500 Years of Italian Drawings… (Updated 2/1/2024)

Made an initial visit to view this magnificent exhibit at the Ringling Museum of Art here in Sarasota…

Will let the Curator describe it…

https://www.ringling.org/event/500-years-of-italian-drawings-from-the-princeton-university-art-museum/

DRAWING AS DISCIPLINE

The sixteenth-century painter and art historian Giorgio Vasari called drawing, or disegno, “the father of our three arts: architecture, sculpture, and painting.” Fundamental to the creative process, drawing was the backbone of artistic training in Renaissance Italy and consisted of two principal components: copying from a variety of artistic sources and studying the human figure. Through the mid-fifteenth century, aspiring artists were instructed to make copies after drawings in a model-book, a compendium of motifs (human figures, flora, and fauna) passed from one generation to another, ready to be inserted into paintings or illuminated manuscripts.

With the shift away from this medieval tradition and toward a greater emphasis on individual expression, artists increasingly copied from a wider variety of easily available sources, such as prints, plaster casts, and ancient sculpture, to hone and perfect their draftsmanship. Workshops and professional academies provided the principal context for the study of anatomy and the figure in motion, with apprentices and students often posing as models for life-drawing sessions.

Open Session: …Draped Sitting Nude

Draped Nude Study
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Good session at Yuri’s last night. Drawn this model many times. She is a real professional who knows how to pose.

Spent a couple minutes thinking about my composition. Had a nice vantage point to draw the full seated figure, so decided to do it. At my stage of development, I prefer to draw and paint the full figure to practice anatomical proportions, structure, and planes.

It also gives me an opportunity to practice my pencil lines – lines that follow the anatomy using both pressure and the width to describe light and shadow and express the “life inside the figure.” To me, this is the art of figure drawing and a skill I aspire to learn and master.

Yuri nodded his approval during a couple breaks and came by after the session to compliment me on the composition. He said I almost made optimum use of the paper, and that my figure could have been slightly larger. He said composition is critical – if it fails it doesn’t matter how good the details are done.

He also encouraged me to think about how to bring the viewer “inside the drawing” instead of the drawing projecting itself on the viewer. Think it is all about depth and atmosphere and something I still need to learn.

Total 2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Reclining Nude …Foreshortening Exercise

Reclining Nude
18 x 24 charcoal and white chalk on toned paper

Same model. New three week pose. Crowded studio, so took a position others avoided. Always up for a challenge. You can see the ghost lines – evidence of plenty of correction : )

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Trois Crayons …Resting Nude Study

Resting Nude Study
18 x 24 trois crayons on toned paper – 2 hours -from life

Been experimenting with acrylic sketches at open figure sessions, so this is my first drawing in awhile. Decided to attempt a “crayon trois” using a charcoal pencil and red and white pastel pencils.

Wonderful model at Yuri Yurov’s open session last night- same model who has been posing for the sitting acrylic painting I’m doing and will post shortly – working at a different open session. Her hair is down and her face is hidden in the figure painting, but her hair is up and her face is revealed here. Beautiful girl.

Spent a little time deciding on the composition and happy with my choice. Yuri came by during a break and talked with me about the importance of composition. He said my composition was strong. He said if the composition is weak, the drawing (or painting) cannot be great regardless of the skills of the artist. He emphasized the process: concept and composition first; then big shapes in relation to each other to achieve accurate anatomy and proportions with special attention to light and shadows; finally finishing with artistic details guiding the viewer to the focal areas that support the concept.

He took my pencil and followed my lines of the face and shadows, checking my proportions, corrected the position of the right shoulder, neck and chest line, and moved the right breast up a bit and reduced the size. He gave me the pencil and left me to correct the left breast, the arms and hand. The message was clear. Check the proportions and positions early and often when drawing the big shapes and get them right before moving on to any detail. Really a privilege to be coached by a master artist.

I’m a little heavy handed with the red and white pencils, but for a first effort at crayon trois, I’m pleased. Will make some refinements tomorrow and repost. Need to work on my mark-making, especially in shadow areas. Ray Heinz has talked with me about being more cognizant of making marks that follow the shape of the form.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Figure: …Reclining Nude …Exercise in foreshortening

18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Last night Yuri decided to move the model to the middle of the room. From my position, it created a challenging foreshortening problem. Yuri came by and looked at my vantage point before we started and said, “This is very complicated.” I responded, “I am fearless.” : )

First determined my placement on the page – top, bottom, and sides – then blocked in the big shapes with light lines. Working from the top, checking proportions against angles and landmarks, began to define the form with light lines, finding my way, correcting with my kneaded eraser often. Resized the head and legs a couple times to achieve the foreshortened illusion. Finished the drawing by creating the lines on the front leg as a focal point and carrying a line up the left side of the model with lesser pressure.

The other artists gave me good comments on the result. Happy with the outcome for my level of experience.

2 hours

Progress not perfection

Open Session: …Nude Study …Sitting Figure …and a couple lessons

Sitting Nude
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Very nice pose with a very good model presented real potential for a special drawing last night at Yuri’s open session. Did a decent drawing but wasn’t quite able to pull off anything special.

Yuri came by during one of the early breaks and took my pencil. He talked with me again about the quality of my lines. My lines tend to lack energy, so consequently the flesh on the figure looks lifeless or not as alive as it might look. As he has in the past, Yuri demonstrated by making a vertical line of varying weight, explaining how line follows the anatomy with light and shadow expressed in the line both inside and outside the figure; you can see it at the lower far right. He then enhanced my lines on the breast and the modeling on the left thigh. He also added a line to indicate the far buttock. When I said it wasn’t visible from my angle, Yuri replied, “But you know it is there and it looks good.” And therein lies a lesson. I still am constrained by my habit of drawing only what I see and not what I know about the anatomy.

