29 Faces - Day 10

Today's face is more lifelike, done from a photo. I feel like I'm starting to improve with noses, and I'm particularly pleased with the eyes on this one. Last time I joined the challenge I was learning more about shading. This time it feels as if I'm learning more about individual features. It seems that when you think you're finished, you should go a little further - more shading, deeper colours, a bit more detail. There's always something new to learn.

If you want to see what other people are up to with making faces, click the 29 Faces button in the sidebar. There are some wonderful faces out there.

29 Faces - day 9

Another day in February, another face. This one is done with Copics. I laid down a thin layer of gesso on the page as the paper is thin. I could work in a different journal, but after I started with this one for the 29 Faces challenge in 2014, it felt right to continue in it. 

So, once the layer of gesso was down, the Copics didn't go through the paper. However, it did make them more streaky, but I'm liking the effect. Usually I like to blend everything and not have hard edges, but I'm learning to let go and be more bold with the separate colours. 

What are you learning in this challenge?

29 Faces - day 8

So, I tried the same technique as yesterday - Neocolor IIs blended with gesso - but with more realistic colours. I'm liking this one much better. I'm pleased with the different pose as well. I can see progress.

Don't know what 29 Faces is all about? Click on the button in the sidebar to see all the wonderful faces being drawn, painted, coloured, shaded this month.

29 Faces - Day 7

Well, I've managed to keep up for a whole week now. This one turned out a bit too pink for my liking, though.

This is a technique from Jane Davenport's book Drawing and Painting Beautiful Faces. It uses Neocolor IIs to scribble on colour for the shadows, main colour, and highlights, and then blends them with gesso applied with a brush. I should have taken a photo before the blending because it looked really garish at that point! The blending was gentler than blending the colours with water, especially on this thin paper. Think I'll give it another go with more realistic colours.

29 Faces - day 6

I thought I'd change things up a bit today and make a video with my trusty Brinno time-lapse camera. It was interesting to see how I worked. You don't really think about it while you're doing it, but it was useful to see in what order I did things and how the face progressed. I'm always fascinated to see how other people work, so seeing my own art in action was fun. 

Anyway, this face was done with Neocolor IIs, part of it then being activated with water. It always surprises me when you add the water as the colours suddenly become so much darker and brighter. This paper is not the best for watercolour, but it turned out all right.

29 Faces - day 5

Day 5 in the 29 Faces challenge and I reached a colourful page in my journal where stencils and brayers have been cleaned off. I wanted to preserve a good amount of that colour, so decided to do a face using Copic markers. Because the model in the photo I was using for reference was looking up slightly and leaning on her arm, a pose I haven't done often, I used my non-dominant hand to draw with. For some reason it shuts down that voice in my head that criticises what I'm doing, the one that says, 'You can't do this, it's too difficult.' When I use my left hand, there is no expectation that the lines will be smooth or that anything will match. Somehow this results in some surprisingly effective drawings. The permanent markers mean that I have to just go with the marks that I make. It makes me bolder, and sometimes that is what you need.

Check out the 29 Faces challenge by clicking on the button in the sidebar.

29 Faces - day 4

This is not my favourite face. I can see a lot of room for improvement :) However, each time I draw a face I learn how and how not to do it. What I've learned this time is that I need more practice with 3/4 faces.

This one was done with water-soluble graphite. I drew and then activated with water once the drawing was finished. I'm trying to just go with it and not erase any lines, so you can see where I changed the line in places. The proportions here aren't the best, and the eyes don't match. I also managed to make a blob at the edge of the mouth which I then rested my hand in and transferred to the nose. It's a good job it's only my journal!

Check out all the other participants in this challenge by clicking on the 29 Faces button in the sidebar.

29 Faces - day 3

I like to use different media when I practice drawing and painting faces. This one is done on a page where I cleaned off my brayer after doing something else. The face itself is drawn using a Golden high flow acrylic straight from the bottle. If you only open the nozzle a little, you can get some control over the flow. It's still a bit hit and miss, but that's part of the fun, right?

Check out the other 29 facers by clicking on the button in the sidebar.

29 Faces - Day 2

Day 2 and another face. This one is done with Aquatone pencils - a solid watercolour pencil. It is copied from a Jane Davenport drawing in her book Drawing and Painting Beautiful Faces which I bought at the weekend. Loving it! Hopefully you'll be able to see how I put some of the things I'm learning into practice as we progress through the month. 

Don't know about 29 Faces? Check the button in the sidebar to see all the wonderful faces being drawn and painted this month.

29 Faces is here again!

February has come around again and so it's 29 Faces time. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you can see what it's all about here. 

I last participated in Feb 2014, and I found the journal that I used then. There are enough pages left in it to do this year's round of creativity as well. It will be fun to see how I've progressed.

This face is done from a photo with chalky pastel pencils on sugar paper. I found that these pastels are not my favourite to use. They feel scratchy on the paper. Won't be using those again! Check out what everyone else is doing by using the link above or the button in the sidebar. Tune in tomorrow for face #2.