Growing Stronger, Updated

This is a piece I've been working for awhile. I started it in January and let it sit for awhile. To see what it looked like then, go here. The more I looked at her, the more I wanted to add more color. I love using the watercolor over gesso technique, but sometimes I want more color. I felt like I was putting her makeup on this morning as I dabbed some pan pastel color here and there! She may be done, or maybe not. I don't seem to be in a hurry with this one at all.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today. I always appreciate your comments.

I'm linking this with the 29 Faces Challenge . Check it out to see some fabulous work from artists all around the world.

Three more stylized faces on gessoed chipboard today. I love catching glimpses of the text and colors underneath the gesso, as well as the great texture of the gesso. I used a combination of marker and colored pencil. This is actually going to be a little booklet which I will show soon. I'm so busy this week and finding that doing these little faces is a welcome diversion.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog!

Stylized Faces

I don't know that I'm good at stylized faces. I've been doodling faces my whole life, but when I try to be deliberately stylized, I feel a bit of a block. Anyway, here are three attempts at a stylized face, all using the same reference.

I'm call this last one "After the Swim" thanks to her green hair! These faces were so fun to do. They're on pieces of chipboard with a little gesso, then some marker and colored pencil -- another idea from Carla Sonheim's Faces 101 class. I like how each one is very different, even though I was looking at the same photo reference for inspiration.

Pretty in Pastel

Here is another face drawn first with chalk pastel, then going in with pencil to add some detail. I really love the softness of the pastel. I'm right on schedule with the 29 Faces Challenge so far! Go take a look at some of the beautiful work being done in this challenge, or maybe even join in yourself!

Thanks so much for visiting!!

Faces in Pastel

Even though I didn't really have time for it, I couldn't resist signing up for Carla Sonheim's Faces 101 Class during the last week in January. Carla's approach to teaching drawing is so creative and fun. One technique from the class I'm really enjoying is drawing with pastel, using an eraser to draw. Here is one effort done in pan pastel on black paper. 

I'd never worked with pan pastels before and I've discovered that I really enjoy drawing with them!
The next two were done using chalk pastels, along with a bit of pencil sketching to add some definition and detail.

Most of the drawing for these faces is done with your finger, then using eraser to "draw" and create highlights, as a face gradually emerges. I'd drawn with pastel before, but never felt comfortable with it and honestly thought I didn't like it. But now I know better! Even though my faces seem gloomy, I'm feeling happy inside to draw this way.

Thanks for visiting! I'm linking this to the 29 Faces Challenge hosted by Ayala Art.

Art Journal Page: Watch Out!

I was playing around with different styles in September while participating in the 29 faces challenge and this is face #23, a rather cross looking lady who's inspired me to make a quick journal page. I collaged her in, along with my lovely words. No poetry today, folks, just plain old telling it like it is (sometimes).

....Linking to paint party friday. Thanks everyone for looking. I really do feel like being nice most of the time and greatly appreciate your comments. :)

Another Face

Here is face #22; a little behind, and a little blue, but I am determined to finish my 29 faces. This one started as an eyedropper face on a sketchbook page I'd already sponged some blue paint on. I decided to go back in with charcoal and work for a realistic look. It's been years since I've worked much in charcoal, and it feels really great to be be using it again!

Into the Beautiful: Mixed Media Journal Page

As imperceptibly as Grief

The Summer lapsed away—

Too imperceptible at last

To seem like Perfidy—

A Quietness distilled

As Twilight long begun,

Or Nature spending with herself

Sequestered Afternoon—

The Dusk drew earlier in—

The Morning foreign shone—

A courteous, yet harrowing Grace,

As Guest, that would be gone—

And thus, without a Wing

Or service of a Keel

Our Summer made her light escape

Into the Beautiful. 

