#wildlifeartist

May 20, 2021
3 min

Scratchboard Tutorial: Creating Realistic and Soft Fur Textures

Today's post is all about FUR! I use a combination of the small fiberglass brush and an x-acto knife to create realistic looking fur. There are several ways to render fur on scratchboard, but I'm going to talk about my specific processes and methods. The first step in almost all of my scratchboard textures is the small fiberglass brush. I use this tool to put in the first layer of scratches, which helps establish the flow of the fur (the direction in which the individual hair

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melissahelene

Apr 22, 2021
3 min

Scratchboard Techniques: Black vs White

My scratchboard artwork is all black and white (with many variations of grey), but the approach I take for creating a mostly 'white' animal and a mostly 'black' animal can be very different. When I'm out showing my work, I often get asked how I draw black animals on a board that is already completely black. The answer to that question is LIGHT...and form, but mostly light, light, light. That question also assumes that creating a white animal is easier, when, at least for me,

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The Importance of Art Festivals in My Business

melissahelene

Feb 24, 2021
3 min

The Importance of Art Festivals in My Business

Business As An Artist "Why don't you just sell online?" "Are you selling your work on social media?" "...but they're having an online event, that's a good alternative, right?" Yes, but also a big NO. Art festivals are my chosen business model for a few very important reasons and while I do sell online through my Scratchboard Shop, promote and sell on social media, offer reproductions and small original work, host seasonal sales, and participate in and host virtual events, non

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Scratchboard Tool Feature: The X-Acto Blade

melissahelene

Feb 10, 2021
2 min

Scratchboard Tool Feature: The X-Acto Blade

The X-Acto blade is the second most important tool in my kit. This tool is very easy to get your hands on - you can find it in any arts and craft store and many other places because it serves so many different functions. I use the x-acto knife in many different ways - the first of which is to create the striking and individual details in each of my scratchboard wildlife portraits. Unlike the fiberglass brush that creates many very fine strokes within one pull of the tool, the

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The Importance of Reference Images in Realistic Scratchboard Artwork

melissahelene

Jan 28, 2021
4 min

The Importance of Reference Images in Realistic Scratchboard Artwork

My scratchboard artwork is photo-realistic and hyper detailed, which means that the images I use as references for my work are incredibly important. This is especially true for the custom pet portraits that I am frequently commissioned to do. Scratchboard Wildlife In my wildlife work, references are crucial for creating accurate photo-realism. Wild animals have wild features and getting those intimate details correct is difficult without some guidance. When I'm scratching, I

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Inside A Small Business: So What Do You DO All Day?

melissahelene

Sep 9, 2020
3 min

Inside A Small Business: So What Do You DO All Day?

One of the questions that I get all the time from family, friends, and clients, is ‘what do you DO all day’? Most people have no idea what it looks like to be a full-time professional artist (I didn’t when I decided to be one either), so today I thought I’d give you a glimpse into my creative small business…it won’t look like anyone else’s but it will give you a pretty good idea of what it takes to run a business as an artist. My day-to-day looks very different depending on t

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An Inside Look at Art Festivals: What You Know and What You Don’t

melissahelene

Sep 9, 2020
3 min

An Inside Look at Art Festivals: What You Know and What You Don’t

There are many questions I get regularly about my work as a professional scratchboard artist, including what the heck scratchboard is, how long it takes to complete a piece, where I show my work, and how commissioning a custom pet portrait works. One part of my business that people don’t typically ask questions about until I bring it up is art festivals and how they work. Once I start explaining it, the questions and the surprised looks come rushing out, so I thought I would

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Endangered Species Series: Re-Introduction + African Wild Dogs

melissahelene

Sep 9, 2020
2 min

Endangered Species Series: Re-Introduction + African Wild Dogs

I started this Endangered Species Series in the fall of 2014 as one small part of my conservation initiative. Here is what I said about it in that very first installment... “I feel a responsibility to try and protect the world that inspires me every single day. This series will be a journey of learning for myself and all those who choose to educate themselves further about the many species in our world that are losing their homes, their livelihood, and being killed for vario

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melissahelene

Sep 9, 2020
2 min

Scratchboard: What the heck is it?

If you’re new to the world of scratchboard, this post is for YOU! Though an old medium previously used for illustration, scratchboard is not well known to a large portion of the general public and even within the arts community. It is experiencing a resurgence and gaining more acclaim in the world of the arts due in large part to the creation of the International Society of Scratchboard Artists (ISSA) in 2011 and continued work by individual artists. So now, what the heck IS

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melissahelene

Sep 9, 2020
2 min

Melissa Helene | Scratchboard Artist | [Re] Introduction

Hey there everyone! I took a little bit of a hiatus from blogging recently and am ready to get back to it, offering great new content about scratchboard artwork and processes, behind the scenes of my business and scratchboard techniques, pet portrait projects, wildlife and wild place features, new installments of my Endangered Species Series (ESS), and personal posts about adventure, travel, backpacking and hiking. I’m really excited to share my journey as we all navigate a

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MH