This is a drawing I started on September 20, 2019 at an Open Studio session at The Plastic Club in Philadelphia. I asked the model, Emily, is it was ok to take a reference photo so I could finish the drawing at home. I am finding that I am getting much faster at blocking in the overall body shape and masking in the shadow shapes, but having time to work on details in the face and the more subtle shadows and values around the figure are things I definitely need more time to work on. The picture below is what I was able to finish by the end of the session on Sept. 20th.
Amount finished by the end of a 1-hour pose (three 20-minute sessions)
The challenge with this pose was mainly the gesture – capturing the way her body was leaning and the somewhat awkward, unnatural way she was sitting (every time we took a break, it took her several attempts to find and regain the position). But, I think this was the first time I was primarily focused on her expression – there was something very intriguing about how distant and somewhat sad her gaze was. I know I didn’t fully capture it, but it was very exciting to concentrate on that and get a glimpse of the true challenge of being a portrait artist – connecting with something deeper in the subject through their eyes and expression.
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