Received a second valuable lesson from Ray Heinz. When I remarked how beautifully Yuri had rendered the face in his drawing and how it contrasted with my own unremarkable effort, Ray said it was because Yuri “edits” the information to what he needs to convey beauty in his drawings and paintings. I don’t edit what I see. To illustrate the truth in his observation, I pointed out just to the left of the knee cap of the left thigh, her foot tucked away and not visible but for a couple toes – toes I had drawn, of course. They were perfectly well rendered toes but didn’t “read” right without seeing the foot. We both laughed. As you can see, I subsequently “edited” out the toes with my kneaded eraser. Always learning…

2 hours. Two valuable lessons.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Two Session Nude Study Drawing…and a New Level

18 x 24 pastel pencil on Strathmore drawing paper

Started this drawing last week at Yuri’s. After the session, he said the model would return this week and suggested I continue working on this drawing rather than start a new study. Yuri said I had the foundation for a good drawing.

Took his counsel and worked this drawing to conclusion last night. Can see the value of the extra two hours. It is a much more finished drawing than I usually get done in a single two hour pose.

Yuri came by during the session and said I did a solid job on the figure and likeness. Our model had a longer than normal torso and legs, and Yuri said he noticed it as well when he did his own measurments.

I had feint ghosts of the settee legs. He took my pencil and added tone with horizontal marks to the legs as well as the lit area of her ponytail on her left side. I took his cue and did the same on the lit areas of the robe over each of her arms. It improved the look of the drawing and I will remember to do this to tone down direct light on objects.

Yuri said my drawing skills have reached a new level. Been attending his open session most weeks for a couple years, so he has observed my progress. Means a lot to know he sees the development; I do work at it. He told me there will be starts and stops in my progress but to not be satisfied with doing less in the future.

Total 4 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Figure Study …Up Close

18 x 24 charcoal with white highlights on toned paper

Same model and pose as previous couple weeks at Yuri’s. Kept the same position but decided to draw a close-up this week.

Face looks a bit wide. Left side of the face and forehead above the hand could have been better modeled. Looks flat. Could have taken the left eyebrow down a value as well, but otherwise happy with the composition and likeness. Better control of the materials; charcoal is not a strong suit for me.

2 hours.

Believe the same model will be in the same pose next week. What shall I draw??

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life … Roll with the punches

18 x 24 pastel pencil on drawing paper

This was to be the last session in this pose with our model. As the fates would have it, our model was unable to make it, so we had a substitute model with about the same body shape.

Although she was put into the same pose and lighting, the posture and form were different, as were the cast shadows, head shape and likeness.

Decided to not chase the major changes too much and spent my time modeling the form with light and shadows, and adding some detail to the hair, face and hands.

2 hours today. 4 hours total. CarbOthello 1400/642 pastel pencil on Strathmore Drawing paper.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …Cease and Desist

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on drawing paper

As the session was starting last night Yuri said to me, “You pick complicated positions.”

Our model was in the same pose as the previous week, and I positioned myself at an angle looking up toward the head. The drawing would require a foreshortened thigh, forearm, torso, neck and face. I like challenges.

Used Stabillo Carbothello 1400/642 pastel pencil. It has a softer color – almost mauve –  than the 645 burnt sienna color. Ray Heinz said it looked more flesh-like.

Spent the first 20 minutes creating the envelope, using angles and landmarks (head to shoulder; elbow to forehead, ear to knee, breast to ear, etc.), and finding the center line of the head and torso, and the foreshortened position lines of the eyes, nose, lips, chin. Blocked in the hair and ear.

In the next segment, I marked the shadows: the cast shadow on her shoulder under the chin, the breast, forearm, knees and calf. Blocked in the hand. Then roughed in the foreshortened face, paying particular attention to the nose. Spent some time on the neck, throat, mastoid muscle.

For the remainder of the evening, modeled the form, defined the face, and made some corrections. You can see the ghost of the fingers indicating the position of the forearm changed.

And I destroyed the beauty of the drawing.

Never intended to define the hand and fingers to the point of distraction or to emphasize the eyes and eyebrows with such dark marks. But I did.

I got lost in the details.

At the evening’s close, Yuri came by and studied the drawing. He said the foreshortening wasn’t correct. As examples, the calf should be larger and the knee is too small in relation to the face. He said I spent too much time on the details and not enough time correcting the form during the session.

Yuri was right.

He said the goal of a figure drawing or painting is not to create photographic detail. It is to find the beauty of the pose. He suggested that next week I stand behind him and watch how he starts and proceeds through his oil sketch. What an opportunity to learn! Will be taking plenty of notes in my sketchbook.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …”Good start…”

“Work in Progress”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on drawing paper

Attended Ivan Bratko‘s weekly open figure session this morning; hadn’t been there in quite a while.

Ivan is a Ukranian-American artist who was classically trained in Russia, like our friend Yuri Yurov. As a matter of fact, Yuri was in the group today working on a painting he started last week. Ashleigh was the model, someone I’ve drawn several times at Yuri Yurov’s studio.

This was the second of three sessions in this pose, and I missed the first session, so with only one additional session in this pose, decided to draw; not enough time for me to paint at my stage of development.

Used Stabilo Carbothello 1400/642 pastel pencil on Strathmore Drawing paper.

After the session Yuri stopped by and said I made a good start. Usually at Yuri’s on Wednesday nights, we only have 2 hours to draw before the pose changes the following week.

In the final session of this pose next week, will focus on the face and torso – creating a rhythm of marks using line and tone to develop the values, the lights and the shadows – with a goal of bringing the drawing to life – one of my challenge areas.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection

Open Session: …Life …Ashleigh

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

This model has become a favorite of my drawing groups, so I get to draw her often. An art student, she understands how to hold a pose, re-establish her pose after a break, and how to present focal areas of a particular pose.

During an early break Yuri came by and said he liked my start. He encouraged me to imagine myself as a conductor, leading an orchestra of form, line, tone, value and atmosphere to create a drawing that pleases both me and the viewer. It is a useful analogy.

In the pose last night, tried to invite the viewer into the drawing at the feet, to the lower leg and knee, up to the abdomen and rib cage, shoulder and elbow, hair and face, top shoulder and arm, hip and hand. Most people read left to right, though, so many will start at the head, down the shoulder, arm, hand, hip, calf, feet, and back toward the head along the lower side of the model. Either works for me.

Dave Henderson liked my use of tone to define most of the form, and reminded me value changes define the inner body.

Both Yuri and Dave complimented my treatment of the hand on the hip. Went for an anatomically correct suggestion of the hand and a few visible fingers.

