Fearless Friday, Art on Black Paper

In the spirit of Inktober and Halloween,
today we’re going to talk about some cool ideas
for drawing and painting on black paper
Black paper and colored gel pens can produce some magical effects!

I have been using this paper occasionally
for the Inktober art challenge
For the #9 prompt, “nest”
I drew a bird in a nest on top of a power pole with a white gel pen
Simple drawings become quite dramatic
when you draw on black paper with a white pen,
like the raccoon below

Even this simple line drawing of a flower garden with butterflies
looks dramatic

Zentangle art,
filling an image with shapes and patterns,
looks great on black paper too
Another way to add interest to a simple drawing
is to add detail to some areas while leaving other areas
indicated with just a simple line
like in the chef drawing below
For the Inktober prompt day #11, “eagle,”
I drew an eagle with a white gel pen
and then colored his beak with a yellow gel pen
I know it looks kind of green,
some colors do better than others 😂

You can add one color or several with a paint pen
like in the Hershey’s Kiss below

These bubbles turned out cool,
I used a circle template and then added colored lines with gel pens
to indicate refracted light

For the spiral below I used colored pencils,
and white and gold gel pens
Experiment with things you have to discover what works

I have found that gold gel pens work really well on the black paper
For the angels face and body I used paint

Yes, you can paint on black paper too!
I used acrylic craft paint for the angel and the snowmen
Next time you want to amp up your creativity,
try creating art with black paper~
I made a source list for you below:
Juicy Details
All of these art supplies are widely available in art supply stores, Hobby Lobby and Michaels
dickblick.com and jerrysartorama are good online sources
Links to my recommended products are provided through Amazon below. I am not an affiliate of these sources, just sharing my knowledge and sources
black paper/amazon here
colored gel pens/amazon here
set of white, silver and gold gel pens/amazon here
Have some fun with black paper and
Be Fearless!

I will be joining these fabulous parties and blogs:
Sundays on Silverado/ Love Your Creativity
What’s for Dinner/ Between Naps on the Porch
All About Home/ Common Ground & Follow the Yellow Brick Home
Oh My Heartsie Girl / Turn About Tuesday
Karin’s Cottage Linky Party / Creative Crafts / Crafty Creators
Full Plate Thursday/ Creatively Crafty/ Thursday Favorite Things
I’m glad you posted this. I have one black sketchbook and I never use it but now I’m inspired!
Let me know what you think Jeanie, it’s so much fun!!
Love these all, especially the bubbles!
Thanks Dorothy, happy weekend!
I love the art on black paper…it really pops. I love all your work as it makes me want to get out paper and brush and get busy. You make it look so easy, that I always think I can do it. But somehow, my shapes and forms are just that…no
cohesiveness at all, LOL
Blessings dear friend
Oh thank you Kari, I always appreciate your sweet comments!
Oh Jenna, I love all of your art on black paper. This is truly amazing. I can’t choose a favorite! Happy Friday!
Thank you Pam, Roll Tide!
Wow!! Those drawings are SO cool!!! I might try that black paper! Thank you.
Thanks Jessica, even doodling looks good!
Love that! Perfect for homeschooling art classes. I used to have a homeschool art club before the pandemic… but recently I was asked to possibly teach an Art in the Park class. This paper/pens would be the perfect medium! All age levels, no paint or glue to dry. No limit to creativity! I am really happy you wrote about this. Thank you!
That does sound perfect the this type of medium, have fun!
Thank you!
Wow!! I love this! Have a good weekend, Jenna.
Thanks Katie!
I love your drawings on black paper with the gel pens. It looks like it’s fun to draw this way and now you’ve inspired me to try this out. Happy Friday Jenna.
It is a lot of fun Julie, I hope you give it a try!
Those are some really cool drawings, Jenna.
Thanks Angie, have a great weekend!
I agree with your word “dramatic” to describe art on black paper!
The black paper is fun to experiment with, thanks Linda~
I really love all of this!! Brought back memories as I remember doing this in art class in school a very, very long time ago!! Love the angel and the snow men!! Thanks so much for stopping by!! Hope you are having a great weekend!!
Hugs,
Deb
Thanks so much Deb!
Jenna, I love this art on black paper – it looks like so much fun! I think my favorite is the bubbles but the “Boo” is so cute too. What a very cool idea!
Thanks so much Kim, it’s lots of fun to experiment with!