Title: Untitled
Size: 11 x 14″
Medium: Graphite on Bristol Vellum
Time: 4 Hours
Status: WIP

So far, so good. The eyes are completely working for me. I just wish I could take a decent update photo. This one makes it look a lot harsher than it actually is. Jesus. I need photography educmacation!

Photos: WIP Update

Title: Untitled
Size: 11 x 14″
Medium: Graphite on Bristol Vellum
Time: 1 Hour
Status: WIP

Yup, new piece. And yeah, I guess you could call it fan art, which is something I haven’t done in years. Its a project I actually decided on last week - even before I saw the flick - probably after finishing Arkham Asylum. I wanted to try a different type of portrait. I’ve done so many “pretty portraits” that an unpretty one would be a nice change.

And, this one is going to be uber challenging. There’s a lot going on in that expression - on that face. The eyes alone. Jesus. The eyes are going to ruin me, I think. But besides that I need to get the likeness exact. There’s nothing more sad than a piss poor attempt at drawing an icon or celebrity. Bad fan art is so insipid! My ass literally goes up into itself when I look at bad fan art. Eef. Its just like reading bad fan fiction. It’s wrong and should be outlawed.

Despite that, I suspect this one will take me weeks to finished. it is going to be a long, long, slow ride, my friends. So you have my apologies in advance. But if it works out, I might take a stab (hee, I made a Joker pun, kinda - wow, I am lame) at the Caped Crusader as well. I mean, you can’t really have one without the other right? They are like boyfriends!

What?

Title: Scarf
Size: 11 x 14″
Medium: Graphite on Bristol Vellum
Time: 20 hours
Status: Completed

I finished the current portrait tonight. I’m pleased. She turned out pretty good and she let me accomplish what I needed to - namely the challenge of her scarf. Yeah, there are some problems with her - but its probably just me being picky.  So I’m not gonna sweat the small stuff. She’s successful and that’s all that matters to me.

And I’m even ready to jump back into the fray. I already have a new portrait that I’d like to start tomorrow cuz right now, I am exhausted.  It was a freaking marathon session tonight to get it done. But yays.

I’m back in love with my latest portrait. The affection was waning for a little while, but after a very productive session last night, I think she is coming together nicely. I think I’m going to love drawing her scarf.

I also did a quick hand study. Not bad, I suppose. Probably one of my better drawn hands. It showed me that if I keep at it, I can actually draw a hand and not a fleshy mound with sausage fingers. So I suppose that is what they call hope?

Still, I’m looking into finding some art reference books that are devoted to hands and feet. If for nothing else than reference images. I checked out the library yesterday, but it seems everyone has a hand/foot affliction as none of the books were in. I might have to reserve one or something. Crazy.

Photos: WIP Updates of my latest portrait and a hand study

Most probably won’t notice, but I have made a bit of a change around here. First of all, the URL. I’ve moved the location of my blog from a sub-directory to the main page on the domain. If anyone is visiting the site via the old link, it will still work because I added a fancy redirect on the file and I’ve also updated my feed so unless you are keeping an eagle eye on your URL field, you probably won’t notice a different.

Unless you are poking through the archives, I’m still figuring how out to move my archive redirects to the root folder. I might have to republish each entry which could take some time.

The only other significant change is that I am considering getting rid of the rest of my website - portfolio, galleries, links, etc. Right now, I just do not see the need for it. I think I’m going through a bit of an open and honest transition with myself. Self-examination if you will.

I’ve come to the realization that my portfolio is weak. Ok, it’s amazingly weak*. The rest of the galleries are purely for self indulgent, ego-boosting purposes. Like my trip photos. But really, my reason is a lot more simple than that. I don’t want to put work on the internets just for the sake of putting work on the internets. Cyberspace is already awash with mediocrity and I don’t want to add to it.

Ultimately, my decision is that until I feel like my portfolio is much, much stronger, I’m going to refrain from having an online portfolio. Plain and simple. Though, I’ll admit that I’m probably in a phase of lower than normal confidence in my abilities and work. Yup, I’m having some issues.

Now the blog will definitely stay. This blog has done wonders for my work ethic over the past year so there is no way I’d wanna give it up. So most of my work will - technically - be online through updates and all that stuff. There just won’t be a portfolio/gallery anymore.

To be honest, I was probably the only one going in those galleries anyway.

ETA: Ok, so my permalinks are bitched. Sorta. When I moved the blog, I didn’t account for my .htaccess file (which I don’t think I have access to). So for right now, my archives are accessible, but the only with an ugly permalink (/?p123 - yuck!). I have sent an email to J begging for assistance. I want my pretty permalinks back, damn it!

*Not saying my work is necessarily weak. It just has no direction so its all over the map. Thus, creating a pretty weak portfolio.

More playing in my sketchbook. I’m really starting to love working in ink - I’m even considering starting to play with a nib and pen.

And yes, I am aware that her neck looks broken. This is the reference I was using. I think I just tilted her head back a teensy bit too far. And the hands, oh, god, do not look at the hands. I think somewhere should offer a course strictly on drawing the human hands and feets. Seriously. I do not understand why I have the ability to draw almost life-like human face (erf, not in this sketch, though, obviously), but my feet and hands always look like ass. So weird.

I just need to focus on them more, methinks. I mean, in earnest. My proportions and examination of the human - female at least - figure are strong enough, but my hands and feet ruin the whole thing. I need to stop avoiding them by cowardly stylistic choices (see feet above) and just drawing the damn hands and feet.

"Do or do not, there is no try."
- Yoda

Photos: Sketch from 14-Jul-2008

Happy Birthday, Gustav Klimt!

Title: Untitled
Size: 11 x 14″
Medium: Graphite on Bristol Vellum
Time: 9.5 hours
Status: WIP

I’m sorry the photos are so crappy. I’m still having problems photographing my portraits, mainly because they are way bigger than my scanner. If I was using my scanner, this probably wouldn’t be as much of a problem.

I managed a couple hours last night on this piece. I like her a lot and I think I’m almost ready to start working on her scarf, which will be totally fun.

Photos: Portrait WIP and WIP close up

Here’s the completed sketch with the line work that I did on Thursday. I forgot to upload it until now. Oops. I am completely unthrilled with the hair. But I like almost everything from the neck down - don’t look at her right (artist right) hand though. Eeef.

In other news, I bought a shiny new sketchbook on Friday, yays.

Photos: Figure sketch from July 10th

ACAD released their Extended Studies calendar for Fall and Winter! If I play my cards right, I’ll be enroling in the Drawing I course. I’m looking at the January 10th through April 18th, 2009 course. It’s on Saturdays which would be much, much more convenient for all parties.

I’m still bemoaning the fact that I won’t be able to enrol in September - it’s disappointing, but sometimes realism and rational need prevail!

I do have a photo update. But I think I uploaded the images as ASCII, instead of Binary. So they are kinda fubar’d. I’ll have to re-upload them when I get home. Blah.

The update isn’t much. I just made my first attempt at quasi-inking the sketch I posted yesterday. I was using advice from a line weight tutorial of Amy Hadley’s. Overall, it was pretty good, but I did make some mistakes - thickening lines when I shouldn’t have and her hair could use some work - I went a bit crazy. But I think with practice, it could work. Its kind of exciting.

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Photos: A collection of naughty chickens....