Hello
I'm Carl, and I'm an artist based in Cheshire in the UK.
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I've been drawing for as long as I can remember and I love it.
Drawing people and figures has always interested me most; from facial expressions to body language, it's amazing how moving a couple of lines can have such a big impact on what a drawing says about a person.
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Aside from drawing, I love coffee, football and the great outdoors - which my border collie (Poppy) is pleased about!
What I do
I create custom artwork for people all over the UK!
All of my work is hand drawn in charcoal on high quality, heavyweight papers. Charcoal is such a great medium, offering a truly rich black whilst still allowing a very light touch to be applied in the fine highlights.
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All you need to do is send me a photograph or two that you'd like turned into a piece of artwork.
Wedding artwork has become a speciality of mine and is particularly popular as a wedding or anniversary gift (especially a first anniversary, which is paper!). It also represents everything I love about drawing people and it is incredibly rewarding to capture such an important moment in someone's life.
How I work
Start with a blank canvas...
The most important thing for me before starting any new piece of artwork, is making sure that you're going to love the finished piece.
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Creating a piece of artwork is a time consuming process and a finished piece can take many hours to complete. So it's important to make sure you're happy with the brief before we start.
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Talking ideas
I usually work from photographs so I'll ask you for a couple of images or ideas of what sort of thing you're after.
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If you have a specific image in mind, that's even better!
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I'll also ask you which of my other pieces you like so that I can get a feel for what it is you like.
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If you're struggling to choose between a few images, I can let you know what I think would work best in my style.
I work with you
I'll prepare some initial sketches and discuss my ideas with you before we decide on the final piece - we'll discuss things like layout, size and other details too.
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Many clients like to keep the sketches I create along the way as a nice reminder of the experience.
Stay in the loop...
or be surprised!
Once we've decided on a choice of image, composition and size, it's time for me to get to work!
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The final piece can take many, many hours to complete so I'll regularly update you on how it's going. It's entirely up to you however whether you choose to see progress pics or wait until its finished.
Still want to know more?
I'm always happy to chat about my work or ideas for commissions, so get in touch if you'd like to find out more!
If you'd like to commission a piece of artwork then you can fill out an enquiry form here:
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...or just drop me an email at carl.gaffney@hotmail.co.uk