www.penciltopics.co.uk

THIS PAGE IS PART OF THE SECTION DEALING WITH

This link will take you direct to the main contents page for the site

THIS SECTION ALSO CONTAINS PAGES COVERING :

This site does not have a full index because data is being added all the time.  

In 2010 I added a Google search facility (on the front page of each section) and that does find most things,

though recent additions to the site can take a few weeks to be picked up by the Google search engine

 

ANY CHANGES IN THE PAGES OF THE SITE WILL BE RECORDED HERE

 THIS IS A REVISED LIST, COMMENCING APRIL 2009

 

April 7th 2009 - Full upload of the whole site with added new section which will cover mixed media ( eventually )

                            And a new Contents page

April 11th 2009 -  Addition of the first part of a section on Trees.  The second part will be added in late September

April 13th 2009 -  Clarifications to notes on Transferring an Image (1)

April  19th 2009 - Cleaned up the overall design a little.  

April  27th 2009 - two new pages added.  Keeping a Record of your artwork ( Photo or Scan?)

                                                             And  Adjusting the quality of your photo using software

May  5th 2009 - Added page giving details of the UKCPS colour comparison Charts,

                                                         what they are, and how to get them

May 25th 2009 -  Major progressive revision and update started.  Pages re-written as needed .

                                First section completed to the end of ‘Brands/Cretacolor ’

May 26th 2009 -  Reviewed commonly opened pages for layout and corrected a number of spacing problems that seem

                                                  to have crept in over the last few months.  I have to watch these pages like a hawk

                                                    They seem to have a life of their own   !!!!!!

May 27th 2009 - Further layout revision through to the end of the Techniques section

May 28th 2009 - Revised the page for Accessories and the PDF page with it.

May 28th 2009 - also rewritten the page on the Golden section

May 30th 2009 - Apart from the Tuition Section, the whole site has now been revised and reloaded.

                            Tutorial pages will be refreshed shortly when extra pages are added

June 5th 2009 - added page on Wax Bloom to the Dry Point Pencil section

June 7th 2009 - revised page on Other Surfaces to expand on Fisher 400 grit paper

June 8th 2009 - Differences between brands page updated

June 8th 2009 - re-arrangement of the Skies and Backgrounds page into two pages and a re-write of the contents.  

           This will take a little time to complete so the PDF files will be amended later and not all links will be in place yet

June 10th 2009 -  Backgrounds page completed

June 10th 2009 - additional notes on Derwent burnishers in Derwent and also in Working the surface

June 12th 2009 -  added a test on Blender and Burnisher pencils to ‘Working the Surface’

June 15th 2009 - added a small additional section on colour shift to Aquarelles 1

June 17th 2009 - A large number of internal links established.  Revisions to the pages for Lyra pencils,  for Backgrounds and the brushed powder approach, and some layout adjustments to correct missing sections as read on some browsers  Finally a full back-up and reload of the entire site to pick up any odd missing bits.  PDF files still not fully updated, this will be done after the section on working on black paper has been completed  and some additional notes are to be added on working over Pastel.

June 18th 2009 - Once again the gremlins have been at work on the font sizes.  Complementary Colours page laid out again

June 19th 2009 -  more added to Backgrounds to describe the rubbed in pigment method using Frisket film

June 21st 2009 -  2 Printable PDF pages added to the Backgrounds section

June 22nd 2009 - extended the note on powdered pigment and updated the PDF files on ‘Working the Surface’

June 23rd 2009 -  Composition 2  -  I noticed that the item on counterchange was omitted and the paragraph above simply        repeated.  This has been corrected and  some minor re-phrasing done to the rest of the composition pages The PDF files for this section will be amended later

June 28th 2009 -  Following some suggestions from regular visitors to the site, I have taken the opportunity of changing the background colour of the headings from the rather oppressive red I chose when I first set up the site. Hopefully this will be a little less oppressive !  Additional to the full reload of the site, I have also now added the first part of the topic on using coloured paper - in Techniques / Working on coloured paper.  This first section concentrates on black paper.

