Drawing Challenge - Day 1

German Shepard Dog in straw hat. No problem - ha!

She started out with lots of straight lines. Robotic.  And the eyes from her photograph glowed a strange tan and light blue-green. I kept debated whether to add those colors - just for fun. Still deciding.

As with many sketching exercises, one must try to decide when to stop. Yes,  the drawing, erasing, drawing, thinking, changing, figuring, drawing, smoothing, adding little details could go on for days. Seriously.

One must decide how much Time one is willing to put into an Exercise.

This took perhaps a couple of hours - off and on.

I learned to look at noses again. Bear and dog noses are much alike AND oddly-shaped.
I learned to add and subtract.
I learned more about shapes and values.

 Not enough, but a start.

Working with a simple Number 2 Graphite Pencil takes one back to basics. Pressure and easing up equal Darkness and Light. And, yes, this day the trusty rubber eraser was used early and often. This was "I have no pride day." This was Trying to "Remember Some Rules About Drawing Day."

And the habit of writing notes stays with me.

I'm starting to like that nose. It gave me fits. You do not know.

And whether this will become a Finished Drawing I still don't know. But it IS a drawing, and that's what counts.

Fare-thee-well,
Sue

Pork: Pre-Bacon.

Hogs, pigs, swine, porkers. they always leave me with mixed emotions.

THEY ARE SMART.
THEY ARE DELICIOUS.

In art school days at the University of Wisconsin - River Falls, I was known for my pig drawings. The reason I DREW pigs is a long short story for another time. Faculty members purchased my pigs. Classmates and teachers would leave pig-inspired gifts in my studio space. It got a little weird.

After graduation I did not draw anything for many many years. Really. Then the bears happened. At an art fair several years ago a customer asked if I ever did any other animals. "What do you have in mind?," I asked. "I really like pigs," she said.

Done and done. But only a few and only as card designs. (Time passed.)

Today it felt like time to draw a  porker.
Yay for State Fair photographs!

Here is a blurry model from this year's Minnesota State Fair:

Yes, I wish I'd spent more time focusing. (That's an issue in way more of life's areas than photographing livestock...) Yes, that is it's tongue.


One of my many 5" x 7" spiral-bound sketchbooks was hunted down. A plain old graphite pencil got sharpened. Let the drawing begin!! Yes, I was listening to a football game. Football? Pigskin? Just the way it goes.

Here is the somewhat finished drawing.

Yes, those are eraser marks. No, the sketch isn't perfect. But it sure was fun. I might go back and re-work some things. Or, I'll probably simply do another drawing.

Tomorrow holds the start of putting up our booth at Roseville, MN's "Peggy's Holiday Boutique. This show does take a crew over five days to create, but once it's open - What a place to shop!

Now it's time to publish post,  have a sip of tea, and be glad this pig had such a lovely glint in its eye.

Try not to lose yours - Glint on!

And Fare-thee-well,
Sue

www.suerowe.com
Facebook Page: Sue-Rowe-Studios

P.S.: No, we probably won't have bacon for dinner. But for breakfast tomorrow - most likely.