Jr. High Portrait Class

My oldest daughter is an Art teacher at a local charter school. For years she has run the after school art program as a volunteer. When the Jr. High needed to hire an art teacher, they asked her first. This semester, she had them do self portraits and asked if I would come in and help. We talked about proportion, basic facial placement of features. Then we discussed value and the importance of drawing what you see, not what you think you see. I taught them to turn their pictures upside down to check for mistakes and think in terms of shapes working large to small. Talked too about the angle of the line, it's placement on the surface and it's length. All in all, it was fun and I hope informative for the kids. Here are the two portraits I ended up doing in class.

Colin Morgan has such an interesting face.

Crave

           crave: To need urgently; require

As I am on the final finish of this current commission, my hands simply CRAVE to sketch something, anything that isn't remotely related to this children's book. Sometimes it's healthy to take a break, or so I rationalized. I pulled out a fresh piece of watercolor paper and sharpened my brand new Blackwing pencil and began a sketch of one of my sons. He's currently out of state and I only hear from him sporadically. Somehow, I felt closer to him with each pencil stroke.

Portrait Commission

This is a commission I've been working on, along with my assignment for IMC. The client only had access to three old photos of this man so I was worried about coming up with a likeness that was accurate. I hope she will be happy with it.

Sketch

SAD or Sketch a Day

This one is more planned than the others because I have to get to work on my assignment for IMC. This sketch still came about in a doodling fashion.

Sunday Sketches

One is from life. The other is from a magazine. I really liked the lighting of the photo. I'm trying to use my eraser less and drawing with more line commitment. The best way to do this of course, would be to trade my trusty mechanical pencil for a pen but I'm not ready to make that leap yet.

Sketch Update

I'm trying a few things with this piece. Raised the value key but increased the contrast for a more dramatic effect.

Just a Sketch

A little fairy sketch.

Sketch Update

Still spending a few minutes each day developing this sketch. Taking it slow.

Happy New Year!!

Five Smooth Stones Update

Here's an update on FSS. I ended up drawing this on clayboard. The plan is to seal it and then do some oil glazing....very subtle since I want the graphite to show through. I promise, I will post the explanation for this piece next time. I may be slow when it comes to art but I'm even slower when it come to the written word.

Speaking of which, I just finished a wonderful little treasure of a book, Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt. It's a YA novel, not too long with tender, poignant passages strewed throughout with a surprising ending.

Master Class Prep

In preparation for this Master Class, I've been trying to draw a sketch a day. I'm allowed one hour. This is not finished, but hope to put the details in during another drawing session. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep it up until I leave.

Third attempt

Ok, they say third time's the charm. Once more, I'm returning to the season maidens. I've returned to the first layout, because the second angle just wasn't feeling right to me. I've simplified the background and have eliminated the cloak and added a shawl instead. The borders are simpler as well. I've penciled the whole picture on hot press illustration board and will then seal it with an acrylic matte medium and paint in oil. My fingers are crossed.

A Delightful Bella

I've been taking a drawing class and I've used the assignments to complete some of my Twilight character sketches. Some time ago, while attending my grandson's Scouting activity, I noticed a young woman across the room who had this great face. Immediately, I thought, "There's my idea of Bella!" She possesses that everyday girl appearance, along with that certain spark about her that sets her apart as well. My daughter was acquainted with her and knew that she was a avid Twilight fan and she kindly allowed her to take some quick shots. I've made very few adjustments to the shape of the face and the darkness of her hair (this girl has beautiful red hair). And I know, everyone has their own idea for these characters so I don't expect mine to match with anyone else's, but here is my attempt. I imagine after the movie, Kristen Stewart will be everyone's idea of Bella anyway.

Enchanted Portrait Final

Here you go, L. This isn't a scan.....just a photo. Let me know of any changes.

Jacob Black

Ok, I know everyone has their own idea of what Jacob Black from Twilight looks like, but I thought I'd take a stab at it during my sketching time yesterday. In the first book by Stephenie Meyer, Jacob is a mere 15 years old and in my mind, a sort of lanky kid on the treshold of manhood. After looking at many photos of native Americans, I tried to be true to the my observation: strong brow, distinct, high cheekbones, flatter nose, intense eyes. I tried to combine all that with a feeling of determination, fierceness, with a hint of the man (and...um....well, "warrior") he would soon become in the next book, New Moon. Ok. Got him out of my system. Back to work.

Enchanted Portrait - Olivia

Second phase before I start with color. Tell me what you think of T. These are photos, not scans.

Enchanted Portrait Update

Here are updates for Liz. Adding trees and river in the canyon and more detail on the dragon and you.

Enchanted Portrait

Liz, Here are some workups for your portrait. The big blue dot is the sun and I tape it so that the paper will be white underneath after I'm done with all the messy smudgy stuff. Get back to me ASAP. Thanks.

Sketchbook Entry

First entry in my sketchbook after a LONG hiatus. I felt a little rusty. "If you don't use...you lose it".
Found an awesome website: www.davemalan.com Check out his link section as well as his blog and digital work.

Final Draft

VC: Here is the final draft. This is a scan in two parts, then seamed together in PhotoShop.