Understanding The Environment

Through his colored pencil drawings, Elliott Everson translates the colors and textures of the Southwestern desert

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After graduating from college with a degree in art education I began my teaching career working in several schools and a variety of grade levels. At that time art teachers were frequently the victims of reductions in force and I was no exception. I attended some classes and began a career in programming. This paid the bills and allowed me to pursue other interests, all the time continuing to draw.

Years later, I entered my first Colored Pencil Society of America International Exhibition. Attending the national CPSA convention, I saw what fabulous work was possible with colored pencils and was hooked. I have continued to work in that medium ever since. Upon returning to work after the convention I found that the outsourcing of my programming job had given me an opportunity to return to creating art, full time.

Though originally from Michigan, I have been living in Arizona now for most of my life and the landscape, plants and animals of the Southwestern desert have inspired much of my art. Colored pencil is an ideal medium to capture the appearance and brilliance of the plants and animals. They are well suited to exploring the variety of textures of parched crusty bark, dried leaves and the waxy smooth flesh of the prickly pear cactus or the shiny scales and dry folds of skin on the reptiles.