Middle aged madness: First signs

[Satu]

Very good looking new updates! Nice life studies and the sculpture is coming along nicely too. I also like this very much. I love the variety of things you do with different kinds of mediums.

[Marian Rowling]

p sage: Yes Sage I always try to sketch from life everyday for at least 30 mins. So what am I going to do with another 'me'? Well being into the whole atelier scene, and unable to buy a lovely bust like yours, I thought I could use it for doing cast drawings. So it won't be long before I'm surrounding myself.....talk about self obsessed!

Raffix: Hey Raffix thanks so much for your helpful feedback. I shall especially make sure I check those proportions on the sculpture as I know I haven't paid much attention to the neck since I began. It's great to have a pair of 'fresh' eyes looking at it. Many thanks.

Satupeikko: Hey Satu thanks so much for your kind words. It's really nice for me that you like my first oil painting, very encouraging and I appreciate you taking the time to say so.




Portrait Painting: Class 5 - Work Space
31.10.11

Just a very quick lecture this week on the importance of standing to paint and which side to position your subject on. I'm pleased to say I have been doing these right.

The first image shows what I did at home to change the proportions and just paint one value for all the light areas and one for the dark. I kind of had a plan then at class I lost it and I didn't really know what to do and ended up making that classical beginners error of losing all my contrast. This was the last week for this model but I shall continue working on improving it at home. I have already been doing some tonal drawings in charcoal to try to work it out.

[Marian Rowling]

International Self Portrait Day
1.11.11

This is my third year of joining in with this event. This was about 1hr 30 mins from a mirror and not a bad improvement on the previous year. Don't think I'm turning the form very well but I am quite pleased with the proportions and the expression. It's all good fun looking at what everybody does. If you missed it, take a look here http://www.conceptart.org/forums/sho...d.php?t=230429

[Marian Rowling]

Portrait Painting Techniques - Online Class 2
1.11.11

This week we painted a nose from photo reference. I was quite pleased with how it went and I actually got on better with the oil painting paper and cheap paints. I also did a make over of my eye. I'm happy with the pupil but I didn't do so well with the rest of it. Not getting enough contrast with my tones again and I felt the nose highlight was to cool. Had a bit fun doing both though.

[purplegoat]

I know what you mean about appearing "self obsessed". For awhile I was doing quite a few self portraits and had them all laying around. I though "Man, if anyone were to walk in and see all these self portraits laying around they're going to think I'm a narcissist!". Actually I was getting tired of drawing/painting myself at that point. I started putting those renderings away after that. It's not that I want to draw myself as much as I'm the most available and cheap model I can find!

You're self portrait for self portrait day looks good. I totally missed it this year

You're doing all good things to improve and you are improving. Looking forward to more!

[seungy]

hey Marian, hope you're doing well!
Certainly seeing a lot of improvement in your work.

I kind of had to look through some of the first few pages to see how much you progressed! Impressive!

At this stage I can only suggest that with your figure drawings, it would be good to see a variation of both gestural and block forms together.

Some nice curvy rhythms mixed in with straight lines will make your drawings more stronger I think.

[p sage]

Nice oil studies, Marian. That's a fun expression on your SP, too.

[Marian Rowling]

purplegoat: I hear you PG I'm the cheapest most available model I know to. Thanks for the kind words I did hope to see you on the self portrait thread, your presence was missed. I really think we are both making some good progress this year, especially with our foray into painting. Onwards and upwards my friend

seungy: Hey seungy many thanks for stopping by I appreciate the feedback and help. Good of you to take the time and go back to look at the first few pages.

p sage: Thanks Sage, I am slowly getting more used to the oils. Still early days but I do enjoy my painting attempts. The self portrait was fun although I did get a bit of face ache after all that squinting......oh how we sacrifice for our art! LOL



Life Drawing - Term 7
2.11.11

Still drawing on small board and working the room this week. I did get really into the last two poses though and forgot to move. I was quite pleased with the second to last one and couldn't help but smile at the one where I've given the poor model a black bum!

1 - 4. 5 min gestures
5. 10 min pose
6. 30 min pose
7. 35 min pose

[Istmin52]

Thanks for the comment Marian. Sorry I don't post that often these days. I actually posted the finished version of my character up on my sketchbook.

I think your last figure drawing is your best one. Maybe that's because you had more time?

I like that you are breaking the figure into shapes but I feel like some of your proportions are off. Especially pose #3. I think it just takes a matter of practice until it gets easier. Maybe try drawing from the inside out more with your drawings. Like maybe first try to get the ribcage gestured in and the line for the spinal cord. Those would be good places to start. Sometimes I have to draw the head first and move my way down. It really depends. It looks like to me that you are drawing from the outer contours of the figure first.

[p sage]

"Black bum" leads to the "dreaded lurgy", I'm afraid

Marian as long as all of this work keeps you motivated and it's fun--everything is lovely.

Are there goals for art in the future? Are you hoping to do fine art?

