Middle aged madness: First signs

[Izer]

holy crap i've missed a lot of greatness, wonderful updates, really lovin the pastels Marian. Also like post on may 31st, just to see a bit of the process.

[ThomasM]

those pastel figures are lovely Marian, I'm really impressed by that sudden jump in shape recognition. No crits from me, just let me see more!

[AllyAlbon]

Wow, you have been busy! #636 with the palette knife is absolutely gorgeous - and I love the little goldfishies You have been a drawing machine lately!

[Damien Levs]

So much cool update Marian. You're just like a study machine! I know I have mentioned this before, but....but...I would really like to know what's in your imagination in a visual manner only you can can show us this. You must doodle or something

Either way, you are pure awesome!

[Kristoff]

Oh yes! The quantity of studies that I like! Are you in TAD too now?)

[Marian Rowling]

Izer: Hey Izer thanks so much for your encouraging words. It's always nice to hear from you.

ThomasM: Hey Tom it always gives me a boost when you approve of my efforts. I hope when you get into TAD that you will be posting some pastel figures as well!

AllyAlbon: Hey Ally really glad you like the palette knife painting, it was a first attempt so it's great to have your feedback on it. As always your feedback is encouraging and I thank you.

Damien Levs: Hey Damien thanks so much for your encouragement. I hate to confess but I don't really doodle yet, I hope that it will come in time, as I hate to disappoint you!

Kristoff: Hey Katherina thanks so much for stopping by, I know how busy you are so it means a lot. I'm not in TAD but I did take out a year's subscription to the Visual Literacy Program, hence the pastel drawings after Mark English's technique. I have always admired yours and other TAD students pastel figures and wanted to try for myself.



Life Drawing - Term 9
20.6.12

So these are from a few weeks back now as I haven't managed to update for a while. Following half term and a week's holiday I was pleased to get back to my life drawing. I can't remember the exact time for each but they would have been between 15 and 40 minutes. The first pose seems too long in the torso but I was quite pleased with the drawing of the other two. Tried again to start rendering but still really struggling and finding my way with this stage. I do feel excited though as I feel I'm moving onto that next stage and my drawings and proportions are getting a bit more consistent.

[Marian Rowling]

Sketches Update:

Most of these are what I managed to scribbled down in the cold, wind and rain on my lovely summer holiday by the sea in Eastbourne. Despite the British weather putting paid to all my plans for lots of outdoor sketching practice I still had a great holiday and even though the sketching was limited I still learned a few things which is all good as I really want to do the whole plein air painting sometime in the not too distant future. Many thanks to my folks to for sitting so patiently in the cold windy weather while I sketched.


All from photo ref practising looking for shadow shapes.


My Mum on the left relaxing and a bunch of 'Golden Oldies' playing bingo in Eastbourne on the right.


National Trust. The Ruins of the 14th-century moated Scotney Castle, Kent


Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne.


5 min Pier, Eastbourne


10 min Bandstand, Eastbourne


Pier, Easbourne

[Istmin52]

Hey Marian,

It's good to see you still drawing and updating your sketchbook. I really admire your persistence. Keep it up.

[Marian Rowling]

Istmin52: Yes Ian I'm still slowly plugging away, but I have waited along time to do this and the longer I do it the more I want to learn and improve. Really good of you to stop by and I appreciate your continued encouragement.


Golden Wedding Anniversary:

This is a little project I've been working on for the last month for my folks 50th wedding anniversary. I've always enjoyed doing calligraphy and decided, somewhat late, to have a go using a dip pen. I really enjoyed using it although my final lines were a bit wobbly and I didn't get the varying thickness of line I would have liked with the nib I brought. I also really wanted to finish of the little cherubs with an ink wash to add some form, but time ran short and I wasn't overly confident after I did a couple of practice runs that I was adding shadow in all the right places, so I decided not to do it on the final card. I used a sepia and gold ink and I will definitely being buying more nibs to try out as they are such good fun to draw with and I am now really keen to get better with pen and ink and be able to add depth with ink washes.

[lennon]

Hey Marian, great studies!! I really love to see your annotations in the SB, this are really intresting. A good thing I can say is that strangley enough one can get like I don't know, a sense of the atmosphere in wich this drawings were made; there's always like a feelling of a cafe or a bench in the park or something like that very urban. Perhaps it's the position from were you draw things, I don't know. Thanks a lot for posting!

