Using coloured pencils on black paper

As you probably know by now, black paper is a favourite of mine. Coloured pencils, however, give mixed results because black paper sucks up pigment so it can be challenging to get the pigment to shine on the paper. 

However, I've since drawn various subjects on black paper with coloured pencils and am getting the hang of it. It's important to use the right black paper, though. I've found Clairefontaine's Paint On Noir paper to be the most successful in letting the light shine while allowing for layers.

Here are some subjects I've done using coloured pencil pieces on black paper:

Flowers

Flowers have always intrigued me and I've done many using coloured pencils, some more successful than others. My favourite thus far is this one:

It was only with this piece that I realised how beautiful coloured pencil flowers on black paper can be. The subtlety in pigment, which I previously thought was a negative point, actually produces a velvety, delicate texture that's so alluring for petals.

The surrounding black also creates a reverse halo that envelopes the flower in a beautifully ethereal aura. 

This is another favourite:

And a couple of others:

I've also attempted animals:

Figure:

And still life. Usually for something like this, I would take my time but because I wanted to record myself drawing it in one sitting, I didn't pause for checks. Hence, it's not as accurate as I would have liked - there are errors which I only discovered at the end when I stepped back to scrutinise it.

It took me 1hr 10mins. I used mostly Derwent Lightfast and Caran d'Ache Luminance pencils as they give the brightest pigment on black paper.

You can watch the 4min timelapse video here.