Used a Stabilo CarbOthello 1400/670 pastel pencil on Strathmore Series 400 toned tan paper.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …Rescue Me

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Same delightful model and challenging pose last night as the previous week. Decided to take a slightly different position and perspective; focus on the face and torso.

After the first break, Yuri came by and liked my start. “Don’t just draw what you see, though. Decide on your emphasis. Invite the viewer in with something interesting and lead the eyes around the drawing with thoughtful lines. Don’t press so hard on the pencil.”

He talked with me again about line quality. Took my pencil and demonstrated how to achieve line rhythm with slight weight and pressure changes. He has shown me this many times; I am a slow learner.

Toward the end of the session, Ray Heinz asked me how it was going. “I’m on a rescue mission, Ray” I said with a laugh.

Struggled with the face and you can see the battle lines. Her face was slightly elevated and the jaw line, chin and neck were challenging. Needed to put some emotion in the eyes; the blank stare is a fail.

Think the hair highlights work and convey volume and the hair in shadow above the shoulder attracts the eye to the head.

My intention was for the torso to co-star with the face, but it is flat and lifeless and subordinate. Just spent too much time on the head and needed to create more focus on the calf, thigh and hip with line weight; needed to better model the thigh, abdomen and breasts to show suppleness. It would have balanced the attention between the head and torso. Ran out of time.

Will get to draw this model in a new pose next week.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life…Ashleigh

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Opportunity to draw this young woman again last night at Yuri’s. Our host bought a big leather couch at a local auction and it made a comfortable setting for the model. Expect we will see a lot of reclining poses in the future.

After changing the model’s position several times to make sure each artist had a decent pose, we began.

During the first break Yuri looked at my drawing and said I didn’t take advantage of the paper size. It was a nice block-in with correct proportions and setting, but of course he was right – my initial drawing was more of a mid range landscape than a figure study. So, I started again on a new paper.

Perhaps should have handled the feet like I did the hands with a loose impression, but they were in the foreground and at a challenging angle, so I went for slightly more definition in support of the calf line that leads the viewer to the thigh and into the pose.

Ray Heinz talked with me about drawing the facial “likeness” of the model in figure studies. He did a powerful pastel drawing with magnificent skin tones adorning the gesture, with no attempt at a facial likeness. A likeness would have distracted the viewer from the beauty of his piece. In contrast, my tendency is to draw a facial likeness in my figure studies, perhaps because of my portrait drawing experience. Will try to be more conscious of my tendency to make sure a facial likeness supports my figure drawing and doesn’t compete or detract from the finished work.

2 hours

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …Ashleigh … continued

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 charcoal pencil with white highlights on toned paper

Holidays over, we were drawing at Yuri’s last night after a two week hiatus. Our model returned and took the same pose, so I was able to continue work on my drawing.

Yuri had talked to me about making lighter marks, so I softened the drawing with my kneaded eraser and restated some of the form and shadows. “Let the drawing emerge,” he said, and used the analogy of developing a print in a darkroom chemical wash. He reminded me to emphasize the image foreground and not its background – in this case the right forearm, hand and thigh and not the left side of the abdomen and left arm. “Lead your viewer into your drawing.”

Used shadow lines to define the forearm, hand and fingers, and pleased with the result. Maybe my marks are too light here as the lower half of the drawing looks washed out compared to the upper half. Could have given the viewer a stronger invitation into the drawing…

Strengthened the robe with white charcoal and restated highlights on the figure. Perhaps too strong on the face and clavicle. Lightly added to the draped atmosphere, and ran out of time.

2 hours. Total 4 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …Ashleigh

 

“Ashleigh”
18 x 24 charcoal with white highlights on toned paper.

New model last night. Worked in black and white charcoal pencil.

Pleased with the result – good proportions and composition, but hand still needs work. Yuri did say my effort was the basis for a good drawing, but needed to be finished. He said an artist has to know where a drawing or painting is going before even making a mark. He said at any point when the goal is achieved, “like writing, you need to put a period at the end of the sentence.” Think this relates to the emotional message of a drawing or painting as well. This is a challenge area for me. Rarely am I committed to an emotional message before picking up pencil or brush.

He also suggested my rendering of the hair was akin to “screaming.” I took a kneaded eraser and made a few swipes too reduce the offense. He said I tend to put too much pressure on the pencil, and he referenced the face and lips, as another example. He’s talked to me about this before, about making lighter marks, so I need to be more mindful of this instruction.

We will have the same model and pose at our next session, so I will work on it then.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

 

 

Open Session: …Life ….Francesca

“Francesca”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

New model at Yuri’s last night. Patterned top, black skirt, lots of hair.

Composition is okay. Got a likeness, but face is overworked and clumsy job on the forearms and hands. Got distracted early with detail. Beginner mistake.

In talking to Ray Heinz about it, he suggested to think about “working toward the details” starting from the envelope and big shapes and allowing the level of detail to be defined by the overall drawing. Great advice

Will get another chance to draw her again next week.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Lesson from a Master

“Lesson from a Master”
18 x 24 pastel pencil with white highlights on toned paper

This drawing isn’t just my work, so it isn’t signed and won’t be posted with my figure drawings. No finished drawing, but I got something much more valuable. A lesson from a master.

After an hour, I had a decent composition with the proportions and figure in place, and a very good likeness of the model. Yuri Yurov came by during the break and complimented the progress. Told him I was still learning to use “line’ to breathe life into my figure drawings. He asked for my pencil and eraser.

Over the next 10 minutes, he demonstrated and explained to me how this is done (he has talked to me before about this and will again, I hope. I am a slow learner). He enhanced a few landmarks with anatomical shadow lines (the knees, the shoulder, the breast, for example) and created a rhythm of line down the figure. He said in drawing the profile of the hand, often delineating a single finger on the larger shape is enough to suggest the illusion. He added the white pastel to the robe telling me it was not too early to begin creating a finished look as I progressed with the drawing. It was a great lesson from a master artist.

He came by later and and nodded his approval. I told him the head was too small, that I tried to correct it once already and it was still too small. He said it could be fixed. I erased the face. He used his fingers to measure a correct head – from the chin to the middle of the chest – and proceeded to adjust the top of the head and the chin. Then he drew a profile line down the face. He gave me the pencil and I finished the details. When I later told Ray Heinz the story, he suggested my trouble making the correction to the head size might have been the likeness was “too dear” to me and I wouldn’t let it go. He was right – and this was another good lesson from a professional artist.