Emily Dickinson

Mixed Media Face: Glimmer of a Smile

It's my birthday today, so I'm celebrating with Face #20. I'm all caught up at the moment. Hooray! So anyway, this is a mixed media face. Although I've been exploring mixed media over the past year, I've I've been resisting this style for some reason. One reason is that I feel it's a bit trendy, and I don't want to do something just because of that. I want to stay true to my own voice in my work. But probably the main reason is that I've been a little timid about using my own drawing in my work. When I studied art long ago, I was quite good at drawing, but then for many years, I didn't keep up with it. I never appreciated the value of consistent practice over time. When I started doing art seriously again, I realized that my drawing wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, and I was shy about putting in my artwork. It's been a great year, though here I am, with a glimmer of a smile, happy to feel I've been making progress.

(Friday 9/28 update -- I posted this last week for Ayala's 29 Faces project but I'm also sharing today with the wonderful artists at Paint Party Friday.)

29 Faces: 17 -- 19 Pencil Sketches

Here are three pencil sketches, using magazine photos as references. They're not technically one-line portraits, nor are they pure contour drawings either.  But I didn't lift the pencil while sketching.

Noses are hard, and I see I didn't get the eyes right on the last one at all! Still, overall, I'm happy with this set. It's good to be practicing more frequently.

And just like that, I'm caught up...for now.

One line sketches

Faces 14 - 16 are quick, one-line sketches in pencil...

 

Charcoal Studies: Faces 12 and 13

So after looking at my faces so far, I decided it was time to get my old friend charcoal out and aim for softer lines  and more depth. Here are two quick studies.

I'm working from references, rather than doodling, though these two faces look very little like the originals. I need to find more interesting faces of all ages and genders to work with and push myself out of my comfort zone, though. I actually tried drawing a male face, too, but it was such a disaster I'm not posting it here!

Faces 10 -- 11: More Experimentation

  

Here are faces 10 and 11, also beginning with a collaged eye and done in oil pastel.

#10 original in ink, pastel and watercolor

#10 with digitally altered color

#11 original

#11 with color altered digitally

     

29 faces #9

in black and white

muted colors

the original version

In the spirit of trying something new, I did the following:

• began my sketch with a collaged eye because, well, it just seemed like fun
• used oil pastel, which I almost never try. hmm...I still like painting better, but the colors are nice.
• digitally altered my sketch with different effects (which was really fun).

WIP Mixed Media Collage (with 29 faces #7)

I was sketching from a magazine photo and decided to create a collage with it. Her downcast pose really appealed to me. I'm a little afraid of ruining the face, but I know I need to paint it to integrate it with the other elements. Stay tuned!

29 Faces: 3 -6

I'm playing catch up at the moment, so here are 4 in one. A while back, I picked up a copy of Carla Sonheim's Drawing Lab for Mixed Media. It's really a book about how to have fun with drawing, whether you are doing mixed media or not, and I would definitely recommend it for all ages and abilities. One of her projects is to draw 100 faces over a period of time. I started this earlier in the year, but let it slide until now. If I can get 29 in this month, I'll have made some excellent progress!


Here are four I did using her eyedropper drawing technique in which you draw using the dropper that comes with a bottle of drawing ink. I used magazine photos for reference, rather than just doodling as I often do. After the ink dried, I went back in with more sketching, watercolor, and collage. I was hoping for a "funkier" outcome than this, so perhaps I will have to try again, working into wet paper to see what I get.

29 Faces Challenge: Faces 1-2

Better late than never, right? That seems to be my motto in life for so many things, including my art. So here I am, joining in on the September 29 Faces Challenge nearly half way through the month. I love doing faces, though, and this will motivate me to keep practicing them. Ever since I was a little girl, I was always drawing girls, and especially faces. Just ask my parents and my teachers (even some of my college teachers, I'm embarrassed to say). This great challenge is hosted by Ayala Art.

I'll start by showing two self portraits I did recently.

They are monoprints. The second one is actually a ghost print, pulled from the plate after making the first print. This process is actually quite easy, and fun to do. This Youtube video gives you an idea of how it works. I have to admit I "cheated" by putting a printed out photo of myself over the paper and drawing over it. And I also just made a tutorial to show you how I made these prints here:  how to make a simple monoprint.

So that's 2 down, only 27 to go! Thank you to Ayala for hosting this great challenge. I'm always inspired by other artists, and appreciate your comments.