Sketchbook Thread of AndyO - 2D/3D

[AndyO]

This series of sketches was from my first week in the class. We were given three different poses and a decreasing timeframe to complete each… from left to right - five minutes for the first, three minutes for the second and 30 seconds for the last. It also acts as a marker of the level I am at now, at the beginning of the course.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week01.jpg

[AndyO]

My second week in the class involved (trying) to produce twenty sketches over an hour and a half - I managed about 16/17 I think. The model held a pose for ten minutes and we had to decide how to divvy up the time, whether to do one long drawing or to try and fit in several quicker sketches.

These examples all took between three and five minutes…

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week02_01.jpg



http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week02_02.jpg

[AndyO]

In the most recent session, our lecturer introduced some more technical approaches to drawing. This included copying the figure exactly as she appeared in front of us using clear acetate sheets…a lot harder than it sounds, my attempts were woeful!

The other approach was to use a viewfinder tacked onto the side of our drawing boards. Both the following drawings used this method, the first is pencil, and the second is charcoal. I spent about 15-20 minutes on each:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week03_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week03_02.jpg

[Rebeccak]

AndyO,

Welcome. :) I really like the direction you're being pushed in by your teachers - they seem to know what they're doing. ;) You seem to already have a nice facility for drawing, and it will be interesting to see how you develop your approach here.

You might be interested in this book:

Drawing from Life: A High-Focus Approach to Drawing the Figure (Hardcover) (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0879515368/pricecompar0d-20/ref%3Dnosim/102-1911993-6034569)

The author seems to take a similar approach as you are learning.

There are lots of other book recommendations here:

Anatomy Resources : BOOKS (http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=257424%20)
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=257424

Also I would encourage you to participate in this ongoing Workshop:

Anatomy Lesson Series: Body Part 2 - The Torso (http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=405198&page=1&pp=15)
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=405198&page=1&pp=15

Lots of great work going on there!

I look forward to seeing more of your work. :)

Cheers,

-Rebeccak

[AndyO]

Rebeccak

Thanks for your kind words - I guess I should divulge the following: this isn't the first time that I have taken a life drawing class... During my first stint at college, and then again at university, I had intermitant sessions as a part of various drawing modules. Still, it's good to refresh the grey cells with a back to basics approach!

I'll have a look into those resources, and I consider myself encouraged to investigate that torso workshop - may even try and find the time to participate http://forums.cgsociety.org/images/icons/icon12.gif

Thanks again,

Andy

[AndyO]

Thought i'd have a go at this torso thing...(it's the...erm, torso...from Michelangelo's Study for the Libyan Sibyl)

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_01.jpg

I think the back area to the right of the spine is a bit too wide, not to sure I really did the shoulder area on that side much justice either. Let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions?


Andy

[NR43]

Hi there AndyO
nice thread start.
hope to see more soon :thumbsup:

[AndyO]

Hello everyone. Another evening at life drawing class, and a couple more drawings to post. This week we went over measurements - using the pencil to ascertain the size of the models head and working out how many times the height/width of it goes make up other parts of the body... I've been in classes where the tutor has told us we should be doing this before, but never one where we've spent the whole session being 'taught' it... I guess that's why it's taken 'til now to convince me just how useful it can be!

Anyway, onto the drawings - the first was a twenty minute pose, the second a ten minute pose and both were done in pencil. I struggled a bit with the foreshortening on the models right leg with this first one, the tutor suggested working with muscle shapes around the shin and calf rather than drawing my 'expectation of the lower leg'

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week04_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week04_02.jpg

[AndyO]

A second attempt at the torso challenge... I decided to try and 'copy' a statue this time, rather than a drawing as I did before. With the last one I did I found myself focusing on replicating the marks on the page rather than the actual figure. I thought choosing a statue for this attempt would remove this temptation to just try and copy the pre-existing pattern of marks, so that I might better concentrate on the figure itself.

/ramble over

008:
MICHELANGELO Buonarroti
Christ Carrying the Cross (detail)
1521
Marble
Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome

After half an hour...


http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_02_30min.jpg

And after an hour...

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_02_60min.jpg

[AndyO]

Here are a couple of drawings from this weeks life class. We were asked to make several sketches on each page, putting some thought into how the positioning of each would affect the balance of the composition...

Each pose in the first image lasted 10 minutes, and those in the second image lasted 5 minutes:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week05_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week05_02.jpg

[spartan02]

Welcome to the forums. You have a very nice start here. It is great that your in a life drawing class, I wish I was in one this semester but I have to wait till next. You have some very fluid lines in your drawings. Very nice grasp of foreshortning limbs as well. keep them coming, look forward to seeing more of your work.

