Going for a Lighter Touch
Posted by trev | Filed under Figure Drawing
I’ve been really enjoying using a real brush and ink again during the weekly figure drawing sessions I attend. It has been slow-going, getting back into the flow, but nothing beats working with the real stuff (not even my beloved Pentel Brush Pen). For my earlier attempts, I was just using any old brush that I had around. For my more recent attempts, I broke out my one of my old Winsor Newton Series 7 brushes (a number 2). For my money, this is the best brush for linework, bar none. You can just get some lovely, consistent lines out of it. I almost forgot how much I loved working with one of these things.
The image above has some serious problems with it (don’t even get me started about the mess I made of the face), but I really like some of the linework I was able to achieve here. Also, I have been trying to really concentrate on being much more deliberate when I apply washes for tone. As you can see from my previous figure drawing post, my natural tendency is to just throw ink at a problem. While I like the energy evident in this approach, I think forcing myself to be more thoughtful in how I place my marks and tone is the path to greater improvement.
2 Responses to “Going for a Lighter Touch”
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ramon Says:
April 22nd, 2009 at 8:10 pmYou are too hard on yourself. Don’t look for perfection. There is heart in the drawing that I look for, yours has it.
I am 52 and have been an artist for as long as I can remember. Just relax. Each drawing is an act of creation.
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Dennis Kiernan Says:
July 24th, 2010 at 6:26 pmWell, I’m 78 and had my first one-man show at 19. Heart is one of the main things but it isnt everything. Striving for perfection is the other half, and that means consciously experimenting and practicing to extend your technique. It’s just like any other art, from ballet dancing to pool playing.