Graffiti + drawings

[invocations]

I've been out and about lately, which means (well, usually means) more graffiti photos. There's some 20+ new ones that I've added, and they can be found here. My favourite out of the recent lot:



YAY FOR ROBOTS!

Aside from that, I finally got off my butt and drew some stuff! They're just random bits from the last month or so.

---

Charcoal, A3. My sister, playing the piano. She won't sit for me otherwise!






Odd self-portrait, A3, pen. Doesn't really look like me.





James, A4, marker. James had two Copic markers so I stole them to draw him! It would have been nice to have more than two shades; maybe five. It doesn't quite look like him (angle is a bit off; he kept moving, how inconsiderate) although his mum could recognise him easily enough! Have to work more on this capturing likeness thing. I keep wondering if there's a special something I'm missing or whether it's just more observation and practice?





Self-portrait, A3, marker. This one is a decent likeness. Something a little off about the angle; should really work more with charcoal or pencil or something so I could correct it instead of committing to it with marker. Plus, I'm drawing the same-old; time to do something different!

Comments

[kimouski.livejournal.com]

Do you like your nose?

[invocations.livejournal.com]

I like my nose, but not in drawings! It never seems to come out right. The one in the marker drawing had less shading at first, and then I made the mistake of adding more in. Now it stands out too much.

[kimouski.livejournal.com]

What I noticed was the lack of definition in both drawings, particularly in the bottom curve, compared to the one of James. I wondered if you hated your nose or if it's just a sore spot when drawing.

Here's what I see as the problem: it's the most nebulous area of the whole composition compared to the rest. And it's in the center too, very glaring. Compare it to your lips. You have a clear delineation of where their edges are. Now look at your nose. Not as clear. Look at the ridge that runs down the center of your top lip—the shading is very distinct. Compare that to the shading at the bottom of your nose. Not so distinct. Why not? There's usually quite a bit of shadow where your nose meets your upper lip area.

I've got an old ink self-portrait from college. If you want, I can dig it up and post it for comparison.

[invocations.livejournal.com]

You're observant! The nose is definitely a weak spot when drawing. There is definitely more shadow where the nose meets the upper lip area- I avoid putting it in sometimes (and definitely avoided it today) for fear of making the bottom curve of the nose looking like one big nostril! What I could have done is use a fine ink pen (or the very tip of the marker I was using) to get that shadow in.

I also find it hard to get lines/shadow down when using ink (e.g., smile lines, lines around the nose, eyebrow furrow, bags under the eyes) because I keep feeling it makes the person look more haggard than they are. Sounds silly; I still haven't figured out how to resolve this yet.

If you do find it, your self-portrait would be really helpful. =)

[kimouski.livejournal.com]

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i121/kimouski/self-portrait.jpg

Obviously, it isn't done. If I added tone to the hair, it would change the shading on the face and I'd go in and darken areas (like the nose, side of the face). Also, I think I abandoned this for the same gripes you had about ink—I'd committed that dark line near the corner of my mouth and didn't like it. And, I was nine months pregnant and my ankles were probably getting swollen. :p

Anyway, there you have it. Maybe after the workshops are over I'll have that self-portrait thread.

[invocations.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that as well as your feedback! Man, Kim. If my ankles were getting swollen, I would've abandoned that a long time ago... XD

I see what you mean about the shadows under the nose- what I've left out is the fold you get just above the lip and the bottom curve of the nose. I wonder if part of the difficulty is the shape of my nose? It's relatively flat (but sort of bulbous in shape- wide at the bottom) with no clear definition for the...bumps at the side. Around the nostrils. Or it could be the direct fluorescent lighting I had. Either way, this is something I'll pay more attention to!

[maiji.livejournal.com]

Ahhh the graffiti photos are great! XDDD

These are fantastic sketches. I think my favourite is the first piano one; it just look so balanced, both loose and well-composed at the same time. :3

[invocations.livejournal.com]

Grafitti, brightening up my day! =D

Thank you! I like drawing my sister; when she's playing the piano especially, because there's a certain gracefulness that she has.