Ristra Roja Up Close Size:  12.5 x 18 cm (5 x 7 in) Medium:  Scratchboard Support:  Scratchbord Notes:  Colored with Ampersand Scratchbord Inks I wanted to do a “quick”* scratch work that didn’t involve fur or feathers which are the scratch artist’s bread and butter. I also wanted to shy away from metal and/or glass, as those are often the non-fauna go-tos. Being that I reside in New Mexico, and I happen to have a ristra** available for studies, I opted to make it my victim. Breaking from my usual tradition, I framed the chiles tightly so I’d have to fill the board. I also wanted to play with coloring a scratchboard like most seem to: with Ampersand inks applied with a brush. When I color a scratchboard, my preference is to apply any of a variety of mediums (ink, watercolor, acrylic, etc.) using an airbrush. While I’d practiced doing the usual brush-and-ink method, I’d never actually committed to it with intent. A style choice I made was to do the majority of the work using hatching, instead of cross-hatching. While I often opt for hatching in any case, this time it was deliberate as it allowed me to keep the chiles reasonably distinct during the initial layer of scratch. This resulted in an interesting, though accidental, side-effect of creating diffraction effects which muted a fair amount following varnishing. Other than that, I employed my usual arsenal of scratch tools, leaning heavily on my typical workhorses: needle and pin. * Oddly, it seems the smaller the scratchboard, the longer these things actually take. ** The typical, and seemingly ubiquitous, New Mexico ristra is a tight bundle of red chiles, [...]

We Fear No Elephants Size:  40.5 x 51 cm (16 x 20 in) Medium:  Scratchboard Support:  Scratchbord Notes:  — I wanted to do one of the big cats in a pose that isn’t typical. Me being me, I also had in mind that I wanted the piece to tell a bit of a story. The sleeping lion was delightfully not typical. Studying him a bit, I realized that he seemed unconcerned that he was sleeping on his own. Then again…lion. Duh. But, I reasoned, what if he had a protector guarding him from one of the few animals that even lions don’t toy with (much) — elephants? Enter the sleeping mouse. Now the story was set. These unlikely companions have joined up so that neither has to fear an elephant disturbing their sleep. Here's a little bit of the scratch detail. Many images by CJ Carter are ready for purchase in a variety of formats: prints, canvas prints, phone cases, and so much more. Help support this site and the artist by dropping by the store and getting gifts for yourself, for family, and friends.

Akela Size:  28 x 35.5 cm (11 x 14 in) Medium:  Scratchboard Support:  Clayboard Notes:  Airbrushed acrylics provided the pigment for the scratch work. I was requested to do a wolf by a family member, so I did a wolf (yep…that’s about all the inspiration I need, sometimes). I chose to do an airbrush/scratchboard mix because that’s a natural for mammal and bird close-ups. Plus, I enjoy it because it allows me to do both of the techniques I like doing. This image and many other images by CJ Carter are ready for purchase in a variety of formats: prints, canvas prints, phone cases, and so much more. Help support this site and the artist by dropping by the store and getting gifts for yourself, for family, and friends.

Turning 18 Size:  35.5 x 28 cm (14 x 11 in) Medium:  Scratchboard Support:  Scratchbord Notes:  — Few things are as life-changing as that time when you become an adult (a legal adult). Now it’s all on you. Sometimes, as an observer, you can see those moments when the meaning of that special birthday sinks in. I was privileged to be able to capture one of those moments. In some ways, this was a very lucky pose of opportunity. I didn’t direct it, but I had gone to the birthday celebration with an image in my head that I wanted to capture. Fortune presented me with what I’d seen in my mind’s eye, and I froze the moment with my camera. Using that as my referential inspiration, I translated the mood of the image into a scratch work. The Muses were kind to me with this one. Many images by CJ Carter are ready for purchase in a variety of formats: prints, canvas prints, phone cases, and so much more. Help support this site and the artist by dropping by the store and getting gifts for yourself, for family, and friends.

El Gato Size:  26.5 x 20.5 cm (10.5 x 8 in) Medium:  Scratchboard Support:  Claybord Notes:  Airbrush applied acrylic colors I wanted to merge my loves of airbrush and scratchboard. When I saw the reference image of this cat, I knew I’d found the right subject. “Fur-people” are a natural for scratchboard. The ability to represent hair/fur from fine to thick gives scratchboard an advantage over many other mediums. Airbrush provides the ability to render subtle shades of color very quickly and with a thinness that serves scratchboard well. It’s an outstanding marriage when you combine the two. This image and many other images by CJ Carter are ready for purchase in a variety of formats: prints, canvas prints, phone cases, and so much more. Help support this site and the artist by dropping by the store and getting gifts for yourself, for family, and friends.