NOVEMBER 29, 2015

This study consisted of two projects: a value strip, and a portrait which had to include a full range of values, from dark to light. The self portrait was to be made through the process of gridding.

The value strip came first. For the first part of this, we had to create the full value strip with a clear, straight divide between each value; in other words, it didn't blend. I started off light, and then progressively got darker. If the pencil marks were too apparent, I blended some with a tortillon, but otherwise the use of a tortillon was minimal for this one. For the second half, I did just about the same, except I started dark and went lighter, and I relied more heavily on the tortillon to blend the values into one another. The goal of this part was to have a smooth transition, and although I didn't quite accomplish this to the degree which I would have liked, I think I did fairly well. Then came the value portrait. First I had my picture printed out, and then I I drew a grid line for every inch, both horizontally and vertically across the image. Once that was done, I measured out an 8" by 11" rectangle on a piece of paper (the photograph had the same dimensions) and I also gridded this. When that was completed, it was then time to begin. I chose to lightly draw the outlines of everything first, since that helps me to get an idea for how the completed drawing will be proportioned. Then I went square by square across the page, filling in the image in an effort to get its value as close to that of the photo as I could. I also chose to color in my eyes and my shirt using colored pencil.

I chose to draw from this picture because I didn't feel like finding or taking a nice picture of myself, and it was easier at the time to just make a face. Since the main focus of this project was value, I feel like I did a decent job at matching it to that of the original photograph, although perhaps my shirt was a bit too dark, since I used a black colored pencil to fill that in, as opposed to a regular pencil. I do like the contrast that this provides, however, since it in a way balances out the darkness in my eyes, so I suppose that it worked out in the end. As for the shape and proportion, I think that both of those areas turned out rather well; at least, any errors in proportion are not glaringly obvious, and while I did have a bit of trouble with the shape of my head, it turned out alright in the end. My lines are also as realistic as I could make them, however my hair caused me a bit of trouble since the way that the light shined off of it was odd and I was unable to replicate it exactly. My nose was also a difficult area, since my first instinct is always to draw a complete outline, but I know that that, obviously, would not be realistic. Shading this drawing was probably more fun than getting the original values down, in my opinion, by which I mean I liked drawing in the shadows for my glasses, nose, etc. Overall, I am rather proud of how this turned out, especially since I have never been good at portraits of any kind, and now I have just succeeded in drawing one which, at the very least, looks vaguely like me. It feels fulfilling.