This morning, I added the seat. Worse than clumsy, but the values balance the hair.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Figure …Tom

“Tom”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Have drawn this model several times. Real professional. He is very easy to work with and holds and re-establishes his pose with no difficulty.

Trying to build the habit of thinking about my composition for a few minutes before beginning to draw. Too often, my instinct is to draw what I see on my retina – like a camera snapshot – with no thought to the structure of the drawing, focal points, atmosphere, and expression. Have a long way to go…

Got a very good likeness. The shading values are off a bit, but happy with this drawing. Several of the other artists complimented my effort and commented on my progress over the past couple years. Yuri approved of the work as well.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Figure…”Morgan”

“Morgan”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Another opportunity to draw this model last night at Yuri Yurov’s studio. Yuri stopped by before the first session started and suggested my sight line. He agreed a vertical placement made sense. “It’s a complicated pose.” he said with a smile.

During the first break, Yuri took a look at my progress and suggested my image did not take full advantage of the paper, and it could have been larger. He has been encouraging me to use larger paper and do larger drawings. At least I got the larger paper part right.

Managed to solve the problems of representing her hands without getting lost in too much detail, and the feet were challenging given the foreshortening. Yuri gave me the thumbs up on my effort.

After the last session, I mentioned to Ray Heinz one of my challenge areas is in breathing “life” into my figure drawings. Ray suggested one of the keys to bringing life to a line figure drawing is to break up the weight and intensity of the lines based on both what you see in the pose – the model, the light, etc. – and what you know about anatomy. Will keep working on this.

Yuri took a look at my finished drawing and nodded his head in approval. “Looks like her, ” he said.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Figure…”McKenzie”

“McKenzie”
18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned pape

New model at Yuri’s this week. Beautiful young woman who did a wonderful job holding her pose and re-finding her pose after breaks.

The composition works for me. Got a good likeness and pleased with the effort. Perhaps a bit too much emphasis on the face for a figure study, the hairline especially.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection

Open Session: …Figure …”Emily”

“Emily”
18 x 24 charcoal pencil on toned paper

New model last night at Yuri’s. Beautiful, young Colombian woman. She wore a leopard jacket over black skirt. Wasn’t sure she could attend again next week, so decided to draw. Turns out she will be back. Would have liked to paint her, but skills just not good enough to do a decent painting in one session. Hope to get the chance another time.

Got a very good likeness and pleased with my effort.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life …Figure

18 x 24 charcoal pencil on toned paper

Last Wednesday night open session at Yuri Yurov’s studio was a terrific learning experience for me.

Yuri posed the model in a reclining position against the wall with pillows under a draped cloth. He set a draped backdrop as well.

Relaxed and settled, our model struck a thoughtful facial expression. She stayed in the same pose all evening. Love long pose. Wonderful to draw.

Got a very good start in the first 20 minute segment; Ray Heinz, Dave Henderson, and Yuri came by and complimented my initial placement, form, and block in.

In the second 20 minute segment, corrected some proportion problems and focused on defining the face. At the break, both Yuri and Dave said there was too much attention on the face and to get back to the figure. In the next couple segments, worked on softening the face, modeling the figure and adding atmosphere.

Was pretty pleased with my changes and rendering of the draped wall and stage. When Yuri came by, he said the face was better. He asked for my kneaded eraser and swiped at my atmosphere work. He said it was unimportant and diminished the drawing.

Then he asked for my charcoal pencil. He drew several lines to demonstrate “how line quality suggests light and shadow on the figure” – you can see them at the bottom of the paper.

Yuri said to start softly and gently use the line to find the form, paying attention to the “shadow line” on the figure to suggest weight, mass, anatomy, gesture – and in combination with lost and found lines and some tonal shading- to bring life to the flesh. He reworked the elbow to demonstrate.

It was a wonderful lesson from a master draftsman. Ray, Dave and Yuri are really helpful with their suggestions and comments.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

 

Open Session: …Life

 

18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Figure drawing is always a challenge for me, and especially challenging when more than one model is in the pose. Lots of angles and negative spaces – landmarks and riddles to solve.

Need to be more cognizant of my line weight considering depth of field; farther lighter, closer darker. Also, my lines are still stiff and lack an organic look of living flesh beneath the skin.

One of the artists suggested the male head was too large relative to the right arm proportions. Okay, I guess. The aesthetics work for my eye.

My shading technique with the pastel pencil is just plain bad. Need to solve this problem.

Ran out of time to improve the female face and hands.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

 

 

Open Session: …Life

18 x 24 pastel pencil on toned paper

Was looking at some of my drawings done about a year ago at this Wednesday evening open session. The best of them show better line and tone work and are more emotionally expressive. Not sure why.

Perhaps it is because I’m less focused lately on getting the drawing “right” and instead have been letting my subconscious map out the figure without too much conscious attention. Also, been working more on my painting recently.

Still want to keep my eye sharp and a develop a keener sense of seeing – especially seeing my mistakes quicker and fixing them within the time constraints of the pose.

Appears my subconscious needs to pay closer attention.

Sounds like an oxymoron.

1 hour.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: …Life

11 x 14 pastel pencil on toned paper

Stopped by a new drawing group today. Clothed model long pose over three weeks. This was the first week. Decided to draw because I have several paintings in progress and need to finish a few. May attend the remaining two sessions of this pose and draw.

Happy with the composition; only close with the figure. Model looks like she is falling into the sofa. And, rendering of right foot is okay but it looks clunky. Maybe it’s the tone? Still need to find a “shorthand” for drawing feet much like I have for hands when these are not the focal point. You can see the hands and fingers are suggested and not drawn in any detail.

Also, still failing with line and tone quality. The foot, folded legs, buttocks, left arm are all too close in tone and lack a sense of three-dimensional modeling.

Been reading “The Practice and Science of Drawing” by Harold Speed, an early 20th century painter and teacher. It is a wonderful book. In it he emphasizes the importance of tone and it made me more aware of my tonal work today. Still failed, but was making an effort to create a rhythm of tones in the drawing.

90 minutes.