June 29th 2009 -  Black Paper PDF file completed and all the PDF links brought up to date

August 9th 2009   The whole site revised and laid out afresh.   The internal links and the small context index ( bottom right of the page ) are not yet complete, and will be added progressively over the next couple of months as time allows.  The basic site is back on air though, in a new format and I hope you find it easier to use.  Understanding the software to do it was certainly a challenge !!  I must now concentrate on the Knuston Course for early September.

August 10th 2009  I have revised  the CONTENTS page so that it now becomes a more useful means of navigation around the site for newcomers, and also added a ‘C’ button to enable travellers to find their way back to the Contents listing. This tidies up an important loose end.

                              The next task is to start going through the old links that are now broken or need revising.

August 10th 2009  Also added the long promised page on Backgrounds with Aquarelles

August 15th 2009.  In order to make it easier for visitors who have the old size (narrow) computer screens, I have responded to the request that the navigation buttons go back on the left hand side, with a partial re-design of the page layout.  This gives a better chance of being able to read the pages without having to scroll sideways.  I have changed some of the navigation as well, but hopefully this will not create any problems.  The narrower page means that some bits and pieces have to be sacrificed.

August 16th 2009   Started the long job of updating and installing internal links.  Completed up to and including Brands

August  20th 2009  Added a new NEWS page to cover news and new information on CP topics

August 22nd 2009  Started a progressive revision of pages and addition of context links.  Starting from ‘Differences  Between Brands’

August 28th 2009  Revised  Surfaces 1 - Paper,   as the end of the script had got lost.  I have also updated the page

August 30th 2009  A number of internal hyperlinks produced an odd result with doubled up frames on the main pages.  I have corrected those I have found, but if you spot any more, please send me an Email and I will check them out.  Links within a page to another page should just open the new page within the frame and not repeat the whole outside as well.

SEPTEMBER 18th 2009      New details of courses at Knuston Hall in 2010 and also proposals for a detailed step by step tutorial over this website later this year.  PLEASE SEE the latest entry at the bottom of the Tuition page and send me an Email as suggested, if you are interested in getting involved..

OCTOBER 5th 2009    A NEW detailed Step by Step landscape exercise is just starting, with input from a panel of artists who will be working it along with the site.  If you want to join in with the exercise, just follow the progress.  As much detail is given as possible to make it suitable for beginners in CP.

OCTOBER 10th 2009  Detailed SBS exercise will commence shortly, the interactive panel is now established, and we are about to select the image we will work from.

OCTOBER 17th 2009   We now have an image to work from for the detailed step by step exercise, and will start to consider what to include and what to exclude

NOVEMBER 9th 2009   Details of the sale of UKCPS simple step by steps left over from the recent exhibition at Birmingham added to an extra page on the UKCPS section

NOVEMBER 10th 2009  Information on both Talens Pencils and Bruynzeel pencils added to the Brands section

NOVEMBER  14th 2009  More information on the Bruynzeel Design colour pencils

NOVEMBER  14th 2009  Stabilo white ‘ALL’ pencil on black paper - comment.

NOVEMBER 30th 2009   The last posting to the detailed step by step for 2009 will be later this week

                         and the next one after that will be in the first or second week of January 2010  ( Business back to normal )  

Happy Christmas and a good new year to all our readers   See you in 2010 !

2010  January 13th -  The Detailed Step by Step has another short step which takes us into page 4.  There is a  new Pastel Pencil section in preparation which should go into position later in January

JANUARY 24th 2010    Another step in the big tutorial is now shown on page 4  as above.

January 27th 2010  Further work on the Step by Step brings the  area of trees in this landscape nearer completion  _ Page 5

January 30th 2010.  Change made to pastel pencil intro page to record intention to post the new section on pastel pencils on February 13th

February 5th 2010  - additional notes added to the Detailed Step By Step exercise on Page 6  which completes a further section of the picture

February 10th 2010  - the NEW PASTEL PENCIL SECTION is complete and has been included in the site today

March 2nd 2010 -  Updates to the Derwent page in brands.  There are also sets of colour charts being prepared which will enable the colours to be matched from one brand to another. These will appear in due course in the Colour Comparisons section of Brands

March 6th 2010 - New Colour Comparison Charts now posted to site

March 26th 2010 - The Step by Step tutorial of the Bridge at Allerford is now complete as far as the tutorial part is concerned.  The body of the tutorial will now be edited to tidy up the content and correct some typos, as it will be required to join my step by step collection in printed form.  The edited tutorial will remain here, however, and hopefully the gallery at the end  on page 8 will eventually get some entries hanging there from those of you who have been working along.

