Ocean serenity

 Today I was inspired to sketch a beach near our home that we frequently visit. I hope to do more art and painting in the year ahead.

The Captains House

Just a quick sketch while picnicking at Coyote Point.  The building in the background is actually the restroom while the Captains House is behind me.

More figures

It's been awhile since I did some figure drawing so I was feeling a bit rusty.  My daughter Marcie was in town who is an excellent artist so I invited her to join me.  Here are a few of the 20 minute poses I sketched.  Hope to do many more in 2016.

Life Drawing

I discovered a fantastic group of artists in San Francisco that hosts a weekly figure drawing workshop  every Saturday morning.  The models are very professional and provide some very beautiful (and challenging) short poses.   It starts with 2 minute poses and ends with 20 minute poses for about 3 hours.  Instead of a workshop it should be called a workout because it takes a lot of concentration to sincerely capture the beauty and humanity of these models.  Here are a few drawings from September.

Leelee

I found a beautiful portrait of Leelee Sobieski on IMDB and sketched this drawing in the order that William Maughan recommends in his book Drawing the Head - gesture, proportion, shadow shapes, then details.

David

At BACAA this Thursday I had the opportunity to work on a portrait.  I spent more time on measuring and proportions before rendering the planes and values.  I also looked for connecting lines, shapes, and values.

Recumbant nude female

I dropped in at BACAA on Tuesday to work on this figurative drawing in charcoal.

Bargue plate 53 - Jeune Femme

Here is a copy of a classic Bargue plate 53 of a young woman.  This drawing was done with a charcoal pencil.  It's critical to get the proportions right in the beginning.  This makes the rest of the drawing much easier.

Mike Myers

I've found that imdb.com to be a great source to practice sketching celebrity portraits.  Here is a sketch of the comedian Mike Myers

D

Ears

Many beginner artists such as myself have a tendency to draw ears as an afterthought.  Therefore practicing drawing features like ears is crucial to good portraiture.  Here is one 20 minute practice session based on the book by William Vaughan I have been working my way through.

Break dancing

Here is a 30 minute sketch of a break dancer.  I like the angles and lines but had difficulty with the form since he was wearing black pants.

Heather Lind

Here is an attempt at a portrait of Heather Lind based on a photo I found on imdb.  She stars in a new TV show called TURN with JJ Feild.  I have not yet seen this show but it has an interesting premise about America's first spy ring that takes place during the Revolutionary War.

JJ Feild

Well, what do think?  Any resemblance to JJ Feild?

Irises

I found these irises outside today in the front yard and decided to draw them.  I wanted to focus on line and shade but it did not turn out exactly as I planned as I had trouble establishing lines and contours.

Fifth Position

It was the gesture and the first position of the hands that first caught my attention of this ballet dancer.  The feet are in the fifth position.  Here is a charcoal sketch on toned paper.

Ballet Dancer

Here is a quick sketch of a male ballet dancer using charcoal and conte crayon on toned paper.  I tried to preserve the lines and the dancers' center of gravity.

Eve at the Gates of Hell

This afternoon I was at the Rodin garden outside the Cantor museum at Stanford enjoying the sculptures.  As the sun was beginning to set I had about an hour left of light to sketch Rodin's Eve which stands to the right of his Gates of Hell.  Here is a charcoal sketch on toned paper where I began with a few light gesture lines and then worked on getting the right proportions.  As I continued to sketch Eve I fought to retain the gesture of the sculpture and unify shapes of similar value.

Fruit and Coffee Mug

I have been experimenting with still life paintings lately to play with composition and form of larger shapes.  I just grab a few items (that usually includes some fruit), do a sketch, and then paint in whichever medium I feel like working in that day.  Here is a watercolor and a charcoal sketch.  Notice I've started signing my name on paintings which is not as simple as one would expect as I'm trying to be cautious that my signature blends in (I think this will take some practice with a rigger or liner brush).

Cool dancer

One of my favorite subjects to draw are dancers.  I enjoy the lines, figurative shapes, and energy they bring to a composition.  Here is a drawing in charcoal based on a cool dancer photo I saw on Pinterest.

Still life floral arrangement

I admire the still life paintings of the Dutch and Flemish masters and have always found it difficult to know where to focus when drawing or painting a floral still life.  Here is a drawing I did a couple of weeks ago based on a painting I liked on the Internet.  I focused my attention on just a few flowers instead of trying to render the entire arrangement.