Progress not perfection.

 

Open Session: …Life

12 x 18 carbon pencil with white highlights on toned paper

Hadn’t drawn this model in some time. He was leaning on a chair and presented an interesting upper body and facial pose, so went with it. Decided to use a soft General’s carbon pencil on toned gray paper.

Didn’t intend this drawing as a portrait, but it seems to have turned out that way. The face competes with the torso for the focal point. Stronger lines around his biceps and shoulders and under his chin – bringing them forward – might fix this problem. Then again, maybe not. If given more time, would have worked on the values. More atmosphere around the shoulder would have improved the depth as well.

90 minutes.

Progress not perfection.

 

 

Open Session: …Life

18 x 24 pastel pencil with white highlights on toned paper

First opportunity to draw from life in a couple weeks.

Wonderful new model. NYC Fashion model. Unusual proportions, 6 feet tall. Unfortunately, her long auburn hair can’t be captured in a drawing. 60 minutes.

Still struggling with my drawing. Spent the entire pose focused on getting her proportions correct, her basic anatomy, and her likeness. Didn’t pay any attention to anchoring her in space and creating an atmosphere. Ran out of time. Model was sitting on a stool. Think the drawing does give a sense of weight and gravity on the “invisible” legged seat.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life …

18 x 24 pastel pencil on Strathmore Series 400 toned paper

New model. Nice pose. Full natural light.

Big shapes. Proportions. Shadows. Details and definition. Didn’t get very far in modeling the form. Ran out of time. 60 minutes.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life …”The best-laid plans…”

11 x 14 pastel pencil on Strathmore Series 400 toned paper

John Steinbeck wrote, “The best laid schemes of mice and men…Often go awry.” Last night is a case in point.

As we were setting up for the first pose of the evening, David Henderson came over to my position and suggested it might be interesting to focus on the top of the model and follow the light down the shoulder and back. Decided to give it a try.

Got a good likeness of the model and light down the shoulder, arm and breast, but failed to make the focal point the light moving down the back. End result is more a portrait than a figure study.

Problem was the size and placement of the envelope, leaving no room for the breadth of the back. Once started, made a new plan – committed to achieving a strong likeness and using light and shadow to define the facial planes and visible body shapes.

On the positive side, was more conscious of following a method in executing the drawing and resisted my tendency of getting into the details too soon. Started with the placement, the envelope, the big shapes – the head, the hair, a unified shape for the back, shoulder, arm, and breast – placed the facial features – eyes, nose, mouth, chin, and ear – then defined the smaller shapes of the shoulder, back, breast, face, and neck with tone – and refined the facial features and hair. 90 minutes.

11 x 14 pastel pencil on Strathmore Series 400 toned paper

Followed the same procedure on the second pose. The composition and proportions are okay, but figure is stiff and lacks “life” to my eye. Big challenge area for me is learning to create volume in my figures – giving the illusion of flesh pushing out from inside the skin. 60 minutes.

Yuri suggested I use bigger paper. He said it is difficult to draw freely on small images and this affects the quality of definition and details. He also said it is important to keep challenging myself with new problems. Size, for example, makes the proportions new to the eye.

Practice not perfection.

Open Session: Life …Struggling

11 x 14 pastel pencil on toned paper

Been struggling with my drawing lately. Mark-making is clumsy and figures are lifeless. No emotion or character. Seem to be going through the motions of drawing, but not finding the art. Know I am capable of creating better drawings. Just struggling with it now. Thinking it is a plateau and if I keep working with the intention of making better drawings I will at some point. It is a little discouraging.

Yuri must have seen it last night. He stopped by to talk with me about my drawing. He said it looked like I was assembling puzzle pieces instead of building a drawing with the whole image in mind. Yuri Yurov is a classically trained Russian artist. I have enormous respect for him, so I listen carefully to what he tells me. He said there is a Russian saying, “If you want to draw an eye, look at the toe.” He said it meant you must be aware of the whole model in space at all times. Suggested training myself to see beyond the model to include my peripheral vision. To focus on the gesture and big shapes. If these are right from the start, the detail will follow naturally. He also asked me to try making different marks. To look at the model carefully before making a line instead of scratching out marks trying to discover the form. He said every mark, every line is important; that a drawing at any stage should look like art.

Been drawing portraits and figures for a couple years now. Frustrating to be still struggling with these basic drawing concepts. Yuri asked me why I am even doing this, drawing and painting. His unspoken question was my age. Told him I like the challenge of learning and love the process of creating as frustrating as it can be at times. I may not have enough time left to be a practicing artist, but I can produce work that pleases me and I can share with family and friends. Yuri said then just keep drawing, keep pursuing excellence, and keep finding pleasure in the process.

60 minutes.

Practice not perfection.

Open Session: Life …Before the storm

11 x 14 pastel pencil on Strathmore 400 series toned paper

Big snow storm started after midnight. Luckily our session ended in plenty of time to get home.

New model who did a great job holding her pose. Decided to use graphite pencil. Hadn’t done any drawing in a couple weeks and felt rusty. Usually I draw standing at an easel, but last night I sat.

Captured the gesture, the weight and gravity okay. Still ham-handed with my mark-making and creating the correct depth of field – hair is too dominant and should have been softened; likewise, her heart-shaped tattoo.

Like the tension of the placement on the page. Although the model is anchored with the chair, failed to create any atmosphere around the model so the image seems lost in space.

90 minutes.

Progress not perfection

Open Session: Life …Profiles

One of my favorite models last night. Classic brow, nose, and jaw with strong profile features.

12 x 18 charcoal pencil with white highlights on toned paper

Top pose was 90 minutes. Instead of sketching the envelope, started with the portrait in the first 20 minute sitting and worked my way down in subsequent sittings. Head was turned away from me slightly. When deciding on placement, marks for skull were too far right. You can see the ghost marks at the right of the head when I moved the image to the left.

Articulation of the right wrist is balled up. Need to work on rendering hands and fingers. Left hand behind her back is not much better. Usually not a problem but got distracted by other issues and ran out of time.

Second pose below was one hour. Again started at top with the portrait in the first 20 minute sitting. Fingers on left hand are clunky. Carried the white highlights too far down the figure. Note to self: Keep white highlights around the focal point.

