Kyle 2/16/10

Eric made some very constructive comments on my last post. One of them was about the proportion the faces in my sketches. I used to have so many problems with faces. They were just scratchy lines with no real features and they were always really long (like, REALLY long). In Grad School I worked really hard on making more defined features and more in proportion. I still have to really consciously make myself focus on proportions - especially to do with the nose. If I don't the nose gets too long and it throws everything off. I don't know why I subconsciously draw such long noses. It might be because I've always found my own to be too short and stubby and I wish it was longer. Who knows. Sometimes I slip back into old habits without even knowing it.

I also use a rather hard pencil to sketch. I find that it smudges less and I can control where I want shading. I sketch very lightly at first and then go back in a darken my lines. I've always like things to be really outlined. In many of my renderings I go back in with a pen and darken out lines. Sometimes, though, I get a little too dark in my pencil work - especially in the face and it just looks funny. This is something that I'll really have to consciously think about as well.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with this sketch of Cinderella from Into the Woods. Her costume is based on French provincial costume (namely Burgundy). I wanted some of he clothes to look as if they were once really nice - like her chemise, which is edged with lace as neck, sleeve and hem and smocked at the sleeve head) but is now very worn and threadbare. She also has a patchwork leather jerkin and two sad over-skirts. The apron has remnants of French Provencal embroidery, but is in tatters.

I tried really hard with the face proportions and line weight. I think it looks a bit better...