19 September 2009




Course work: Transferred my selected study of natural objects (sea shells) from A4-size to A2-size paper. After drawing boldly-inked grids on separate sheets of paper, I was able to place these grids behind my working sheets, taped to a window, and easily enlarge my study without drawing lines on it or on my final-drawing sheet. I made some minor changes in object position prior to beginning to draw. The process is slow with graphite pencil: had I quit at the suggested two hours, I would have been less than one-eighth finished.



Reading:

Ian Simpson, The Complete Drawing Course

Running Press, Philadelphia, PA 1993

Lesson 8 (pp 76-79)



Personal Sketchbook Work: A partial drawing of a replica of a Mesoamerican clay figure, done in Conte’ crayon. I think that larger paper would have helped my rendering, as would more experience with Conte’ crayon.



Total time: about 5 hours



20 September 2009



Course work: Another good session of work on my drawing of natural objects (sea shells) for the final exercise in Assignment 1.



Reading:



Claudia Betti & Teel Sale, Drawing, A Contemporary Approach (4th Ed)

Thomson Learning, Inc. (1997)

Chapter 1 (Pp3-30)



Personal Sketchbook Work: A sketch of a distant tree line partially concealed by mist, and a sketch of my wife’s armchair, both done in pencil.



Weekly thoughts on learning experience: This has been a busy week. It is clear that either the time for the final exercise was significantly underestimated by the course preparers, or that I am approaching it incorrectly. With several more hours of hatching experience this week, I feel a good bit more confident about it. My sketchbook work has gone well on the whole, though my pocket sketchbook has been neglected…several days of rain has kept me from my usual wandering about.



Total time: over four hours