Matt

[NR43]

Here are a couple of drawings from this weeks life class.

Oh man I still have to wait 2 years before I can... I'm so jealous :D
But the good thing is it'll be 2 years drawing from life constantly.

Anyway,
looks like these life sessions are a good thing for you... wonderful sketches Andy

[Cris-Palomino]

Nice start on your thread here, Andy. It will be great to review your thread in a few months. That's what's great about these sketchbooks...they remain a record of your progress. I look forward to seeing more.

Cris

[AndyO]

Matt: Thanks for the comments! My uni had a similar on/off approach to life drawing - so it's good to be doing some every week on a dedicated course.

NR43: Why the long wait? Although two years solid life drawing is an exciting prospect! Wish i'd had that kind of opportunity - we did about six weeks or so in each of my first two years of uni, with a few optional 'extra' sessions (of which I probably should have gone to a few more than I actually did...)

Cris: That's the idea! It's encouraging me to draw regularly, which is better than the "two steps forward, one step back" progress I was getting through my intermitant bursts of skethcing in the past.

Andy

[NR43]

Why the long wait?

I'm in my first year of a 4 year course. First 2 years will focus on drawing plaster models, heads in 1st year, body parts in 2nd year. From 3rd year on the plaster statues will be replaced by real models... I guess it's good to have a solid base on which to build. A couple of years of drawing experience won't hurt... I just have to temper that feeling of impatience :D

Looking forward to see more studies Andy

Take care,
Johan

[AndyO]

Ok, so there has been a little delay in posting my latest efforts from last weeks life drawing class - I went up to London at the weekend to see the Da Vinci exhibition! (and then get dragged up and down Oxford Street as some kind of pennance....) It wasn't quite as focused on his 'art' sketches as i'd hoped, but still well worth the visit.

We again looked at composition, but this time were asked to introduce some tone. The left hand pose on the first sheet lasted 10 minutes, while the others took about 20 minutes. I struggled a bit with the second sheet, these were slightly shorter poses (about 7 minutes) - anyone got any tips for using chalk to pick out highlights on a black background like this?

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week06_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week06_02.jpg

Well that's it for a couple of weeks - it's half term this week, and i'm off to a gig next week. I'll have to try and keep my hand in in the meantime....it's a shame the weather's turning, as it would have been nice to sit in the park and draw people on their lunchbreaks!

[AndyO]

A week and a half through my life drawing hiatus and not much in the way of fresh work... These are couple of torso studies I did a week or so ago:

080:
VITTORIA, Alessandro
St Sebastian
c. 1600
Marble, height 170 cm
S. Salvatore, Venice

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_03.jpg


081:
ALGARDI, Alessandro
Beheading of St Paul
c. 1650
Marble, height: 286 cm
San Paolo Maggiore, Bologna

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_04.jpg


Actually the statement at the top isn't entirely true - I bought Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy recently so i've been going through that, making notes and doing a few studies. I'll try and get some of these up at some stage.

Andy

[Rebeccak]

AndyO,

Good to see your progress here. :) If you'd like, I can do a paintover for some of your gestural pieces, to just point a few things out.

Cheers,

-Rebeccak

[AndyO]

Rebecca,

Thanks for the offer, that would be a great help! I can usually pull my work to pieces in terms of what looks wrong - but I find it quite difficult to pin-point the why...It'll be cool if you can shed some light.

Cheers,

Andy

[AndyO]

It would seem like i've had a sudden drawing spree, I have a glut of new work to post - some of it is as much as a couple of weeks old though, and I hasten to add, that this is the first chance i've had to digitise it.

To start with my life drawing class has recommenced: this week we're starting to deal with tone. I can't say i'm completely happy with the results as I was a bit rusty after my hiatus. Here's a couple of examples...

Looking at extremes of tonal variation (approx 10 minutes)
http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week08_01.jpg

An unfinished biro sketch - it was quite fun to have a go with! (approx 10 minutes)
http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week08_02.jpg

Final longer study (approx 30 minutes)
http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week08_03.jpg

[AndyO]

....and onto some other work. A series of head studies from Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy, and a self-portrait - I attempted to use his overview of how the head is constructed to better inform my own drawing.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/hogarth_01_head.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/hogarth_02_head.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/hogarth_03_head.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/hogarth_04_head.jpg

Thanks for reading,
Andy

[AndyO]

Thought i'd post my weekends endeavor - an attempt at a 3D head. As with my self portrait sketch, I used my Hogarth studies as reference for it's construction, and also followed (to a degree) the Head&Ears sections from the Joan of Arc tutorial...