No need for answers to those; just thoughts. A concern would be if you're not actually "doing" the kind of art you'd like to be doing eventually (for instance... cartoons, or something). It can erode one's will to continue.

The process of learning and mastering things is kind of fun, in and of itself.

[Marian Rowling]

Istmin52: Hey Ian thanks so much for your feedback and help. I shall make sure I check out your finished character as you were off to a great start.

p sage: hehe Sage I must make sure I avoid the "Black bum"! I have to say that I have fun with my art even when I am really struggling and way out of my depth. I think it's because I feel so lucky and grateful to be able to learn something I have always wanted to be able to do. For me learning and studying art is like a wonderful gift of freedom I am giving to myself that will last as long as I live.

One of my goals for the future would be to try to get my art study to pay for itself and I did think this might be possible by doing commissions like portraits, pets, horses and a like. I really want to keep learning everything I possibly can about all areas. So I do hope to progress into areas like animation, concept art and illustration. I very much would like to try all the hats on to see which fits. Of course the ultimate goal for me would be to totally support myself working as an artist in some capacity. For now though I just want to nail those fundamentals. As always I truly appreciate your continued interest in my art endeavors.



Life Drawing - Term 7
9.11.11

Really enjoyed all my drawings this week. I find our model Nigel always looks dynamic even in relaxed posed which makes him really interesting to draw. I'm still standing and drawing on small sized newsprint. I have however stopped moving round. This wasn't intentional I just got so involved in studying the light that I couldn't stop drawing to move, 40 mins passed in a moment!

1 - 3. 5 min gestures
4. 20 min pose
5. 25 min pose
6. 40 min pose

[Marian Rowling]

Portrait Painting: Class 6 & 7 - Getting A Likeness
7.11.11, 14.11.11

I decided to combine the post for these two classes as the lecture last week was very short and this week we had the whole session just for painting. The main theme of the lecture was looking for the deviation of key dimensions. So nostril visibility and shape, eye brow and lid shape, line between lips and age, wrinkles, loose skin, eye and nose size and chin angle.

With our goal of getting a likeness we then had a choice of photographs to paint from. I started off last week drawing in the basic proportions with yellow ochre mixed with Gamsol. I choose this colour for the under painting as the photo is mainly orange. At the end of the class my teacher said she would have used Burnt Sienna. It's always so obvious when they say it!

This week I came with a tube of Burnt Sienna and started out by checking and correcting my proportions. I then proceeded to put in the darkest darks but I did get stuck trying to mix the darker oranges. It was really interesting to see how much the colour didn't match what I initially thought it was. Although far from finished I did achieve the goal of getting a likeness and I do feel I'm getting better at this first drawing stage. I'm sure I will come back to this one at a later stage as he is a very interesting looking man.

1. Yellow ochre under painting.
2. Blocking in darkest tones.

[lennon]

Those gesture studies are looking really good. I like how you managed to make the shadows. Great stuff.

[Marian Rowling]

Lennon: Many thanks Lennon I had a good week! Happens sometimes, my goal is to be able to make it happen all the time.


Sculpture Study Update:
6.11.11 - 2hrs, 13.11.11 - 4hrs

Having felt I've got the main likeness I've been going back now to refine everything. As suggested in Raffix's post I did decided the eyes were a bit too large and too deep set. I spent most of last week working on the eye on the right to correct this. I think it does look better so now I have to do the same for the other eye this week. Before making the eye smaller the nose seemed too short now it's a tad too long. As this is just a study to learn from I think it's a good idea to go back and change any errors I see as I have the luxury of time.

[Marian Rowling]

Life Drawing - Term 7
16.11.11

ha ha I can't help but think of the idiom 'pride comes before a fall'! So what happened this week? I wanted to see what would happen when drawing back at the easel on bigger paper......and I seemed to totally lose it as is evident in the drawings. Not too worried though as I know I just have to keep trying and I still have three classes left until the end of term. These drawings did make me laugh though.

[Damien Levs]

Super nice updates Marian Always drop by here when I need a good boot up the rear!! Totally dig that portrait that is using yellow ochre

[tehmeh]

Great updates Marian! The self portrait is a really nice piece, as you mention just the sides of the face, those edges need a bit more observation but the drawing is otherwise spot on.

Life drawing in the second and third last post is really showing some nice improvement, in the most recent update when it comes to bigger paper (especially enveloping in, going for accuracy) the difficulty scales, so you really have to just go with it. make sure you're using the full page for each one though! otherwise you might as well have used smaller paper. How long are these poses? I think you'll do fine on larger paper again, it just needs a bit of getting used to.

[Marian Rowling]

Damien Levs: Hey Damien many thanks, I'm glad you like my 'scary man' portrait. I'm hoping to do some more work on him in the not too distant future. You'll be pleased to know that I have quite small feet so hopefully my boot up the rear won't leave marks!

tehmeh: Hey Olly many thanks for the feedback it's much appreciated and it's always good to have the reassurance of fellow artists you aspire to. I totally hear you on making sure the drawings fill the full page and I hadn't realised I didn't put the length of the poses on the last post. So thanks for that also. I'm feeling pretty excited today because my copy of Henry Yan's book has arrived and it's filled with great drawings and tips, some of which I hope will rub off on me.




