Recent portraits

   A few weeks ago I spend an afternoon photographing my friend, Tabitha who is also a part time model. I often draw people but rarely have any good photos of my own to work from so I have been practicing my drawing from random photos of the internet and, of course, I can not share my work from them publicly. Ideally I should like to work from live models, and I do as much as I can, but that is not possible a lot of the time and so I have had to get some of my own reference photos. Here are a couple of my best works from the photos I took.

Tabitha: oil on board aprox. A3. The painting was a present for another friend, her boyfriend.

 
   Recently I have been inspired by the amazing artist Susan Lyon. Particularly her pastel drawings of people. I bought her video on drawing and was very pleased with it and learned so much. Especially about the importance of accuracy, measuring and remeasuring, and taking my time. I often have a tenancy to rush things! After three unsuccessful drawings of Tabitha I managed to draw the above and am happy with it. I took my time to measure and not rush all over the place putting down useless stuff.

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Self Portrait and Drawing Video

   I'm painting full time at the moment. Working hard on the Toro Commission and trying to fit in painting all the things I want to. It seems the more I paint the more I want to paint. That goes for drawing also. A few days ago I did this sketch of myself. It was intense work, I spent a whole afternoon at it and completely lost myself in the paint. I learnt a lot from doing this. I began with a blank canvass in front of me, stared at myself in the mirror and had no idea what to call the colour of my skin. Why don't children get taught more about colour than the few basic ones? We don't even have names for half the colours there are! I want to practice more portrait painting and drawing from life, but it's not always easy to find a model. It's not easy sitting still for very long, as all my friends have found out while I've sketched them! 

   Last week I made a video of me drawing sketches of people. I was having a face drawing craze and was working on accuracy of proportions and likeness rather than a finished picture. So I made some of them into a video. My head got in the way a bit and is rather distracting in the video. My apologies. I'll try to find that little bit missing from the tripod then, using that, I'll be able to make some better videos. Thank you to my brother, Peter, for letting me use his camera! Here is the video as promised:

Link to YouTube

Sketches of my Life

I spent several hours on my drawing yesterday while I was looking after the little craft shop. I drew this cute old fashioned restaurant in Canada from a photo in a travel book.

I used only a pen so I had to pay attention to proportions as I only had one and a half chances to get it right!

Here are a couple more of my recent drawings. I'm up to Day 125 today!

I picked a small branch off the maple tree and spent a day drawing leaves.

One hot sunday afternoon I walked down to the wharf and sat for a couple of hours drawing what was once a store on the water. Now it is a privately owned holiday place.

I've been making a pochade box out of an old wooden Whisky Soda box and plan to do some plein air painting soon.

My nephew stayed with us on the weekend and I let him use my computer on the condition that I draw him!

My younger brother, Nathaniel (16) now half owns and looks after a cute little 22ft yacht called Destiny. I think we are going to have a lot of fun sailing her! :)

A Quote from Beatrix Potter

Zena. Portrait of a beautiful girl

This is the portrait I was working on last month of a beautiful girl who died tragically several years ago. I did the portrait for her mother who came to pick it up in the weekend and was very happy with it which makes me glad. I like to capture a person so that they are more than recognizable, one of my goals is to make real portraits which portrays a person and goes beyond a likeness.

I drew this on a A3 piece of drawing paper. It was terrible drawing paper by the way, I wont use that again, but I managed it! I used HB to 8B graphite pencils and a kneaded rubber. Also cotton buds for blending, they are very useful but similar to bobby pins in that they end up everywhere except when you want one! 

Ballet Girl

This is a commissioned drawing in graphite pencil on A4 paper. I just finished it today and has been 'approved' by the lady who commissioned it and will be sent of tomorrow in time for the little girl's birthday on Friday.

I had some trouble working out the initial proportions which just wouldn't come out right for ages though in a preliminary sketch I did it perfect first time! I made a speed drawing video of my process which I will edit and upload this week. But I don't think the filming turned out quite so well as in my last Hosannah video.!

Pages from my sketchbook

Here are some pages from my sketchbook in response to Loriann Signori's challenge on her blog. 

I use my sketchbooks as places to scribble when I don't feel like doing a proper drawing but want to make marks with my pencil anyway. Or I use them it for daily sketching challenges which I love or preliminary sketches for more finished drawings or paintings.

 

This first photo is one of several I have done from famous paintings. I find the best way to learn more about a master's work is to copy his masterpieces. I discovered allot about 'In the Conservatory' when I did this page. And also about the artist. Art Project Powered by Google is a great reference for this kind of thing.

On this second page are a couple of sketches I did in preparation for a portrait of the girl. They were really helpful and decided me on the first pose as an open smile really doesn't look good in a portrait.

These last two are from a daily sketch challenge I set myself earlier in the year. I always find my hand eye drawing skills are given a huge boost after I draw heaps and heaps and regularly.

Tigger

   This will be the first of a series of watercolour paintings I am working on. He is half finished and I''m working from a photo of my horse, Tigger. 

Charcoal Portrait

I think this is Rita Hayworth... 

 I drew her in charcoal on standard drawing paper.

Ragdoll Kitten Pastel Portrait

Pastel Portrait on board

On Friday I took this portrait into town to his new owner and I got to meet the actual kitten, Enzo. He is a gorgeous little Ragdoll Kitten, very relaxed and friendly. I saw him once as a little baby but it was so nice to be able to meet him as a big boy.