What little girl didn't want to be a ballerina?
I was absolutely one of them. I took ballet lessons when I was young and spent years dreaming about pointe shoes — watching the older girls and wanting so badly to be just like them. Graceful, elegant, strong.
Eventually I grew up and made peace with the fact that I was not destined for the ballet. I ended up in a different field that requires just as much toughness — just considerably less grace. 😄
But my admiration for ballerinas never went away. And one day that admiration turned into art.
It Started as a Practice Sketch
This whole series began simply — I just wanted to draw something for myself. No plan, no collection in mind. Just a ballerina on pointe in graphite on toned paper, with white pastel pencil highlights to make the details sing.
(I use a Stabilo Carbothello pastel pencil in white for highlights — especially beautiful on paper that isn't bright white.)
When I finished I thought — let's see what this looks like in a completely different medium.
The Ballpoint Pen Version
So I drew it again. This time with a Bic blue ballpoint pen.
Which — I just have to point out — is a little ironic. Drawing a pointe shoe with a ballpoint pen. I'll see myself out. 😄
There's something I love about the control and precision of a ballpoint pen for fine detail work. Bic is honestly the only brand I use for drawing — not because I've tested every option out there, but because it works and I keep coming back to it.
The Color Version
After finishing both I set them aside and didn't think about them for a while. Then one day it hit me — these two needed a third. A trilogy. Something to frame together.
So I created a mixed media color version, drawn primarily with Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils. Bringing color into the same subject completely changed the feeling of it — warmer, softer, more alive.
The Happy Accident That Started a Series
Around this same time I'd been experimenting with a black liquid ink pen — and once I had it in my hand I couldn't not draw the ballerina one more time.
Here's how I found that pen: I was at work at the fire station and needed something to write with. Found one sitting on a desk, borrowed it, and was immediately amazed at how smooth it was. Spent the next week tracking down who it belonged to until they kindly just gave it to me. Went out and bought several more immediately.
It's a Pilot Precise V7 RT Liquid Ink Rolling Ball pen. I am completely in love with it.
(Spoiler: that pen went on to inspire an entire new series — but more on that another day. 😉)
The Finished Collection
After four versions I finally made myself stop — which if you know artists, is sometimes the hardest part.
I framed all four together and they now live with a private collector — one of my favorites. There's something so satisfying about a series like this finding a permanent home.
Your Turn
Which version is your favorite? Drop it in the comments — I'd love to know.
And is there another subject you'd like to see drawn in multiple mediums like this? Same image, completely different tools and techniques. It's one of my favorite ways to explore and I'm always open to suggestions. 🎨
XO, Kris