12 x 18 charcoal pencil with white highlights on toned paper

Do like the contrast in the hair with the lower value behind her neck. Keeps attention at the focal point.

Might have fixed problems in both drawings before posting, but committed to not working away from the model and want to document my errors for learning purposes.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life …Sometimes

Sometimes it mostly goes right.

12 x 18 Charcoal Pencil with white highlights on grey toned paper

Open session at Yuri’s with one of my favorite models. Took my usual position to the far right of the stage. I find it gives me interesting poses more often than not. Good thing I arrived early. Big crowd last night. 10 artists.

Decided to use toned grey charcoal paper. This Borden & Riley 80 lb paper has a laid surface that accepts graphite, charcoal and pastel nicely.

Pleased with the first drawing. Has some life. Second drawing is okay but is lifeless. I left the initial marks of the head and arm in the second drawing visible. These were landmarks as I started to softly outline the envelope for placement and proportion. You can see the correction as I proceeded from the top down to complete the drawing.

Face is clunky in the second drawing. Flat and has no life force within it. Note to self: The ability to draw a figure and face with a sense of being alive – this is a challenge for me and an important skill to develop.

Both poses were 60 minutes over three 20 minute segments. Managed my time well for a change.

12 x 18 Charcoal Pencil with white highlights on grey toned paper

Yuri stopped by and nodded his approval of both drawings. He said he liked how I handled the mid-tones, “Just right, soft, not too dark.” Dave Henderson was drawing next to me and told me my drawing has improved dramatically in the past year. High praise from a master artist like Dave. Made my night.

Several new young artists in the group last night. Enjoyed the opportunity to encourage them to keep drawing.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life …Chicken

12 x 18 Graphite pencil on grey toned charcoal paper

My artist friend Yuri returned from a visit back to his homeland, Russia. No figure drawing for the past month while he was away, so it was good to be drawing from life again.

Decided to use graphite, a medium I rarely use with a live model. Went to the studio with the intention of using charcoal but chickened out at the last moment. Thought I needed to use the more forgiving pencil after such a long break. Still building my confidence with charcoal, apparently.

Used a 4B for the drawing on grey paper. Got distracted by the challenge of the right foot and it was fun to draw, but it takes the viewer away from the focal point of the upper torso and head. Still not paying enough attention to composition, although I did manage to add some atmosphere. Folded robe on the seat is poorly done. Could have outlined it without tone or maybe made it darker to contrast with the model. Challenge area for me.

2 hours.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Pretty ballerina

18 x 24 pastel pencil with white highlights on Strathmore Series 400 toned paper

Last week our Wednesday night open life session had a special guest model, a friend of Yuri’s – professional ballerina, Lika Ageeva.

You can visit her site here.

What a delight to draw this beautiful dancer in her black bodice and stiff classical black sheer tutu, white tights and ballet slippers. She wore a white flower with pearls in her hair and drop pearl earrings.

Lika posed for two hours in 20 minute segments. Overall pleased with the drawing.

You can see the faint marks at the top and left side I used to place the image on the paper. Got a very good likeness of Lika, but was so focused on getting the costume right her face became a secondary focal point by default. Could have strengthened a few lines of the head and face to better balance the image. Could have softened the far edges and strengthened the near edges of the tutu to create better depth.

Could have introduced some atmosphere behind the model. There was a draped sheet hanging on the wall. Just didn’t get my attention. Was focused on the pose. Not experienced enough to appreciate the importance of atmosphere to a finished figure or portrait drawing without prompting. Need to work on this.

Yuri came over and looked at my drawing after the session. He said, “Good! Good! You are getting there.” Then, he asked for my eraser and took a couple quick swipes at the image of the settee on the right side to push it further into the background.

This is why I feel so privileged to draw with Yuri Yurov, Ed Sprafkin, Dave Henderson and others on Wednesday nights. I am watching and listening and learning from master artists.

Progress not perfection.

Figure Drawing Class:… Miles to go before I rest

Did this drawing at the final Figure Drawing class of the summer session.

Focus this summer has been on capturing gesture, further advancement of my ability to depict the anatomy, and attention to line quality. These all continue to be major challenge areas for me.

As I posted previously, since the Sunday evening Portrait Group disbanded, my drawing skills have regressed for lack of regular practice. Stuck on a plateau.

This drawing was done in 40 minutes. Had to redraw the left hand a couple times. You can tell I am a novice because there is an absence of attention to the whole drawing, and the pose timed out before I was able to correct basic errors. Will be generous and call this a “study” by default.

If I were to work on this drawing after the session, I would lighten the left hand and left nipple, shorten the left rib cage line, and move the right thigh and left knee forward by darkening those lines and soften the left thigh and groin lines to establish their proper depth. Learned the hard way not to work on drawings without the model. Nearly always a mistake.

Start a new Portrait class and new Figure Drawing class in a few weeks. All day Monday. Morning is Portrait. Afternoon is Figure Drawing. Looking forward to drawing portraits again. Opportunity to further study the planes and anatomy of the head and face, depict the surface areas, and find the character of the model within the pose.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Back to work

First open figure session I’ve been able to attend in a few weeks and the rust shows. This is the new group I joined a month ago that had the long pose I painted (see the June 28 post below).

New model today who will pose for the next four weeks. Started with several 5 and 10 minute gesture drawings to warm up, and finished with three 20 minute poses and a final 15 minute pose.

Had a figure drawing class last evening and didn’t draw very well. Better effort and results today, given the time constraints.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Gotta feel dem Blues

With my regular Life Drawing group last night. Terrific model – good lines and strong features – have drawn her a couple times previously. Several professional artists in the group. Very generous with their feedback and comments to beginners like me.

Our host, Yuri Yurov, is classically trained and simply a wonderful artist. After finishing the last pose of the evening, the 90 minute long pose above, I asked him for his critique. He took my pencil, made a couple adjustments to the chair legs and seat cushion, and said “The skin looks like fur.”

It is the way I do shading. Scratching lines on an angle – too focused on creating the terminating shadow and not focused enough on the impact the marks are making on the form and drawing. After his comment, I smudged the shadow marks in the long pose.