APRIL 1st 2010 -  MAJOR change in the Techniques sections with the parts special to Landscapes moved into a new Landscape section.

                    The initial move simply shifts some old parts across, but there will be added parts and also a re-write of the Techniques sections to place the content into a more logical order later in the Summer.  Eventually the Intermediate and more advanced Step by Step exercises will be moved into the appropriate Techniques sections.

April 24th 2010.  A steady read through and update of the site page by page, involving a lot of minor amendments, and the addition of some more illustrations.  This will take some time as there are now over 200 pages on the site.  Any major additions or changes will be logged, but most of the smaller ones will be left to your own observation to spot.

May 1st 2010    Read through and revision has reached  Surfaces -Paper stretching.  Next section to be taken on is  - Dry Point Pencil   

Revised pages now have a revision date at the bottom  of the page

May 13th 2010  - Revision has reached ‘With other media’ .

                              ‘Pastel Pencils’ is a recent addition, so the next area for review will be the ‘General Techniques’ section

June 3rd 2010 - A New project started  - the old section ‘with other media’ has been changed to ‘ Mixed Media’ and a step by step  involving pastels under CP has commenced.  This exercise will remain ( if it works out ) as an example in the Mixed Media section and techniques pages

                     ( or page ) will be added later.

June 24th 2010  Mixed Media exercise completed.  Bellapais Abbey, Kyrenia.  

                    A picture using pastel pencil underpainting with detail added in wax pencil over the top.

June 27th 2010  - Finally added the second section on trees within the landscape section.  Trees 2 looks at the process of completing a hillside of trees using watercolour pencils.  There will be a section on Trees 3 in the future which will look at light through trees.

July 16th 2010  - extra sections now added to include techniques for drawing boats and understanding water reflections,  Definitions of various art terms like ‘Negative Space’ , Form,  Value and ‘Lost Edges’ amongst others. And also a section with some advice on developing drawing skills from life and still life subjects.  These are all included in General Art Points

August 14th 2010 -  After over 18 months of use, The first major update of the site is now complete.  There is a new page layout which provides a screen sized section for the reader - above, and separate from, the administration ‘stuff’

                      A number of pages have been removed and information merged into a more logical  form.. The ‘standard’ navigation page has now been restricted to main subject headings and a new topic page introduced which gives more space for content.

                       

August 23rd 2010 - New content added to Bookshelf to include some Pastel books. There is not a great deal out there, but a number of books on Soft Pastel include Pastel Pencils, and some on soft pastel landscapes are very useful on the techniques for building colour.

September 3rd 2010 -  Revised topic on Colour matching to include a worked example of a continuum.  There have been one or two minor typo and other corrections and also added content to the page in Brands covering Bruynzeel  with more information on colour naming and set contents.

                      Readership of the site has leapt since the new layout was posted. Good to see that we are also seeing readers from some parts of the world I haven’t noticed on our geographical list before.  Perhaps I had just missed you last time, but with the new arrangements it is now easier to keep track !  Welcome and thanks for looking in.  Do let me know if there is anything I can include in future to help you all.

                      If I don’t know an answer myself, I usually know someone who does !

October 16th 2010 -  I have added an old workshop exercise ( Two Pears ) to more thoroughly cover the basics of using watercolour pencils. This has been included in the ‘8 ways of using’ page of the Aquarelle section.  This is a  well tried tutorial which has been used for teaching groups for many years.

November 4th 2010 -  I have added Ron West’s notes on working CP on to wood panels into the ‘Other Surfaces’ section

November 18th 2010  - A new section inserted into General Techniques on sharpening Pencils and pencil sharpeners.  A collection of notes still being edited into shape and some more information still to be added.  The item is currently three quarter there.