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/3d_head01_x3.jpg

I can see the cranium doesn't extend far back enough (my excuse is that I was using a cartoony character design of my own.... http://forums.cgsociety.org/images/icons/icon12.gif) But I do intend to have a go at a more accurate head model soon, so if you have any other crits about areas that need improving it'll be a great help for next time around!

Cheers,
Andy

[NR43]

Hey Andy,
love the facials

main prob with the 3d head, you've mentioned so you are aware of it, the rest seems great to me

keep going
looking forward to see more :bounce:

[AndyO]

This weeks life drawing efforts:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week09_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week09_02.jpg

Each pose was about 40-50 minutes, longer than anything that we'd done previously....and still it was too short a timeframe! I really struggled with proportions on the second pose - especially around the legs/hip area - which still isn't quite right.

[AndyO]

...and a couple more head attempts (from photographs in magazines...) that i've done this week:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/hogarth_05_own.jpg

NR43: Thanks for the comment on the 3D stuff - cheers for stopping by!

Andy

[batte812]

Hi Andy, nice studies you got. I learned to model a head from the Joan of Arc tutorials too. Your model loos very clean. The profile has a few issues: the upper lip is protruding to much, the top of the head should be a bit flatter, and the area above the eyebrows should be less rounded, and moved a bib backwards. I hope my explanation is clear and also helpfull? Keep up the good work.

[AndyO]

battle812:

Thanks for your comments, they were clear enough - I see what you mean - especially in the area around the brow. I'm working on another head at the moment, using photographic reference instead....i'll pay extra attention to these areas this time around!

Cheers,
Andy

[AndyO]

Another week, another life drawing class - more drawings. We had a different model this time, which was a refreshing change and mixed things up quite nicely.

My first attempt - a quick 10 minute charcoal sketch:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week10_01.jpg

Followed by two 40 minute 'mixed media' drawings (we took rubbings of various surfaces and with a bit of cut and pasting, worked them into the drawings to build up areas of tone):

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week10_02.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week10_03.jpg

Thanks for dropping by,
Andy

[Rebeccak]

Hey AndyO,

A lot of good work and progress here - keep it up! :)

[AndyO]

Rebecca: Thanks for the encouragement!

This weeks life drawing class saw a return to more conventional methods - pencils and charcoal, as opposed to collage....having said that I struggled quite a bit. These two examples were longer (40 minute) poses, though I felt my drawings should have been more complete given the timeframe.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week11_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week11_02.jpg

[anandpg]

Hi Andy! great progress here! keep it up.:thumbsup: btw, can you post a wire-frame shot of that 3D head? just curious to see how you have constructed the mesh.

[ha-dou-ken]

Hey Andy, I'm really digging your thread. I hope to see more. Great stuff so far.Keep it up.

About the 3D head: I think the upper lip is protruding just a tad too much...unless it's a style issue, in which case it looks cartoony.

[AndyO]

ha-dou-ken: Thanks for the tip. The head was modelled from a cartoony sketch, hence there being a few inconsistancies in it's shape. I'm working on another one at the moment (using photographic reference this time - so the dimensions should be a bit more accurate) and hope to post my progress soon.

anandpg: Cheers for dropping by - here's the wires for the head:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/3d_head01_wire.jpg

[AndyO]

This week saw my last life drawing class before the Christmas break (the rest of the guys have another session, but i'm off to New York for a week!) We had an introduction to colour, using three/four different chalks to work up a drawing - I had some trepedation about it, but it actually proved to be a lot of fun once I got into it....

Two ten minute warm-up sketches:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week12_01.jpg

Two twenty minute drawings:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week12_02.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week12_03.jpg

And to finish, a forty-five minute drawing:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week12_04.jpg

[NR43]

Wonderful work Andy

The first of the 20min sketches... her left upper leg seems flat
Actually I think all of them could use a bit more contrast...

but as I said... wonderful work!

[AndyO]

I've been a bit slack over the last couple of weeks - but I did manage to squeeze in some quicker (15 minute) sketches before the New Year....These are all from photo's of dancers I found either here or elsewhere on the web:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_061230_dancer01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_061231_dancer01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_061231_dancer02.jpg

Note to self: First New Years Resolution - must draw more often!

