Final Reflection

I have certainly learned quite a bit in the semester I've had of Life Drawing. I look at my drawings from the first day of class and compare them to the ones that I am making now and I am quite happy with the progression they have made. When I started the first day of class I never thought I would understand how important knowing the inside of the body would be in being able to render the outside of it, but I will never go back to attempting to draw the body without starting from the inside out. Even when starting a long pose drawing, beginning from the inside out is so incredibly helpful in figuring out the correct proportions and where everything needs to go.

I feel like this class has not only allowed me to draw the human figure better, but it has helped me gain confidence in my drawing style. I tend to draw very graphically and it works in most drawings but I wasn’t sure how it would work and I would cope with drawing the human figure. I was definitely happy with they style of how my figure drawings turned out and it has made me want to pursue drawing the figure even more. The only thing I need to work on with my style is getting over my grudge against erasers. I don’t know why but I have always had this thing in the back of my head that tells me I draw better when I do not rely on an eraser to fix all my mistakes so I just avoid using them. I see though, with many of my drawings looking back through this semester that an eraser quite possibly would’ve been helpful in a few spots.

I believe this class will help me out with my future in art. I have learned so much about my own drawing style and techniques in how to become a better artist in this class. The only main thing I regret is that I wish I had taken this class during a time where there weren’t so many things going on in my life that negatively affected my classes and I feel like if that were the case I could’ve gotten way more out of it.

Manniken:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/60253241@N05/sets/72157626745774988/

Final Drawings:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/60253241@N05/sets/72157626745499496/

Self-Portrait

I was nervous about the self-portrait for the most part, because like everyone else, I wanted it to look like me.  I set about creating this drawing by propping a mirror against the wall and sitting in front of it.  To me drawing this way was very irritating because I would get nauseous moving my head constantly up to the mirror and down to my paper.  Because of this I ended up just drawing the majority of it in the mirror, then adding the details in later away from the mirror.  The end result I feel is fairly good, but it does have some major flaws that I realized later when actually standing away from it.  For example the gross exaggeration of the jaw bone is distracting, even for any human not only as a self portrait of myself.  Overall I feel like the self-portrait turned out ok, but for future self portraits I would try to spend more time in front of the mirror.

Drawing The Skull

I was a bit intimidated of drawing the skull at first due to its complexity, however after actually taking up the challenge I found that I really enjoyed it.  My graphic style of drawing I feel works well with the look of the human skull and enhances the natural oddness it already has.  The main challenge I found I experienced with drawing the skull was how to make the teeth effective, without making them so over detailed to they point they stand out and are distracting in the drawing.  My solution to this was just lightly drawing some basic lines that suggest the teeth and I feel this was an acceptable solution.  The teeth are implied but are not a distraction.  I would, though, like to get some experience drawing the teeth though because them, like hands, I feel are very distinct and difficult to draw in a way that is appealing to the viewer. 

Midterm - Catch Up

This class has been one of the most beneficial classes in the advancement of my drawing skills.  out of any class I've taken I feel I can really see the progress and improvements the most in this Life Drawing class.  The techniques I've learned have really enhanced my abilities and the quality of drawings I'm making continues to keep getting better as the class goes on.  I never used to fully understand the point of a 30 second drawing, however I now see how much it helps the drawing process.  It's like warming up before a track meet, it gets your whole body prepared for the challenge ahead.  Even though I fully appreciate and understand how important quick sketches are, I really enjoy the longer poses (especially 30 minute or longer) the most.  I really enjoy when I can finally add detail and give more attention to the life of the person in my drawing.  When you're drawing the figure quickly you get the movement and motion of the person, but you aren't really able to capture the personality of the person.  The personality in a drawing is what, I believe, makes a figure drawing most exciting to look at.

I am eagerly awaiting the rest of the semester, especially near the end when we get to the point that we have discussed the entire body and I will have a better understanding of it.  I see my drawings only getting better and I'm excited to see how my final drawings will look because I know they will be even better than the ones I am creating now.  The manikens, though quite a challenge for me, have really helped in my understanding of the human body and I look forward to when my maniken is completed with every muscle and I can look at it as a sort of trophy for completing this fascinating and valuable course.


Drawings