I had fun today, I was on a roll.
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| 10-15 minute sketch, A3, 20130202 |
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| 10+5 minute sketch, A3, 20130202 |
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| 5-10 minute sketch, A3, 20130202 |
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| 2 minute sketch, A4, 20130202 |
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| 2 minute sketch, A4, 20130202 |
Maybe this technique is the answer to my muddy colour problem. I’ll will definately give it a try.
Don Andrews (www.donandrews.net)
The venue: The Swedish Academy of Realistic Art in Stockholm.
I love the female nude and I’m not happy with the male model. Basically I am not used to spending two hours solely on one painting. This picture is a good example, I spent so much time on the male that I ended up with a mess, I nearly didn’t have time to paint the female so I rushed her and the illustration turned out so much better! I am just used to short poses, it’s going to take a while to relax when spending more time on a painting. It’s not a problem, I am enjoying every minute of my self-dissatisfaction. 😉
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| Watercolour of two models on A3 paper. 20130131 |
Today I did some portrait painting at Folkkulturcentrum, in Ropsten, Stockholm. There were four, half hour poses. I was very happy with two of my sketches. It was the first time I was at Folkkulturcentrum, I enjoyed the atmosphere so I’m sure I’ll be back some time soon.
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| 30 minute portrait |
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| 30 minute portrait |
My favourite life drawing books are the following:
One is called, Henry Yan’s figure drawing techniques and tips. The other book is titled, The Natural Way to Paint, by Charles Reid. Henry Yan’s is based on pencil and charcoal techniques and Charles Reid focuses on pencil and watercolour techniques. I find both very inspiring and I have improved as an artist by studying them.
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| Charles Reid and Henry Yan |
Here are a few quick sketches from my Saturday session at Basis, Stockholm. A five minute watercolour and two, two minute pencil and synthetic charcoal sketches.
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| Five minute watercolour sketch |
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| Two minute sketch |
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| Two minute sketch |
This was originally a two minute pencil sketch (20121204) on 200 gram watercolour paper. I painted it last Friday, 20130125. I was really happy with it when I did the first wash, then it became muddy as I put on further layers. I want to create a three dimensional quality without losing the vibrancy of a single wash. Live and learn!
A figure drawing tutorial by Bill Buchman. I had to login to my Google account in order to see this video which was a bit annoying. I had to prove I was over eighteen, it was worth the effort, I like his approach to life drawing. He has a Vimeo video channel which is worth visiting. Click here.
At last, I found time to go to life drawing. I’ve been very busy since Christmas so it was a great pleasure to sketch tonight. The session was a two hour pose, the model was a real pro, stood still as a statue. The venue was, The Swedish Academy of Realistic Art in Stockholm.
I’m happy enough with the painting, I have to get used to spending two hours on a figure, for the last two years I’ve been drawing quick poses. Now I want to slow down and capture more detail, the biggest problem I have is the stiffness of the pose, I need to relax. I can see from my 5 and 10 minute poses from two years ago that they were also stiff. All I need to do is lots of these two hour sessions and I should eventually find a fluid line to my art.
Click on the image if you would like to see it in a larger format.
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| Watercolour Nude 2013.01.24 |