DECEMBER 2010  -  an number of minor changes have been made, but also a new TUTORIAL exercise has been added ( December 21st ) of the Bowerman stone.  This is one of my original course exercises that has now been taken down from the course programme.

JANUARY 5th 2011.  I have revised the basic advice page on Pencil differences as this was virtually unchanged from 2009 and it needed updating for more recent brand availability.

JANUARY 6th 2011  -  The section on sharpening pencils has now been completed ( in General Techniques )

FEBRUARY 6th 2011 - Revision of some of the content of the ‘adjusting an image’ section in the newly re-titled ‘Art Points’

                General Art Points was easily confused with General techniques, so I have amended the title to simplify my own searching for data.

March 1st 2011  There have been one or two added bits of content over the last few weeks.  Some information on Printing and Layout for producing cards etc ( with a further addition about lightfastness of printer cartridge inks ).  There has also been an item  included about the use of a matrix to decide on colour layering for Dry Point pencils.

MARCH 17th 2011  A major redesign of the main pages and the  way the site runs to eliminate the old ‘window frame’ system.  Hopefully the pages will now be easier to read on a wide variety of different computer screen sizes.  Simplicity rules !!!!!!  In the last few days there has also been the addition of some new information on lightfastness ratings ( ASTMS ).

MARCH 20th 2011  More content added to the Brick Stone and Tile TOPIC in Landscpe Techniques.  A second (empty) page set up to take the rest of this section  later this year.

APRIL 10th 2011  Mixed Media page has had more information added

MAY 6th 2011    A new tutorial step by step included - ‘Tavy Rocks’

MAY 26th 2011  The long awaited completion of the note on sharpening pastel pencils has been added to the Pastel Pencils Techniques page

JUNE 6th 2011  A Readers Gallery has been set up to enable those who view this site to see a wider range of work where pencil has been used, and also to go to linked websites and blogs of those artists on the Gallery ‘wall’.  

                      This is proving an attraction and it may be that the current single page may need to be extended !

June 19th 2011  Help and Advice line item introduced on the first page of the site.  

                          This may change and develop as time passes and a full advice section may be added to the  site later.

June 30th 2011  Prismacolor lightfast chart has been added to the colour comparison chart sets. These pencils are no longer produced, but are still available in some internet retailers and Art stores in the USA.  They were an excellent product but were not generally on sale in the UK.

July 6th 2011  A new Topic set up following investigations into the availability of workable fixative sprays for CP in Europe. This is still open for more information but the

                      subject has been transferred from it’s original site in the Help and Advice Line.

July 11th 2011   - Additions to the page on Paper Surfaces with more details of European, USA and Canadian Distribution

July 21st 2011  - Information on the lIghtfastness of black paper added to the page on Coloured Surfaces

July 31st 2011  - revision of content on the four parts of the Pastel Pencil section to include some updates on brands and also to re-phrase some content to take account of the passage of time.

August 7th 2011 -  Addition of the link to the official Prismacolor Premier colour chart in PDF format giving ASTMS 6901 lightfastness ratings

August 13th 2011 - Addition of new topic on Solvents.  This is not yet complete.

August 15th 2011 -  New Step by Step exercise - Cottage Entrance - in Mixed Media

September 1st 2011 -  Light testing of black papers.  There is also more information on the selections of black papers available

October 11th 2011 -  A set of notes on working a still life picture - notes prepared for the course run in September ( and not all used ).

November 12th 2011 - Lightfastness tests added to the topics on the effects of light on Coloured Pencil

January 23rd 2012 - Apart from a major update of the look of the site and improvement of the page links, there have been one or two additions to the step by step content with the completion of the exercise on the Cottage Entrance started last August, and the inclusion of a big step by step on a scene in Annecy in Eastern France, completed in Pastel Pencil.

The Glossary of Terms used in CP

And

PDF  FILES

and the Tutorials listed showing those which can be printed out

SITE INFORMATION