Below are a number of sketches and/or works in progress. Some of these will become final works of art, others are just studies or other experiments with a particular technique or subject that I found interesting. Sometimes I need to wait until I find the right medium or further inspiration for a piece before completing it - and it might further evolve before becoming final. And sometimes it's just fun to play with a medium!

A stegosaurus in progress. This is colored pencil on drafting film and the color is on both the back and front of the film. It will need a background before it's done! 

I am working on a large, long term project: a montage of our pets, past and present. I repurposed a very large, old canvas I had lying around for this work. So far, I have completed Misty (the Golden), Ember (the Tortie), Ashe (grey and white), Ripley (black dog), Mia (B&W dog), and Shiro (the Ragdoll). Ripley, Mia, Ember, and Shiro are still with us. Next to add are one more cat and three more dogs in the upper blue area! 

Here is is the end of July 2020 and, after starting 2 years ago, the Pet Montage is finally completed! This is essentially 10 pet portraits in acrylic. It is a very large canvas and was a labor of love and now it hangs in a place of honor on our walls.

Pastels. I have always loved the purity and intensity of color possible using pastels so I have tried my hand at some pastel paintings. Here's a tiger in pastels on sanded UART paper. The reference for this painting is a photo I took of one of the tigers at the Big Cat Habitat and Sanctuary in Sarasota, FL. Such beautiful animals!

The finished version is on my Nature Art page.

Below is a colored pencil work in progress of my main muse, Ember, my Tortoise Shell cat. It's very entertaining to watch her go about her kitty business and she sometimes strikes wonderful poses that I just have to capture. Her fur is so beautiful and lends itself so well to colored pencils. The final version is finished and available on my Nature Art page.

Here's another colored pencil drawing on drafting film in progress. Ashe is another one of our cats and he make s a fine model with his lovely green eyes and little pink tongue. Once the pencil drawing is completed, I'll choose a background for him that complements his eyes and neutral gray tones. The temporary background is a light blue piece of pastel paper that makes it easier to see the white pencil as I draw. The finished piece is available on the Nature Art page.

Commissioned Cat paintings:     

Colors being blocked in and I just started adding some facial details and toes on the B&W kitty. The final versions can be seen on my Commissioned Art page.

Here are a few views of the Gallimimus drafting film drawing in progress. I filled in the dinosaur's details on the drafting film over a simple pencil reference sketch I made on paper that's visible through the translucent film. In the final piece, only the dinosaur is on the drafting film and all other details/colors are done in pastel on the backing piece of paper. The final version can be seen on my Prehistoric Art page.

Colored pencil Grey Crowned Crane from a photo I took on a trip to the Denver Zoo in the summer. This is on drafting film and still needs an appropriate background. I plan to create something suitably filled with vegetation to reflect that the crane was standing on a small beach soaking up the sun with bushes and trees behind it. This piece is now completed and called "Patience". The final version can be seen on my Nature Art page.