Some Work from Drawing Class!

For Drawing class, we learned how to set up and light our own still lives.  (That sounds like incorrect grammar to me, but I can't figure it out! lol).  I had a harder time getting the idea of shading the background so that the items were placed in space.  If it was on a table, I included a table line, but I was afraid of screwing the whole thing up by shading in the background. 

This was a little container that had a handle and two cubbies, which I laid on its side and filled.  There were supposed to be 5-7  items which were supposed to be all white, but I had a brain fart I guess because after searching for several days around the house and couldn't find anything I liked.  When my son asked me what I was doing, I explained and he ran and got his little stuffed spiderman for me.  I thought, "why not? " and added it.  It wasn't until he was all sketched in and I had started on shading that I realized/remembered he wasn't white! Oops!  The professor gave me full marks though and recommended I shade in around the container for a more 3D effect.  I may go back and do it...when the fear passes! ;)

Various drawing pencils, 2H through 8B on white drawing paper.

This one was just 3-5 white items, showing shading and all.  I used mostly beige wooden blocks.  Pencil on white paper.

Simple exercise to draw a sphere in 3 dimensions, using only pencils.  We were to include a cast shadow and a highlight with no solid lines or drawing in of edges;  we were to create volume and depth by shading.

This was one of my favorite pieces, I guess because it felt like it had a theme, it felt cohesive.  I had the plastic bucket with shovel, the shells and the beach towel on a chair which was not at an especially easy angle I might add.  I liked how you could see the bump of the circumference of the bucket through the towel and the puckering of the fabric where the towel catches the right corner of the chair's seat as it cascades down.  I was also impressed with myself that I managed to NOT overwork the shovel and in fact, it seemed to show up out of nowhere with a few strokes of charcoal.  Maybe I'm getting the hang of this charcoal thing yet, huh?

2B and 4B charcoal sticks and my kneaded eraser.

My brown leather chair tucked in the corner with a bookshelf on the left and my fireplace on the right.  In an effort to make the focus the chair in the middle, I left off with too much detail in the surrounding areas, but was called out on it by my classmates, especially the mantle and I can see their point!  Also, this is kind of a matte leather, not shiny, and the leather does in fact sag and hang a little funny in places.  This is not totally unusual with an Ikea piece, you know?

2B and 4B charcoal sticks on drawing paper.

Had to draw some texture, preferably dissimilar ones.  I did a close-up of a CD under light on the left and a basket, which is hopefully obvious, on the right.  Pencil on drawing paper.

Here is my self portrait, done in charcoal on paper. My first self portrait, my first time ever drawing people with charcoal, so I guess taking that into consideration, it's not horrible!

My final project, done in charcoal.  In case you can't see, it is an older vase with carnations in it on the left, then a chunky plastic elephant beside a wooden birdhouse.  Slightly in front and to the right is a small, slender glass perfume bottle, all sitting on a wooden chair, draped in my favorite scarf.  I think this shows my shading (and maybe my observing!) skills have improved!