Rainbow Bisque

The drawing experiments have been continuing on. I've managed to keep drawing nearly everyday (sometimes Saturday just passes me by). Even when the figures and portraits I commit to paper turn out to be more monstrous than I would like, I just remind myself that I'm still learning. It never gets easier - just more familiar. This drawing was done with a flair tip pen and fifteen minutes of focused drawing.

I have a confession to make about today's drawing: the mouth was the last thing I ended up drawing, and I was hoping I would run out of time before I got to it. Drawing mouths is a tricky thing - the teeth can end up too big, the lips too flat. I suppose noses are difficult for the same reasons. Deep down, I felt like I was doing a great job on the rest of the drawing and adding a mouth could ruin the entire thing. I had to remind myself: this is a sketchbook, this is an opportunity to learn, nothing in these pages is precious, everything is an idea and a learning experience. China marker is great for a left-handed person like myself - it doesn't smudge or smear. Unfortunately, it also doesn't smooth out very well. This makes it difficult to create certain textures - or a lack thereof.

Sports photos are still a very great source for poses. Today, I tried using a china marker for my drawing. I really like the way this material covers large areas in a very controlled way. The only downside is how permanent the marks are: erasing and smudging just won't get rid of them. The legs are a bit short and the arms are weird - but the pose is definitely there.

More graphite stick experiments. I've found it is difficult to draw over the top of graphite sticks once they have been placed. Rubbing the dust into the paper creates a surface that is too slick to allow more graphite onto it. Just like watercolor - it seems the best way to work is gradually from light to dark. It's a mess, but it's a mess I can learn from.

The covering power of graphite sticks is fantastic! I am also impressed by the dark values they can lay down. With a little more time spent on the under-drawing, this would have been a more accurate portrait (I also wish I hadn't forgotten my eraser, yeesh). By starting with a thick outline of the profile, I was able to carve out the facial features. They look really strange - but I think I just need a little more practice with these (relatively) new materials.

I have been having some difficulty finding really interesting poses and faces in the magazines I have access to. Fashion magazines feature models with expressionless faces - their "perfect" bodies standing straight with their arms at their sides. A magazine featuring golfers though, that's what I call interesting. Golfers are always in interesting poses with looks of passion and concentration on their faces. They aren't always beautiful 20-somethings - more often they are experienced middle-aged people with wrinkles and scars. I used graphite sticks today. I think there is something worth exploring here.

I've been attending an informal figure drawing session on Sundays. For the most part, none of the sketches I bring home are worthy of displaying - this is no exception. Still, today I brought a new enthusiasm and a little more experience with me. I have learned so much about drawing people since I started this project. Every day, a new challenge presents itself. I may not always have the tools to create something amazing, but I will always walk away with a little more wisdom. Art is an amazing, complicated, difficult and wonderful thing - it's a world I'm proud to be a part of.