Project 6 Exercise 2 - Your own head 


I started this exercise with a number of quick sketches taken whilst looking at my head in the mirror. I used coloured pencil to sketch: 





Feeling rather fearful and a little too refrained, I changed my medium to a black pen, this medium serves me well for a looser and more spontaneous line. Following examples by Tracy Emin, I chose to try a blind drawing, adding to this after I opened my eyes. Out of my initial sketches, this is the one that shows life and energy and is exciting to look at: 



Head 1: 

The fear continued so I opted for a photograph of my side profile to get me started. 

I used a black brush pen and watercolour. 

I looked at the basic shapes of the head and the angle of the profile and began to work the tones onto the paper with the watercolour: 



Reflection of Head 1: 

I can see shape and form in this drawing. It is not a disaster which comes as a relief. However: 

  • There is not enough energy or life in this drawing. Energy that I have enjoyed in Tracy Emin's work is not present here. The energy I found in my blind sketch has been lost in this posed drawing. 
  • The positioning of the features is surprising ok, however the nose is too pointed and needs a more natural and realistic shape. 
  • A 3D shape is forming here, especially around the eyes and the lips. A good start however the forehead and the cheeks need volume and shape, they appear too flat here. 
  • I have captured some of the light on the face, however I have gone too far with the watercolour tones and so the face has become a little too dark. 
  • The hair is relatively OK in terms of its shape and positioning, but as with the with rest of the drawing, the hair also lacks life and there needs to be more movement in the strands. 
  • I like the addition of a darker tone in the background. The tone works well against the head. 
  • I have been too fearful here and must show bravery in assignment 4. 


Head 2: 


For this drawing I changed my medium to charcoal with the addition of pastel and watercolour. 

Reflection of Head 2: 

  • There is more life in this drawing than Head 1. I can see energy here and it does make for an interesting drawing. 
  • The features are not successfully placed here. The eyes are too big and a little wonky. There needs to be further definition to the nose, it is not 3D and lacks presence. 
  • An attempt to find the centre line of the head was attempted, but unfortunately unsuccessful. I think if this had have been found and marked in correctly, the features would be better placed. Perhaps the angle of the head was too challenging. 
  • There is movement to the hair here, and body, however a finer line is needed for a realistic appearance. 

Which drawing materials produced the best results? Why? 

Head 1 - The watercolour and brush pen made for a more refined and tidier drawing, however lacked essence of human spirit, personality and energy, 

Head 2 - Charcoal and pastel really helped with energy but gave and untidier finish. 

Pros and cons to both. Am I looking for spirit and energy, or a tidy portrait? I will carry this thought forward into the assignment. 

Does your self portrait look like you? 

No, neither of the drawing look like me. The positioning of features is better in Head 1 though, perhaps too much focus was given to aligning than capturing a likeness. There is more life and energy in Head 2 though, Head 1 is stale and rigid. It seems a challenge at this stage to capture both a likeness and a spontaneous energy of a person. I will seek some guidance from an artist to help. 

How difficult was it to move on from sketches of individual features to a full portrait? 

Exceptionally hard and perhaps too much of a challenge for me. It is far less daunting to concentrate on an isolated feature as there is no need to worry about where is fits on the face, 

Artist to note for assignment 4 - Annie Kevans:  Beautiful simplicity. Light and clean. Accuracy, tidy and still so full of life. 






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