Happy New Year!
Andy

[Intervain]

nice sketches Andy! Keep them coming

I have a few words to say about the 3d model - the lineflaw is very good - except for those lines on the chin which you could meet together instead of doing those triangles... Also avoid 5 sided polys in the eye wrinkles area!

right now you're making the most common mistake which is trying to bring all the features to the front and ending up with a flat face. Look at your model from the top or bottom and make it a triangle, where the nose is one tip and the ears are the two base tips! The face is sloping towards the ears from the nose.. This is a minor change and can be done quickly with a lattice without distroying your lineflow :)
hope that helps! I'm looking forward to more 3d from ya :thumbsup:

[AndyO]

Intervain: thanks for the tips - the flat face thing is spot on! Now you mention it, it's something that applies equally to some of my drawings as well.....

[AndyO]

It's been a while since I really posted any work here.....a belated happy new year to you all! And thanks to those of you who commented on my work last year - it's been a real help.

I've been back at my life drawing class since the beginning of January, and i've finally got around to photographing my efforts (about four weeks worth in all) This installment covers the first two sessions of the new year:

My first efforts at figurative painting, in fact it's been a few years since I even picked up a brush to do anything more than decorate.... I thought i'd post all my attempts to give an idea of my progression with it. As we had a limited timeframe for each painting (30-40 minutes) I decided to stick with a limited pallet of colours - I felt I had varying degrees of success within each piece, though I was most pleased with the last one as a whole.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week14_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week14_02.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week15_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week15_02.jpg

Thanks for looking,
Andy

[AndyO]

This is the second installment of my life drawing efforts for the year to date:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week16_01.jpg

Returning to the more familiar medium of charcoal, this first piece was a ten-minute warm up sketch.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week16_02.jpg

While this second drawing was a longer study, using a mid-tone paper with chalk and charcoal, looking at tone.

Andy

[Rebeccak]

Hi Andy, :)

Good to see your studies! One thing I might recommend with respect to charcoal media is getting a sandpad such as they sell at art supply stores, and sanding down your charcoal to a point. That will give you the ability to draw with a variety of thick / thin lines, whereas with blunt charcoal, you can only get a thick line.

Not that you have to use charcoal pencils, but I recommend them (6B, soft) because they are not nearly as messy as sticks and they are easier to sharpen with an exacto and sand to a point - this (http://www.foundationalarts.com/cgi-bin/forums/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=12;t=12) post shows what media I use:

http://www.foundationalarts.com/cgi-bin/forums/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=12;t=12

Try seeing what you can get with line only - no tone. Experiment with thick and thin lines - a thin line will make the form recede in space, a thicker one denotes what is nearer. I also highly recommend trying several master copies in charcoal - for example, by Rubens and Michelangelo. It will really teach you a lot. :)

Cheers,

-Rebeccak

[AndyO]

This is the final installment of my life drawing for the year so far. These sketches are from two weeks ago (class was cancelled because of an open evening last week) - the first pair were 10 minute warm up sketches, and the other study was about half an hour.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week17_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week17_02.jpg

Rebeccak: Thanks for stopping by - your tips for using charcoal are very insightful, i'll have to have a go and will post my results in due course....

[Rebeccak]

AndyO,

I encourage you to do anatomical studies in between your drawing classes - this will keep your drawing arm fresh and also inform your life drawings when you next have a class.

Cheers!

[mahmoudcg]

love your drawings sooo much Andy, post more

[AndyO]

Thanks for the encouragement guys!

Here's three drawings i've done over the past week or so - i've attempted the thicker/thinner line thing to pull elements of the drawing forward and backwards... give it some depth... i'll try and squeeze in a couple of masters copies this week to analyze how they've done it...

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_070212_dancer01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_070212_dancer02.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/15min_070218_dancer01.jpg

Andy

[AndyO]

Another line drawing - master copy: Michelangelo's Study for Nude

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_05.jpg

[AndyO]

...and another one - master copy again: Michelangelo's Male Nude

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_06.jpg

[Rebeccak]

Definitely keep going with these master studies, they will teach you more than just about anything can about drawing! Looking forward to more. :)

[Zephyri]

Great work on the Michaelangelo copies, especially the male figure, the curves in that look great. Defintely keep up with those and you're bound to see an improvement in your own figure stuff.

[anandpg]

hey Andy! great going, dude! keep it up!:thumbsup:

[AndyO]

Rebecca, Zephyri, anandpg: Thanks for stopping by, and for your kind words.

