refining my drawing with your help

[kooch-e-koo]

greetings fellow artists

i haven't really exposed myself to this community but i figure that the best way to make leaps and bounds in the quality of my art is to open my mind entirely to hearing criticism and suggestive comments by those with as much experience as i know this group of artistic people has ...so please feel free to leave your thoughts here for me to enjoy ...i love looking at all the incredible images posted in this community as much i enjoy creating my own stuff... i thought i'd start by posting a link to some of what i consider to be my attempts at academic drawing and painting studies that were generated fairly recently until i can use the code to post images with efficiency...at which time i'll be adding more figurative work probably twice a week... i go to a great workshop on monday and thursday nights...painting is on wednesday and sunday but i am so busy painting at home that i usually don't hit it...


http://www.kooch-e-koo.com/FIGURE/saria.jpg
samples (http://www.kooch-e-koo.com/GALLERY/HTML/FIG.html)

thanks for your consideration and feedback new friends!

[dogfood]

This actually looks really good, but encounters problems the further you go down. It appears the bottom of the paper surprised you and you scrunched everything in there right before you reached it. It's often helpful to make small measurement marks before the full throated roar in order to keep your hand honest (just until you get the hang of it).

Nice.

[Elwell]

It appears the bottom of the paper surprised you and you scrunched everything in there right before you reached it.
This is a classic problem. I can't tell you how many drawings I've seen where everything is fine down to about the knees, then there are little stubby thighs followed by tiny feet standing right on the bottom edge of the paper :).

Compose your drawing first, even for life studies. Lay out the "envelope" (the big bounding shape that encloses the extremities of the pose) and the big masses first. And if you find yourself getting too close to an edge, oh well, run the picture right off it.

[sula_nebouxi]

I'd also be careful in the use of white on toned paper. Try not to use such a huge amount. It makes the drawing much much more...hmm what's the word...well it makes the highlights stick out much more if they're not used as much. Usually they are left for the brightest part of the subject, the place where the light hits it and reflects directly into the eye.

And like everyone else mentioned...keep proportions in mind. Try to measure everything first using a big general shape then work down to details.

[kooch-e-koo]

whoa...it is really funny how you can completely overlook something until it is mentioned...how bizarre...

i realize that the more white i use the more novice i am seeming...i really did know that...but i am just now realizing that i need to do some in depth studies of JUST hands faces and feet...i am a designer for TV (stress television as an industry term) animation and the idea of life drawing seems MUCH more feature style animation to me - shows what i know - i am getting used to it as a means of research...using copy for a painting to an animator is like using a xerox though this is total BS when it comes to doing an actual painting... i guess what i am trying to confess is that the white can come in handy for making corrections in an area that was once darkened but shouldn't have been...i need to learn patience BADLY epsecially because i am into learning glazing technique in oils...i am used to turning a piece out in gouache in a week TOPS no matter the scale...again...apples and oranges when it comes to this kind of study in figurative terms...

i can't tell you how happy i was to see a response to my post you all! thanks for the crit...i can see clearly now...i have some heads i drew tonight and i'll post them tomorrow for your consideration...talk about a TON of white...hey...the last thing i am is affraid to look stupid in front of artists that have been through just what i am going through now...paying dues and loving it!!!

much grattitude!

[kooch-e-koo]

http://www.kooch-e-koo.com/FIGURE/shirly.jpg

http://www.kooch-e-koo.com/FIGURE/shirly1.jpg

http://www.kooch-e-koo.com/FIGURE/shirly3.jpg

this last one isn't my fav...but it's the one sketch i did that was figure oriented instead of just a facial...in regards to drawing the body i am at a juncture where i realize that there is now no way to progress in drawing without tapping the study of detailed human anatomy...soft and hard places just don't do enough to discribe what lies beneath the skin...any thoughts on how to begin this research?


any feedback/crits/suggestions are zealously appreciated!