Yuri explained it this way. “A lot of musicians play the blues. But Jimi Hendrix felt the blues.” In other words, the challenge in drawing the skin is to make the viewer feel the skin – it’s suppleness and texture and how light and shadow cover the form with all its hills and valleys. It is a mark making skill. Yuri often equates making marks to making music. The unspoken message to me is stop banging the instrument and producing noise – start looking for the lines that travel up, down, and around the form – some soft, some bold – all contributing to the melody of the drawing.

It is a privilege to learn from these artists.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Moving charcoal by hand

Missed the open figure session last week, so was looking forward to drawing one of my favorite models last night.

Was positioned on the far right of the studio. Blessed with a wonderful full back pose in the first 20 minutes. Would have made a great long pose. Left calf a bit large or maybe the thigh could have been a bit larger. Failed at time management and didn’t get to the chair seat. Happy with the result, though. Makes for an interesting image.

Second short pose worked down from the head. Torso and legs a bit stretched. Didn’t leave myself enough time to correct. Got distracted by the foreground hand and fingers. Spent five minutes drawing and restating. A little heavy with the white highlights.

Long pose switched to soft vine charcoal on white Bristol board. Been experimenting with this combination for the long pose the past several sessions. Able to create subtle value differences with soft charcoal, my fingers, and a kneaded eraser. Very tactile drawing technique. The more I study the anatomy, the more I am able to see the anatomy on the model. Stating, wiping, correcting, erasing, restating, smudging – in no particular order after drawing the initial big shapes – a process akin to sculpting the image.

Stretched the torso here as well. Left thigh a bit too long. Chair leg is way out of position. Must build a habit of measuring and restating the big shapes before modeling the image. Could have improved on her hair – way too flat – and the folds in her garment she threw over the chair are amateurish. Ran out of time.

Want to keep working with this charcoal combination and find a way to create a more aesthetic look. Less plastic.

You can view previous figure drawings here.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Was blind but now I see

For the past couple portrait and figure drawing sessions I have struggled to produce any decent drawings.

Yesterday, decided to paint for a few hours before attending an Open Figure session. Must have put my brain in a good place because last night I was able to see and execute the two 20 minute poses and produce a decent 90 minute long pose.

My teacher and mentor is part of this drawing group and attended last night. He took a look at my long pose and asked if he could make some light marks. If you look closely at the drawing, you can see the anatomical landmarks he superimposed – the clavicle, rib cage, intercostal, abdomen, oblique, and transverse muscles. He was helping me see the importance of anatomical form in creating three dimensional effect.

Need to keep working on drawing shapes and forms and not lines. Also, getting the gesture down early.

Progress not perfection. The good news is I hadn’t lost my eye.

You can view previous life drawings here

Open Session: Life… Knead practice

First figure drawing in a few weeks, and it shows. Amazing how quickly I lose my eye and my ability to manage time in 20 minute poses. Reinforces the importance of attending sessions regularly.

Been using pastel pencil for several months and did on the first two 20 minute poses. Marks are scratchy and proportions are off, especially in the second pose. Didn’t pay much attention to the left leg!! What is up with that foot??? Hahaha. Lesson is I need to “see” the whole drawing as it is executed and not get caught up in one area. Also, lost track of time.

On the third pose – the 90 minute pose – decided to leave my comfort zone and work with extra soft vine charcoal on Bristol board, using the kneaded eraser to find the form and create tones.

Resulting figure is a little clumsy and unrefined, and need to work at creating a more interesting atmosphere when using this charcoal technique.

Kneaded eraser makes interesting marks, nice depth, and tones. Plan to explore this in future drawings.

Open Session: Life… Banging On Drums

Wonderful model last night. One of our regulars. Love drawing her.

Tried to focus on light and shadow. Shaded and smudged in shadow areas. Also, shaded and erased to create an atmosphere around the model. Will keep experimenting with this technique.

Focal point in the first drawing should have been the back. Just didn’t think about it. Still not part of my initial planning. I let the focal point emerge, and in 20 minutes, I didn’t manage the time to edit. Same with the second drawing. Focal point is the face by default. Just didn’t plan. Neglected to shade the neck below the jaw and the bun in her hair. Makes it appear flat. Time management.

Too heavy handed again with my pencil. You can see this in the last drawing, especially. Didn’t flatter the model either and I had 90 minutes, so plenty of time to capture a flattering likeness if I had managed my time differently. Fail on both counts. Too bad, too. This was a great pose with the foreshortened right leg. Could have been a nice drawing.

Must learn to be gentle with my marks and to respect my materials. Thought I had learned this lesson, but apparently not. Way too much “screaming” going on in the long pose. Completely detracts from the figure and destroys the melody of the drawing. These marks are the equivalent of banging on drums.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Noticeable Improvement

Was happy with my work last night. Our session was crowded – nine artists. Got there early and set up on the far left of the model.

We do three poses over three hours with breaks every 20 minutes. The first two poses are warm ups – 20 minutes each. The final pose leaves about 90 minutes for actual drawing.

This format is great because you get warmed up to the task – your eye, your hand, your internal dialogue – and your materials – before setting about to do a more finished drawing in the long pose.

Looking at the drawings, it was pointed out to me the buttocks in the first drawing is a too high. Think the problem is the torso was foreshortened as he was leaning back at a slight angle, but I didn’t get the tilt right and didn’t create any shadow in the lumbar area. More importantly, I failed to compare the position of the left hand. If I had, I would have seen my error. Check your measurements and look for landmarks! The seat and towel in the long pose is clunky as well. Did not draw what I saw. Lazy eye.

One of the professional artists who attends and helps me with feedback and instruction said my drawing skills have improved a lot since I first started attending this open session a year ago. There are several very talented artists here who generously help the beginners. Much credit must go to them and sheer osmotic action : )

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… One Big Man

Our model last night was a large man. Didn’t ask how tall he is, but he had to be over 6’5″ and weigh more than 300 lbs. He came from a tennis game and posed with his racket in the initial warm – up pose. The group decided to get rid of the racket for the remaining poses. Good decision.

Like most weeks, my drawings got stronger as the session progressed with the final pose – the long pose – my best.