[Pete Hidalgo]

Awesome stuff man. Would love to see more of those Oils

[Marian Rowling]

lennon: Thanks so much lennon I'm glad you enjoyed my scribbly writing, I like to keep a note of what was going on or where I was when I'm away on holidays. As you say it helps to remind you of what it was like. Always nice to hear from you and I appreciate your encouragement.

Pete Hidalgo: Hey Pete thanks so much for your enthusiasm about my work, I really do appreciate it. I hope that I can make time to get back to doing some more oil painting soon.



Life Drawing - Term 9
26.6.12

Just two longer poses this week. I found the first one very challenging and went a bit wrong from the start by making the shoulders too wide. Found the standing pose easier and started to put in some tone. My teacher showed me how to use a paper stump like a paint brush by picking up charcoal on it that you have rubbed onto another area away from the drawing. Obviously I have to get used to it as I am still quite heavy handed at the moment, but I quite like the idea of it as I can cover large areas with tone just like painting. Early days but I think I will keep trying it out when I get time.


50 mins


35 mins

[Marian Rowling]

Life Drawing _ Term 9
4.7.12

Some rather awkward looking drawings this week, but despite that I did relish the challenge. We had the model up on a table which gave a totally different view than normal. I ended up with a bent leg that looks more like a log and some very clunky looking heads and limbs but it was good to try to draw from this new perspective. Time ran out before I could fully work out all the shapes of what I was looking at but it was another good class.


5 min gestures


40 min


35 min

[p sage]

Good to see you're formalizing the figures nicely, Marian. Keep working on seeing those shape relationships. Nice work!

[Marian Rowling]

p sage: Hey, hey Chad lovely to hear from you, I hope you are doing ok. Thanks for taking the time to continue to support and encourage me. I really do appreciate it and I do miss your own updates in your sketchbook.



Life Drawing - Term 9
11.7.12

So it's end of term again, they come round so quickly and this marks 3 years that I've been attending this class. I really enjoyed both the long poses this week. We had the model up on a table again and in the first long pose the model was beautifully draped over a bean bag. I got some what caught up with the torso not seeming wide enough, but my teacher thought it was because part of the torso was buried in the bean bag and that once that had been rendered it would have read right. It was a great challenge and I hope we get more poses like it. I was happy with what I did for the last pose although it now seems that the leg isn't quite attached to the body, and the shoulder seem too wide and the head too small, or maybe not.........that's the fun of life drawing and I'm already looking forward to next term so I can try some more.


5 min Gestures


45 min


35 min

[Damien Levs]

Wooo!! Your anniversary drawings are what I'm talking about! Personal stuff. Great work there Marian!! As always superb life drawings and studies. Your dedication is profound..I also really really love your landscape studies. Landscape are pure candy for me

[Marian Rowling]

Damien Levs: Hey Damien thanks so much! I really love landscapes to and I want to work towards being able to capture trips and places I visit in pen, ink and watercolour. Also really want to do the whole plein air oil painting thing in the future, actually I think I want to do it all!!! Just small steps for now though.


Pastel Figures:

It's been well over a month since I have done any of these. So I was surprised as they came out better than I thought they would. All from photo ref and all 15 mins

[shockowaffel]

Oh, I like these negative forms !
Or maybe they're regularly drawn and just equipped with a dark background ?
Whatever, great sketches, especially the red ones at the end.
Although they took 15min each, they still look so loose and easy.
Well done !

[Pete Hidalgo]

Loving the new figure studies. very good use of negative forms.

[Psychobuddy]

Wow the new figures are great, awesome sense of form, and negative space like the other guys said ^_^

[ThomasM]

Marian, don't make me hate you! Those figures from the last couple of life drawing sessions make me filthily jealous!

Ive just voted 5 stars because you really deserve it. I would crit those, but honestly I don't have anything to say. The anniversary card looks lovely, Im sure they really appreciated it. Well.. actually I can't be sure.. but if they didn't then they're mad!

I completely agree with you regarding the painting plein air, I think that is my ultimate long-term goal: To go out and create something beautiful whilst sat outdoors armed only with tubes of colour and some hairs on the end of sticks. ! We'll get there I'm sure one day

[jNeumann]

Those figure studies are looking really great man. Keep up the good work!

[p sage]

Have to agree with ThomasM. Those figures are really holding together compositionally very well. They're not haphazard... they're designed.

