Drawings

I have to do at least 1 or 2 drawings for every illustration job I do. They get the idea across to me and the clients, before going to final art. The better the drawing the easier it is to get the sketch approved. For fine art, I use drawing as an aid to develop some of my more complex paintings. I usually start an idea by doing a very abstract sketch that makes little sense, except to remind me of what I saw in my head. A mental note I suppose. From that, I can develop a more finished sketch before getting any models or other reference needed to pursue the idea. Most of my final work is made up, but, like most realistic artists, I do use photos that I shoot to aid me in how to see a form in space. A lot of life drawing, several times a week, keeps you fresh, but after a while I felt that it wasn't as important as drawing with color and a brush, which is essentially how I paint. Its important to stay sharp though, and every once in a while I find myself sketching out something in charcoal or pencil just to see where it will take me. For a student of realism, it is the single most important way of understanding how forms relate and in developing the skill to discern distances and the hand and eye coordination it takes to do quality rendering.

20 minute charcoal sketch 18x24"

Real size head detail of the life drawing above

Charcoal with oil over

This top piece is an interesting technique that combines a charcoal drawing on regular drawing paper with pastel color here and there. After spraying a moderate amount of fixative (2 or 3 light coats) I simply taped down the paper and coated it quickly with pure, unthinned gloss or matte acrylic medium, using a house paintbrush of 3 or 4 inches, whatever is quickest. This seals the paper completely and, after drying, I can paint freely with oils over this ideal underpainting. Total time just under 2 hours and fun to do.

45 min charcoal study

3 hour nupastel wash with conte highlights

Click here to see a brief demo of this drawing

40 minute charcoal

20 minute conte on rough paper

2 hour charcoal drawing on light gray conte paper

15 min conte on newsprint

15 minute conte on newsprint

2 hour charcoal study

4 at 20 minutes charcoal

charcoal and wax-conte

Brown red and black chalk on craft paper

20 minute charcoal and black conte

2 minute gesture

40 minute charcoal smooth newsprint

15 minute dry conte

5 minute red conte- detail

2 minutes wax pencil on newsprint