Sketching

It is not easy to find people to draw. I drew these two high school students while they were studying. I tried to be as unobtrusive as possible . My own children think that drawing people without their knowledge is creepy. But I have to practice....

EDM #2 Lamp

This is a drawing of a lamp that my Grandma gave to us a few years ago. Looking closely at this lamp in order to draw it, made me appreciate what I thought to be just another everyday item in our house. We no longer have the plant on the table. We were plant sitting for our neighbors until they arrived back home from their vacation. Until the next challenge....

Portraits

I picked up a copy of The Fundamentals of Drawing Portraits by Barrington Barber. I too want to learn how to draw more realistic and interesting portraits. For the time being though I have posted a copy of a pencil portrait that I copied from a Navajo artist. As I learn to draw portraits, I will also try to copy them from accomplished artists as a way to study the way they do it and to observe more closely.

Copying

Every now and then I copy a painting of the Great Masters. Granted, I have to look at books and photographs to find images to copy. However, I still learn a lot by making pencil drawings from these paintings in the books. Trying to draw the master works compels me to notice where the lights and shadows are and the subtle change in the colors being used. When I copy a portrait, it helps me to work on such things as my proportions, placement of the eyes, or how to draw in the nose and lips. Copying great works can sometimes feel overwhelming. Recognizing that I'm beginning to notice more of the details in the master works inspires me to keep copying.