am truly honored. Ampersand™ Art Supply is family-owned company based in Buda TX which engineers the only archivally sealed artist panels on the market today. They produce the panels I love to use for watercolors and scratchboards and a variety of other art panels for many media… plus tools, inks, floater frames and more. The company hand-picked about 50 artists from across the US to … Read More

I just learned that my painting “Heart To Heart” won another very special award in the 2019 Oak Ridge Open Show (which ended in November)… the “Open Show Viewer’s Choice Award.” This award is tabulated at the end of the show, by the votes from those who viewed the show during its display for over two months. This black Scratchbord® was one of my two paintings in the show and won an award from the judge – “Sorghum Maker” was … Read More

My recent focus on painting portraits has proven successful in eliminating most of my apprehensions, so I’m off and running. One thing I’ve learned is how much fun I have painting white-bearded males! Capturing white hairs is a challenge when painting in traditional techniques of watercolor on paper, where the white of unpainted paper is preserved vs. using any white paint – but a good challenge can help develop artistic skills. Recently I decided it was time to do a … Read More

Two of my paintings are currently featured in the Oak Ridge (TN) OPEN SHOW 2019, and I am delighted to also receive my first award for a black scratchboard. Juror Victoria Boone gave critiques to every entry, and here are her comments about my art:  Heart To Heart “Magnificent detail in cat and dog – especially in the eyes with reflections. This makes this an extremely poignant pet portrait. Just amazing…” She awarded this painting Honorable Mention. Sorghum Maker “Beautiful … Read More

  As a painter of animals, I know it is difficult to depict black fur. A big solid area of black just doesn’t cut it – you have to capture the highlights to make it look realistic and give it dimension. I was ready for the challenge of painting a black cow. This is my first cow art on Scratchbord®. My two previous cow paintings, Eat Chicken and Cow’s In The Corn, were both very colorful, created in watercolor on … Read More

I  created “Sweet Dreams” with a few new twists – not counting the twisted body of the cute little kitten: The reference photo is not one I took I selected an unusual palette of colors The application of paint was unconventional Watercolor pencils added some finishing touches From the first time I saw my friend Dawn’s photo of this kitty, I knew I had to paint it. Dawn had rescued her the middle of the road when she was ‘no … Read More

Here are valuable reference sources and hot links to help those of you who attend Scratchboard 101 presented by Judy Lavoie… and to help anyone else looking for great scratchboarding information! https://wfi.xfi.mybluehost.me References and Resources: ONLINE: Ampersand Art, Supplier of Aquabord™, Scratchbord™, Claybord™, other art panels, tools, inks, and great source of information: ampersandart.com Ampersand blog post about Aquabord™ Aquabord 101 Ampersand supplier for the UK, with a good blog post on scratchboards and other panels: Extraordinary Surfaces for Your … Read More