Still focused on getting the basic structure right, but taking less time to capture the gesture and the envelope, so able to focus more on light and shadow, the likeness, and details. Trying to learn to make my first marks soft, and to be careful about the pressure. Goal is to get to the point where I use the eraser to soften a line, not to fix a line. Need to continue anatomy study and looking at work of great masters.

Open Session: Life…The Wall

Last night was a good session for me. The first two poses were 20 minutes each. The final pose was 90 minutes. My drawings got better with each pose.

My objective was to work the 4 P’s for each of my drawings (Purpose, Placement, Proportions, and Polishing), to manage my time for each pose to get a finished drawing, and to continue working to refine my mark-making, soft edges, and tone. Need to work on all of these areas. Given the time constraints, think I did okay on most of these last night except Placement.

The small group of artists who attend this session is mostly professional, so I am very fortunate to be there. Without exception, each is a gifted draftsman and a generous person who offers criticism, suggestions, and encouragement to the beginners like me. Although this is an open session, it is like attending a class. I look forward to the session each week. This is also the studio I attend for the Four Saturday – 12 Hour Long Pose.

Progress not perfection.

Footnote: The studio is owned by a classically trained Russian artist, a highly accomplished draftsman and painter, among other artistic skills. Early last year, he invited a couple of the professional artists to hang a few of their drawings done at our sessions on his gallery wall along with several of his own; matted, informal, a kind of Wall of Fame for our life drawing group. Told him then one of my goals was to make it up on his wall. Last night he told me my final drawing – the 90 minute pose above on the right – was worthy of The Wall. I was all smiles. Still grinning today.

Open Session: Life… Tone It UP!

Last night my objective was to add more tone to define the shapes. This is a weak area for me. One reason my drawings appear flat and lifeless is my focus on line and my neglect of light and shadow. In a 20 minute pose, I get so caught up in getting the placement and proportions correct, I fail to leave time to define the shadows and soften the lines with tones over the form. This drawing was done in 40 minutes and gave me more time to get beyond the envelope.

Still lifeless but did get some tone in this drawing. Can see I failed to decide on a focal point and consequently the face won by default because it is framed by the lowest values and has some detail.

Professional artist who attends the same session suggested I should look for and block in shadows as I search for the form with my initial light scratchy marks. After I consider the pose, the placement, the proportions, the center line, and the focal point, of course. Hahaha. Lot to think about for an old guy.

Progress not perfection.

Long Pose: Week Four… Pastel Redux

After doing some reading about pastel drawing and looking at other pastel life drawings, decided to give the final three hour session another go with Nupastel sticks on toned paper. Better effort this time.

Decent rendering of the model, chair, and drapery folds. Must work on how best to portray natural blond hair! Add some white?? Chroma and values lack subtlety but pleased with the result for my experience level. Other artists again pointed out to me the importance of space and atmosphere. This is unfinished – represents work during the three hour studio session. Foreground and background are initial color layers. Will return to this drawing when I get more experience with color and using pastel.

Progress not perfection.

Long Pose: Week Three… Back to Drawing

Decided to fix my position relative to the model and do a pastel pencil drawing this week. Right thigh reads too long for the right calf to me – foreshortening calf error, maybe? Not sure. Something doesn’t look right.

While I like the composition as it is on the toned paper, other artists suggested I needed to add atmosphere of the room – walls and drapery.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Life… Scratch Art?

My mark-making is scratchy. Always trying to find the form. Learning to be softer with my initial marks but always a challenge for me.

Once my big shapes are established lightly – go back to make lines appear and disappear based on how the light and shadows appear on the particular form.

Good examples in this drawing are the left knee – nice soft line in the light – and heavier thicker lines on the torso and back of right thigh in the shadows.

Need to build and make a habit of a drawing process – with a systemic approach (i.e. large to small, general to specific) and constant internal dialogue checking my work for relative placement, proportion, gesture, center line, light, shadow, and atmosphere.

Progress not perfection.

Long Pose: Week Two… Attempt at Pastel

Week Two decide to try pastel. Very humbling. Not very adept at drawing with the sticks. Was advised some artists shave a tip to the stick. Who knew? Seems like a waste of pastel. Just learn to create a sharp edge when needed. Really no clue what I was doing. Note to self: do some research on pastel drawings. Layers, values, skin tones, all of it.

Long Pose: Week One… Out of Focus

In January my life drawing group did a long pose – three hours – with the same pose over four consecutive Saturdays – total 12 hours – in natural light. The more experienced artists did oil paintings or pastel. Still trying to learn to draw myself. Used CarbOthello 1400/645 pastel pencil with white highlights on Strathmore Series 500 charcoal paper.

This was my initial drawing. Focal point is face but there is no flow over the rest of the body. Maybe should have made the knee and hips a focal point and allowed the eye to move up the torso, hands and arms to the face using value changes and soft line edges?? Frankly, didn’t occur to me at the time. Still concentrating on getting the basics correct – proportions, foreshortening, light and shadows – not thinking enough about the composition. Note to self: step away and look at your work. One other thing: take it easy with the white highlights.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Lean…Leaner…Leanest

At this open session, we had two 20 minute poses and one 60 minute pose.

Left to right, the first drawing is rough and the center line is wrong – the figure is leaning and off balance. Still learning to manage my time and correct basic errors – like the center line or proportions – before going into any detail. No point going any further with a drawing until the basic form is correct.

Center line is better in second drawing, but still not correct. Also values are off. Used the chair to frame the model and made the tone too dark. Would like to think with more time I would have made the correction as I added tones throughout the drawing.

Drawing on the right is the long pose. Added more detail and atmosphere – her place in space – but drawing is flat and lifeless. Need to focus on light and shadow and lost and found lines to create three dimensionality.

Progress not perfection.

Open Session: Twenty Minute…Stretch

This open session emphasizes quick 2 & 5 minute gesture sketches. The last pose is 20 minutes.

Took my first figure drawing class last summer, a second with a different instructor in the fall. Attend an open life drawing session most weeks since then, sometimes two sessions. Making steady progress on proportion, foreshortening, anatomy; always challenged to establish a focal point, see light and shadow, make lost and found lines, and create atmosphere to breathe life into the image.

In this 20 minute drawing the foreshortening is stretched – a common error of mine. You can see it at the neck. Need to start to look at my work in progress from a distance. Might see my mistakes sooner.

Progress not perfection.