Another master copy that I did sometime last week:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_07.jpg

....and a couple of other pages from my sketchbook:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/dancer_070225_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/port_blair01.jpg

I realised (a little too late) that I hadn't given him enough forehead, and the top of his head looks a bit flat as a result...

[AndyO]

Updates from my life drawing class; this first sketch was from two weeks ago, where we returned to tone, utilising cross-hatching. I found it quite difficult to achieve much with pen/pencil - I felt I got a better result with this chalk 'n charcoal combo

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week18_01.jpg

[AndyO]

Second update from my life drawing class; this week we continued the tone theme. For the first two sketches we covered a sheet of paper in charcoal, and used a rubber to introduce lighter tones (first 30 mins, second 20mins):

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week19_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week19_02.jpg

For the final sketch of the session, we crushed the charcoal into a dust and painted it on with fingers (approx 20 minutes):

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week19_03.jpg

[AndyO]

One more sketch from me - this I actually did do today! A ballet dancer from photographic reference:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/dancer_070303_01.jpg

That's all for now.

Andy

[SpiritDreamer]

Hi...Andy...:)

A real pleasure going through your thread....lots of hard work , great studies,...and progress...:applause:
Looking forward to seeing more...:thumbsup:
TAKE CARE
Glenn

[Rebeccak]

Strong efforts here! I think the main thing is to loosen up your grip on the drawing medium a bit and allow the form to breathe while retaining control of the media. Try just practicing on a page a number of random, calligraphic marks just to sort of loosen up a bit before drawing. When cross hatching, try not to cross hatch for cross - hatching sake - really try hard to determine the topology of the form, and shade according to it. Another way to analyze form is to look for shadow shapes and to draw according to them. The key is to keep things loose but to maintain control over your strokes. Just takes a lot of practice - and looking at master drawings, which contain all of the answers. :)

[AndyO]

Glen: Thanks for your comment!

Rebeccak: You sound a bit like my life drawing tutor (it's a good thing http://forums.cgsociety.org/images/icons/icon12.gif) - I tend to tighten up far too quickly on drawings, which can cause me problems with speed (I start drawing very slowley) and with accuracy... loosening up is the way forward, and i've noticed a difference in the way I work when I do manage to do it successfully.

--
I've been attempting a few sketches from my imagination (trying to put all these figure studies to use!) and thought i'd have a go at working one up digitally. This idea is a wip for a fallen angel, making a last grasp at her falling halo. I haven't decided on attire, or whether she will remain 'as is' - I wanted to get the figure correct proportionally first though, and any suggestions on how to improve this before I get too much further ahead would be most welcome:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/wip_fallenangel01.jpg

Cheers,
Andy

[Rebeccak]

Hi Andy,

Lol at sounding like your instructor. :) I like the torso a lot but think the legs are looking small at this point. Also you might want to redraw the hand as that is flattening out a bit.

It's funny because I remember in college when I was first able to do some imaginational drawings. It was a thrill, I could finally begin to put down on the page what I had in my head. Glad to see that you have started to do that as well. :)

[NR43]

Hey Andy,

about loosening up...
try to really REALLY set your mind to "expecting zero quality mode" before drawing.
a classmate of me has the same issue (I used to as well). The problem is when you make 2, 3 parts of a drawing well (spending a lot of time on it) that there might be fear to screw things up, which I think is a bad thing because it locks up your spontane creativity.

it is something to work at that doesn't go away over night, but when you keep at it all the sudden you will realise at some point in the past you will have made a mental click... to realize that is a very nice feeling of freedom. And that is a nice goal to strive for don't you agree?

[AndyO]

Rebeccak: Thanks for the advice. I'd figured her right calf was a bit short; but once i'd lengthened that, both the right thigh and left leg looked disproportionate and I could see how it was all a bit out - always more to work on! Hadn't spotted the hand either.

NR43: I think you really hit the nail on the head:

try to really REALLY set your mind to "expecting zero quality mode" before drawing.

I have to agree, that feeling of freedom to just start getting marks on the page and build up an idea is distracted by the nagging voice saying that each drawing has to be perfect...

--
Updated proportions:
http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/wip_fallenangel02.jpg

[Gord-MacDonald]

some nice work here!

Gord

[AndyO]

Gord: Cheers for stopping by!

