Weekend Art Challenge Results!

Welcome to this week’s Weekend Art Challenge results, where we set our students the task of painting animal eyes. Eyes are one of the most rewarding and challenging subjects an artist can tackle, full of light, depth and personality, and the entries this week show just how much our students enjoyed this subject.

Cats were a firm favourite, appearing in several entries across a range of mediums, from watercolour and acrylics to pencil and pastel. But students ventured far beyond the domestic, with a green iguana, a chameleon, an elephant, a tuatara, a cheetah cub and even the family dog all making an appearance. The range of mediums on show was equally impressive, taking in watercolour, gouache, ink washes, graphite, oils, acrylics and fine liner, each bringing its own quality to the luminous, living quality that a well-painted eye demands.

It was also lovely to see students really throwing themselves into the challenge. Several submitted multiple pieces, exploring different creatures and techniques across the week, and Gwen shared that she had used the prompt as an opportunity to practise eyes every single day, a commitment that will certainly pay dividends in all her future work.

Thank you so much to everyone who took part. Animal eyes are a true test of observation and patience, and the results this week have been absolutely stunning.

Watercolour of an eye of a Burmese kitten.
Karin

A bit late with eye challenges but I was never any good at eyes so I just did eyes for a whole week and it certainly helped!!
Gwen

Toby. Reference from my sister as he’s the family dog. Graphite on cartridge paper.
Katrine

My cat Sandi’s eyes with acrylics on paper A4 size. She is an exotic short hair cat.
Ni Ni

Tuatara’s eye with ink washes and yellow and white gouache in my sketchbook. Tuatara is a reptile endemic in New Zealand, about 80cm long and weighs 1.3kg. Science name is Sphenodon punctuatus. The relatives of them in order Rhychocephalia are now extinct. They are closest to lizards but has features of turtles, crocodiles and birds. I learned something new. Their eyes are beautiful!
Ni Ni

Weekend challenge: animal eyes. A cat drawn with acrylic paint and pens
Nina P

This is the eye of the green iguana, although his scales are blue and yellow on this painting, they turn to green on the iguanas body itself.
It is made using pencil and watercolour.
Catherine

Here’s a page from my sketchbook for this week’s challenge. Various animals eyes all made using fine liner and watercolour.
Catherine

Here is another piece for this week’s challenge – a chameleon, chameleons are unusual in that they can move each eye independently of the other. This is made using fine liner and watercolour.
Catherine

And my final eye for this week’s challenge is an elephant’s eye made using pencil and watercolour.
Catherine

Animals’ Eyes. I’ve found these three in my folio, I love painting animals. I like using oil paint as it looks shiny and glossy for their hair and eyes. I’ll have a go at some more later today. Clare.

This is a Cheetah cub which I photographed from the tv ages ago and have been waiting for the opportunity to paint it. Pastels on Pastelmat.
Dinah

We hope that everyone enjoyed this challenge. Stay tuned for a new Weekend Art Challenge posted here tomorrow.

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