Nice one.

Here's an impertinent question that's been itching my brain for a while. We're past the "First signs" of middle aged madness. Are there any additional signs?

[Marian Rowling]

shockowaffel: Hey Thorsten many thanks. I am following a technique by Mark English at visualliteracyprogram.com. It is based on either a light object on a dark background or a dark object on a light background. For example on a light object, I use a light pastel to roughly block in the shape then refine the silhouette with a dark pastel. Next rub the two pastels to mix them and create a shadow tone, re-empasise the dark silhouette and then paint in the light areas. It was created to help you focus on the big shapes rather than getting caught up in details.

Pete Hidalgo: Hey Pete glad you like them to. Thanks for letting me know.

Psychobuddy: Hey Psychobuddy it's great to have this positive feedback as it all helps. Especially as I have little real contact with other artists.

ThomasM: hehehe......Tom now I know you are joking, and NOT talking about my life drawings! I really can't imagine the day I make you jealous, or do we mean inspired...hehehe You know I really do appreciate your feedback though even though I may not yet be worthy of such praise and stars. I really hope we get to paint plein air together one day, with our sticks with hairs on the end, I love the way you put it, that would be a cool goal for me to achieve.

jNeumann: Hey JNeumann thanks so much, I thought your own progress lately was great.

p sage: Hey Chad I really do miss you posting your own work. Always appreciate your words though, so do I take it that you are seeing some second stage symptoms? Being mad I can't tell. Also watch out for that itchy brain feeling as that could be 'Middle Aged Madness' early onset.


Pastel Figures: These are all 15 - 20 mins and from photo ref.

[p sage]

More good figures.

What's next for Marian? Paintings? Houses made of sticks?
What is your vision? What is the thing you want to do? Can you do it yet? Have you tried it yet?

Try it and see how far you've come and how far you've yet to go.

[ThomasM]

Marian, those are lovely again and this time I do have a crit for you because I can't always be praising your improvement!

I think one thing which would really raise the standard of your figures would be a little "grounding". The figures often look like they are suspended in the air, which means that there is something in your sketching which isn't quite showing the model as you see it. Really try to "feel" that weight going down into the legs, or through the feet, and imagine where the weight would be distributed. This distribution is usually pretty evident in the pads of the feet or the splaying of the toes and would really add that extra level to the feeling of form.

Anyway, its something to think about. I would highly recommend doing some foot sketches of a partner, child, friend, or anybody who will sit still for 5 minutes (even if you have to pay someone on the street just get hold of those feet!). I try to do 5 minute poses or so to get the overlapping of shapes and the feeling of weight really evident.

I know its not something people generally express, but I think the structure of the foot is really beautiful. (Excluding my own of course which often look like someone has slapped two pieces of bacon on to the end of my legs!)


Anyway, rambling.... good luck with it!

[Marian Rowling]

p sage: Ha ha Chad what is next for Marian????? More work on my foundational skills with a view to getting more into painting. I really love portraits so that's what I am aiming to at the moment, but I want it all really.....figurative work, concept art, landscapes, travel sketching, oils, watercolours, pastels, ink, sculpture, 3D modeling, animation.......ummmm did I leave anything out.....I bet you now wished you hadn't asked!!

ThomasM: Many thanks for the crit Tom, it's a good one and I have it in my head now so I shall try to pay attention to it when I draw. Sadly I only have my own feet to practice from so I may have to get out the mirror and also look at some Master artworks. Just for the record I do actually really like drawing both hands and feet as I to think they are very expressive.


Sketches Update:

So now the site is back up I thought it was time to catch up on all the drawing I've been doing. This little batch is all from life and I spent weeks trying to draw the hoover. Proved to be so difficult for me that my house got really dirty because I was determined to try and do the best I could and not be beaten.

Haha...it's taken me a while to work out how to attach my images, I had only just worked out how to add text under each image in the last version!

Attachment 1596403Attachment 1596407Attachment 1596404Attachment 1596408Attachment 1596405Attachment 1596406

[ninaren]

love your figures great

[Marian Rowling]

Many thanks ninaren, I appreciate your feedback.

[ja1307]

Like the analytical approach your taking to your drawing. your vacuum cleaner study in particular is very impressive. I would struggle to draw such a complex object but the way you have broken it down step by step really seems to have payed off. Good job and well done on the consistency something many of us struggle with I am sure.