Headshot

Figure it out.

This is the life!

Found out that my white pastel pencil shows up pretty well on the cheap, not-so-dark newsprint I bring to class. Not too contrasty...just enough to let me record where highlights fall. I'm sure familiar patterns will present themselves over time.

Bag Ladies

Just dabbing with an old page of heads. Sepia tone + texture overlay + lighting effect = total copout used to make unpolished art look "done." Allllllmost works, doesn't it?



I *will* draw arms and feet, promise!!!

Study Buddy - Ze'ev Harris

Raven Software's Ze'ev Harris prepped this week's study buddy. Thanks man! I enjoyed doing the clown, the candle and fish the most. Not sure what you wanted me to get out of the submerged tank, compositionally, but this sheet definitely got me well outside my comfort zone...which is entirely the point.

Slew of random stuff I didn't care to clean...

Big image...a scroller!

Upper right (with the exeception of one) are studies done from Suicide Girls pics. Rest is random jumble of girls, pumpkins and techy whatnot. Medusa snake pubes, wtf?

BBQ + heartbreak pt. 2

I am not obsessed.

Study Buddy - Paul Adam

This week Paul Adam hooked up the ref/love.

Spent a tidge longer on some of these, mainly because I knew I could be more faithful to the source image if I took the extra time. Natalie Portman, you are hard to draw.



Also, I drew the heads on the boxers too big. And the colors on my palette studies are still inacurate/washed out.

Some of yesterday's life drawing...

Been having a lot of this model lately...

Slimed -- flats

Going minimal to see how much I can do with (mostly) flat color fields.



Again, the thing that fucks me most is not having a tight underdrawing. When will I learn?

Be my study buddy!

I propose an exercise : Each week (or possibly multiple times per week) I'll pair up with an artist and we'll prepare Study Buddy templates for each other [below]. It's easy! Just paste web ref (illustrations, photos, etc. -- subject matter may be thematic or random) into the appropriate boxes and circle an area of study for each (masses, palette, details or composition). Then swap templates via email. The idea is to do quick observational warmups (I would think no more than 5-10 minutes per), then post them up on your blog to share with your buddy.

Example :



Download the Master template to conduct your own Study Buddy exercises with others! I'm hoping that by seeding this template the practice will spread virally and we'll all get a little more astute.

RZ Illustration is up first. I gave her a higher resolution version of the following file to crank on...



...and here's the one Becky made for me.



Already I can tell this will be challenging.

Wet T-Shirt Friday Pt. 6

Going off a palette generated from a random photo online by switching it to indexed color, then applying the same scheme to this crazy rainbow thing.