Life Drawing - Term 7
23.11.11

So I was super keen this week to try and improve on last weeks drawings, and it did seem to go better. I took the same approach of quickly blocking in the whole pose with the side of the charcoal and then rubbing it off with a paper towel. Then I tried to go back in to correct the proportions and get a basic feeling for the light. I was happy with the feeling of form I was getting with the bent leg on the lying pose. It's was a shame time ran out with this one as I was really enjoying the pose and I could have studied it for days.

1. 5 min gestures.
2. 35 min pose.
3. 40 min pose.

[Baudolino]

Awesome updates, Marian! The sculpture study looks fantastic.

[poetry man]

Hey Marian! You've come a nice long way from where you started. That's awesome. I looked back and I saw stuff I think I missed lol.

Anyway, keep up the paintings, and the sculpture is looking real nice. I see your learning a lot. Just Never give up.

[Marian Rowling]

Baudolino: Thanks so much Stephan that's good to hear as I really respect your work.

poetry man: Hey Andre thanks so much. Like you I have the bug so I shall just keep on trying to improve and learn all I can.



Sketches Update:- Still trying to spend at least 30 mins everyday to do some observational drawing. So these are all from life.

[Vritra]

Marian, you've really got a great sketchbook. I can feel genuine intent behind each stroke, I don't know why. And it makes me happy. I don't know how to explain it, but I feel there is soul in this sketchbook.

Do keep updating, I'm glad I came across this sketchbook.

EDIT: Oh, and five stars of course.

[Marian Rowling]

Vritra: Wow Vrita what a lovely thing to say. Thank you, you made my day, I hope I can keep on making you happy to!



Life Drawing - Term 7
30.11.11

Still focusing on the same method and approach this week. I found the first long pose the most challenging. I think I needed about another 3 hours to work out what I was looking at and get the proportions and foreshortening right. I really like these poses that really push me out of my comfort zone and make me think. Although I end up with an awkward drawing by the end I have usually had an 'aha' moment of how I should have approached it, which is good.

[Marian Rowling]

Sculpture Study Finished

Here's the final version of my self portrait sculpture. For a very first attempt I am feeling very pleased and I really enjoyed the whole learning process. There are many errors that I know of and I'm sure many I can't yet see, but errors aside It's good to have something that does look like me.

I'm now really interested in learning about the next steps of mould making and casting so I'm currently looking for information about silicon rubber mould making. In the New Year when the weather warms up I shall start a new head study probably of one of my male relatives this time so I can take advantage of their lack of hair to study the skull and ears!

[Vritra]

The self portrait sculpture looks great to me. I have no idea how to sculpt myself, but as far as my understanding of the head is concerned, I think this is looking good.

I like the figure studies as well. Somehow, and I can't tell how, I feel a lot of intent in your work. Keep drawing, and updating this sketchbook. It's a pleasure.

[p sage]

The finished product looks great; you should be very proud.

[NickTrip]

Great stuff going on in here! I really love that sculpture you've made. Totally rad!

[Satu]

I agree with sage about the sculpture, it looks really good! Good job! Keep rocking.

[ezekrialase]

very nice studies, and I really like your sculpture!

[Marian Rowling]

Vritra: Many thanks Vritra it's great to have your feedback, always means a lot to me.

p sage: Hey Sage I'm super pleased that you approve. Hope all goes well with you.

NickTrip: Hey Nick, nice to hear from you, and I'm so glad you like my sculpture, especially as your a dab hand at sculpting yourself, I loved your 'tree people' project.

Satupeikko: Hey Satu, many thanks to you to, I really do appreciate your continued support.

ezekrialase: Hey Ezekrialase thanks so much for your feedback. It's great to know what fellow artists think and very much appreciated.




Portrait Painting: Class 8,9 & 10
Composition in Portraiture and Contrast is King

Our last lectures for this course were really interesting as we looked at a lot of paintings discussing how and why they held our interest. Five methods of holding your viewers attention were:
1. Technical proficiency - tone, colour, likeness and balance
2. Focal points - areas of greatest interest which usually in portraits is the eyes.
3. Visual Loops - Pathways which take your eye back to the focal point.
4. Sitter's position and gaze direction - European culture is to read left to right but we must be aware of other cultures reading right to left and top to bottom.
5. Added interest - Querky, Puzzle, Emotive and Narrative.

Examples of elements of a painting that can be contrasted are tone, colour, saturdation, translucency, focus, shapes, size, paint thickness, brush strokes and also subject matter.

It was all good stuff and we then spent the last two weeks trying to apply what we had learnt painting from our life model. It was pretty cool because I knew the model from life drawing class and he came dressed as a cowboy. I really got into the cowboy theme and had a great time taking on a three quarter pose that I didn't really feel I had the skills to tackle but I was really surprised with how well it went and I ended up with a fairly finished piece.