Figure Drawing and Drawing the Masters
I love to copy drawings from the Masters when I find one in a museum exhibit that really speaks to me.
I have a book of Delacroix pastels and love his drawings/pastels/watercolors from Morocco. When I saw several originals in a recent exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I decided that I needed to visit the New York Public Library to see the book Delacroix in Morocco (which is out of print and really expensive). While there, I sketched this figure, took a digital photo of the print in the book, and then painted it at home.
I loved a drawing by Dutch artist Jacob Backer (1608-1651) which hangs in the current Vermeer exhibit at the Met and returned for a second 30 minute visit just to do this sketch. The small original is on light blue paper with black and white chalk, but I did mine in sepia watercolor pencil, in case I decided to "paint" the drawing at any time.
Tonight I am going to my second figure drawing session at the Society of Illustrators and did the following 90 second posemaniacs.com drawings as a warm-up. These figures are computer generated and are frequently in tortured positions, but they change randomly every 90 seconds so I can't think much about what I'm drawing which is great practice.
Comments
You are getting so good at the human figure!!
Posted by: Raena | October 8, 2009 10:58 AM
I just tried posemaniacs! great site, very good training for a real figure drawing session, have fun.
Very nice sketches alla Delacroix and Backer
Posted by: Benedicte | October 8, 2009 11:06 AM
Love your rendition of Delacroix.
I like the background, the colors,
the lines, and how D appears to be
stepping out of the frame.
The quote on the right is
perfectly matched with the wonderment
in D's eyes.
I too would have been charmed
by the water girl. Well done!
Hope you enjoy the International
Quilt Festival.
Cheers
Posted by: Douglas Fireman | October 8, 2009 11:12 AM
Enjoyed your drawings. I'd love the stained glass window but not so close to my home! I love your use of watercolor to top off your sketches.
Posted by: Timaree (freebird) | October 8, 2009 1:55 PM
What a great way to learn from the masters ^^ Like a good musician playing and hitting the right notes at the right time, you've nailed these and perhaps brought you to a whole new level in artistry.
Quilt festival sounds fun, too bad I don't do that. My aunt used to make quilts for me, it's like a birthday gift to all the new borns in the family, and I loved my blanket, but it was completely destroyed by my itchy fingers :) I had it for years though
Posted by: Alex Tan | October 9, 2009 3:12 AM