--
Another week, another life drawing class. This first sheet are my warm up sketches; I thought i'd try and be a bit more spontanious and not quite so measured with my mark making this time. Each pose was about 7 minutes, for the left and central figures I used chalk, and for the one on the right oil pastel:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week20_01.jpg

This last pose was about 45 minutes, using chalks - hip/thigh areas look a little big in retrospect:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week20_02.jpg

Andy

[Rebeccak]

Good to see your new sketches! I cannot recommend enough doing charcoal master copies from drawings by artists like Rubens and Michelangelo, I think it will help enormously when you go to draw from the live figure. :)

[AndyO]

Three more master's studies, all using pencil - details for each are on the drawings:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_08.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_09.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/torso_10.jpg

[AndyO]

It's been a while since I really posted anything here; should really get back on track... I've still been attnding my life drawing class. We have less than ten weeks to go now - I'm starting to wonder where all the time went!

Here are a couple of sketches from two weeks ago - both took about an hour, using coloured chalks on a mid-tone paper:


http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week25_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week25_02.jpg

[AndyO]

...and from this weeks class; the first page has two 30 minute sketches on it, the second was longer (about an hour) - again using chalks on a mid-tone paper:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week26_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week26_02.jpg


Andy

[AndyO]

I thought i'd post my preliminary sketches for this weeks character-a-fortnight challenge here. This pair on the first page were drawn from photographs, while the character on the second page is from my imagination:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_chara-fortnight/03_prelim_angels.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_chara-fortnight/03_angel_warrior.jpg

This final sketch of an athlete is unrelated, and took me about an hour (again from a photo):

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/runner_070507_01.jpg

Cheers for looking in,
Andy

[AndyO]

A couple of sketches from this weeks life drawing class; the first is coloured chalk on a mid-tone paper and took about an hour, while for the second I used white/black/light blue and took about 45 minutes.

Proportions and stuff are a little off, particularly on the first sketch, but i'm pleased with the amount of ground I covered in the timeframe to make the drawings look a bit more 'completed'

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week27_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week27_02.jpg

Cheers,
Andy

[AndyO]

Just the one piece of work from my life drawing class this week. We had a different tutor this time around; it was good to get a different insight and a fresh pair of eyes on our work.

This drawing is a combination of chalk and charcoal on white paper, and took about two hours:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week28_01.jpg

[NR43]

So jealous of your life classes Andy!

But I will get my share in about 12-15 months time :)
(at least 2 years long, 4y if I choose so and this 2 long sessions per week)

The last one is really nice
Be careful not to use too much white... a subtile white does the trick ;)

[AndyO]

NR43: Thanks for your comment; I'm really happy with that last one - although the picture doesn't quite do it justice.

That two year, two sessions a week (even if it is still a way on the horizen) is a fantastic opportunity! I've done several shorter courses before - 6-12 weeks - and you only get so far. Having been on my current course since last September I can say that having regular, consistant instruction helps no end; both you and the tutors put more into it, and as a result you get much more out of it!

Andy

[AndyO]

It's been a while, so here's three weeks worth of life drawing to catch up on. The first pair took approximatley 30 minutes each - this session I really struggled to get anything decent down; we all have off day's I guess!

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week29_01.jpg

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week29_02.jpg

[AndyO]

After countless weeks using a variety of media in these sessions - chalks, charcoal, paints ...etc - I thought that I'd return to the humble pencil again. I'm pleased with the results; I'd forgotten how long it takes (me, anyway) to cover such large areas. We tend to use A1 sheets, although these drawings could easily be cropped to half that:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week30_01.jpg

(approx 1 hour)

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week30_02.jpg

(approx 45 minutes)

[AndyO]

This pair are from the most recent class.

I'd seen a chalk figure study earlier in the week by Toulouse-Lautrec, and was quite impressed by the simplicity and looseness with which he'd drawn the figure, and how effective it was! I thought i'd have a go - we did a series of four minute warm-up sketches and this is the best of the bunch:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week31_01.jpg

We also did a longer study (about an hour and a half); for which I returned to using pencils, as I had the week before:

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week31_02.jpg

Thanks for stopping by,
Andy

[AndyO]

This drawing came out of a life drawing session about 6-8 weeks ago, and was great fun to do. I've just got around to photographing it and thought that I would share. It's on an oversized piece of cartridge paper (about four times the size of A1); was made using black ink and white chalk, with the ink applied using a long piece of bamboo. I can't quite remember how long it took to complete - perhaps half an hour or so.

http://www.andrewowen.co.uk/cg_threads/cgsoc_anatomy/ld_week24_01.jpg

Cheers,
Andy

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