Week 29: Virtual Tour: Transport Museum

 I don’t usually draw cars, so I was a bit scared to try it to be honest. 

I started with some thumbnails to figure out the perspective, get used to drawing cars and also choose the best subject for my drawing:

I chose the second one. This was the reference image:

I first sketched out the big forms using boxes so I could figure out the perspective:

I then added the details and finished the sketch, before starting to shade:

This was the drawing before the feedback:

I then enhanced the contrast, faded the part of the car that is farther from the foreground and added the shadow on the ground, as suggested. This is the final work, of which I am quite proud:

Week 25: Architecture. Urban Landscape

For this task I chose to do the interior composition. As usual, I first sketched some thumbnails, though at this stage I wasn’t completely sure if I wanted to do the interior composition or not.

I chose the second one because the lighting was interesting and I could easily make the chair the focal point through contrast and detail. 

I sketched the big forms:

The added the details and started shading: 

This was the drawing before feedback:

The edges of the wall were curved, almost giving the impression of liquid, of deformation in the whole drawing, so I straightened them. The shapes in the chair weren’t clear enough so it seemed to merge with the background. I also darkened the panels behind the light part of the chair and lightened the ones near the darker one. This is the final result:

Week 24: Composition and Compositional Principles (Part 2) Landscape

For this task I started by sketching out some thumbnails in order to decide the composition and chose the first one, as the lines of the street lead the viewer’s eyes towards the object that I wanted to be my focal point: the detailed building on the left. Also, the objects in the composition were layered nicely: some really close to the foreground, some a bit farther, and some getting lost in the background, giving the impression of depth. 

I made the sketch:

Then shaded it, putting the most detail into my focal point:

I had to add more contrast in the foreground and make the left part of the building darker since both were almost the same value. I also put more detail and contrast into the ivy, making the foliage on the left lighter and the one on the right darker so it would stand out. I also toned down the contrast in the background and added a bit of detail on the surface of the street. The ellipse on the fron barrel was also wrong, so I fixed it.

This is the final work after applying the feedback: 

Week 23: Virtual tour: The National Portrait Gallery

This was the first time after a while that I used colour in my work, so it was quite fun. There were a few issues though, in terms of proportions. I managed to fix them, but I recognize I could have done better.  

This was the reference image:

I started by blocking out the proportions. Looking back, I think the problems started from here, since the tilt of the head doesn’t seem quite right.

I then drew the face:

And started shading:

This was the drawing before feedback:

The lines around the eyes and nose were too harsh and the shading looked unfinished, or too flat in some areas. There was too much white in the eyes so I added the little space in the corner of the eye and shaded it a bit more. Also, the eyes are a bit too different and too far apart. This would have been hard to rub out, so I had to bring it closer in Photoshop. The clothes needed a bit more detail too. 

This is the final work:

Week 21: Renaissance. Focus on Portrait

This task was quite scary for me. I had tried to draw my self portrait before. I was younger and had less practice, yes, but for me, when drawing my portrait, my own perception of myself and the way I look plays a big role, influencing my view. I was worried this might be the case this time too, but I did my best to keep it as accurate as possible by always checking my measurements twice.

This was the reference:

I blocked out the proportions first, then sketched the face:

I then started to shade:

This was the first version of the drawing, before getting the first feedback:

The eyes were flat and the nostrils were different, while the shadow at the base of the nose should have been darker. Also, the bounce light on the nose was too strong and the lips looked flat, so I enhanced the shadow on the lips, especially on the top one since the light doesn’t hit it as strongly as on the bottom one. The ear was also a bit too high, it should have ended approximately at the height of the nose. I also had to enhance the shadow of the glasses. 

This was the drawing after applying the first feedback:

The shadow on the side of the nose was a bit too small, too abrupt, so I enhanced it. The shadow cast by the glasses needed to be a bit darker too and the shadow at the base of the nose even stronger. I also made the shirt slowly disappear towards the bottom to make sure the focus is on the face. 

This was the final result:

For the first time I managed to make my self portrait actually resemble me, even if it might not be perfect. This is quite a success for me.

Week 20: Head Construction

 For this task I chose this photo, as I liked the way the hair added an interesting form to the general silhouette. I also love the strong, unique character of the model.  

I started by measuring and blocking the proportions, the space each part of the face occupies, using boxes. One of the challenges was trusting my measurements: even if I had checked and rechecked them, it's hard to say if they are accurate by looking at the boxes, so I had my doubts during the process:

I then sketched the features:

And started shading by blocking out the main shadows:

I then detailed them and added the rest of the values for the face:

The hair was my favourite part to work on.

This was the drawing before the feedback:

The shading on the collarbones, shoulder and chest was quite strong, making it look like very dark cuts, so I had to tone them down a bit by replacing them with wider, softer shadows. Also, the highlight at the top of the eyes made them look unnatural so I moved it. The shadow at the bottom of the nose was too light and the straight shading on the clothes made them look flat so I erased it completely to keep the focus on the face. 

This was the final work:

The portrait is quite a complicated thing to understand, the way the planes of the face work and how they are affected by the lighting. Making it resemble the model is quite a challenge too. Taking all of this into consideration, I am quite pleased with how this turned out.

Week 19: Drapery and Anatomy of Folds

Drapery and folds are a complex and detailed thing, so this drawing took quite a while to finalise. I started by sketching some thumbnails:

I chose the second one, as I considered it to be more balanced and interesting in terms of composition. This was the reference:

As always, I first blocked out the big forms, before adding any kind of folds, so I could make sure the general silhouette was in order:

Then added the folds and details. It was quite hard to keep track and observe all of them. 

In terms of shading, I first drew in the darker, main shadows:

Added the pattern on the top drapery:

Detailed the shadows, shaded the chair and added the background, making it darker at the bottom in order to bring out the light material, and lighter at the top to bring out the darker pattern. 

After the first feedback, I toned down the chair a bit in order to keep the focus on the drapery. I also added more contrast to the whole drawing, especially in the white fabric. I darkened the pattern too and enhanced the shadows. I also did my best to soften the transition between the darker part of the background and the light one. 

After the second feedback, I added even more contrast and darkened the pattern even more. I also darkened the chair to make it blend with the background and bring the rest of the composition out. There were also some white outlines on the folds of the top fabric that made it look flat, so I took care of them too.

This was the final result: