figure drawing again

Been really busy trying to finish up a project, so my last three Sargent studies have taken a back seat.  Nonetheless, I've been trying to get to drawing workshop when I have a chance, and it's a good enough way to blow off steam at the end of the week.  Practice is practice!

It occurs to me that I seem to get good results painting the model from the rear, and I think it's partly because broader and in some cases more simple shapes.  This suggests to me a need to move to a smaller brush maybe for detail work? Or be more deliberate when handling smaller details as with the head and face.

figure drawing

10 minutes.  Was trying out a new naples yellow watercolor.

We interrupt this program...

...for some figure painting.  I think these were 5 minute poses..

I almost like how the feet turned out.

Dickens Faire

I went to the Dickens Faire in San Francisco the other day do some costume sketches.  A lot of fun, as people really go all out with their costumes, and stay in character!  There are definitely a good sized steam punk contingent there, but mostly it seems people try and stay realistic to the time period.  Originally I had planned to hit a model salon but by the time I got there (kind of late), it was finishing up, so I was relegated to trying to sketch moving targets of opportunity, relying often on memory.

Here are some more successful ones:

Bartender

Cad

Standing room only at the Adventurer's Club Lecture.

Rough gentleman

Victorian cellphone use

figure drawings

Watercolors...it has been several months since I've been to workshop, so not bad for all that.

I was particularly pleased with this two minute pose (almost without fail, I get the most interesting results in the quick poses):

This was 20 minutes I think..done on toned paper with a bit of gouache:

 Either 10 or 20...don't really remember:

This last one was 15 or 20:

after a bit of a hiatus...

...back to figure drawing workshop.  Another great model.  A pity I was a bit rusty.

Yupo!

I tried out Yupo paper the other day for the first time.  It is a super glossy paper that seems not to absorb water at all, adding even more unpredictability to watercolors (or gouache - gouache seems to hold a bit better), but with some interesting and unexpected results.  These aren't great, but I find them interesting:

2 minute gesture

20 minute pose

I was particularly surprised that my 20 minute poses were not a complete mess.  Because it takes so long to dry, you can keep pushing colors around.  Kind of intimidating, but interesting stuff.  Now that I have a pad of it, I may as well use it up!