Midterm

The semester so far has been informative and interesting. Having the technical ability to draw these forms is important to me as a studio art major. So far we have gone from learning about the form of the human skull to working on the features of the face. Learning the skull and face were taxing at first, though I have improved since then. I have noticed that I have the tendency to make the face too wide, the chin is also a difficult thing to render properly. I think it would be beneficial to continue honing in on these skills. Right now my potential for drawing the face seems a bit scant at times. Don't get me wrong, I have learned enough to know how to make a successful face drawing given enough time. My favorite class periods are when we get to draw the entire time. I really enjoy making progress in this area so being able to work is always great.

Now I am working on a conceptual self-portrait. There have been a few subjects I have been working with as part of my personality. This final solution alleviates some of the weight of these ideas in form of a photograph. I have constructed various compositions using items from my wardrobe which have particular idiosyncrasies with my own passions and elemental qualities.

faces faces faces

we have been working on drawing faces. we worked on one drawing for six hours of a model and this is the finished product. it was pretty fun learning to draw the face, i always make faces too wide. we are also working on a self-portrait this week which will be finished by Monday. i have started working on it already but we are going to take some time to go into them further.

faces and things

So we started working on the features of the face. We started with the eyes, and learned about how to connect them to the nose and mouth. I am finding that the practice we did with the skulls is paying off. huzzah. As of right now I still have yet to complete my homework for the week (a portrait due Monday) but I am looking forward to starting it tomorrow.

value

We have been working on adding appropriate amounts of value to our drawings of the cranium. This means knowing where the plain of the skull is, and being able to use the right marks to define it. We looked at some drawings of the face by various drawing masters. Taking particular notice of the shading on the different plains of the face. This helped me understand that there needs to be a certain amount of consistency in order for the drawing to make sense.

Overall I have enjoyed skull drawing. It is a real challenge getting everything fine tuned enough to make sense as a drawing. Drawing masters of the 1500s, we salute you!

Reflection: Week One

This is a watercolor painting by Sara Stites.

I thought this first week was fun. Everything we did was new to me so I learned a lot about the shape of the skull. Drawing the skull was challenging, but I enjoyed getting to know it. I think mapping out the skull in clay helped me understand how the parietal bones work.

Introduction

I signed up for life drawing two because I knew how much life drawing one furthered my abilities drawing the human body. As of now I have a fairly good understanding of how to draw the figure, however I look forward to becoming comfortable with the face and bone structure as well. I am studying painting as my concentration so I expect that life drawing two will aid in that development too.

http://www.banksy.co.uk/films/index.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h05ZQ7WHw8Y

Grouop Meeting

My initial idea was not planed out at all. I wasn't really sure what kind of imagery to use. I had gathered some pictures, but nothing seemed very engaging. We talked and brainstormed about the ecosystem and what makes it interesting. This helped in figuring out where I needed to do in order for my drawing to be more appealing. Overall the group meeting was very helpful, I got some good ideas from talking with them.

The Hawaiian Reef

Caitlin Truax
Along the northwestern islands of Hawaii there is one of the most complex ecosystems in the world. This particular ecosystem is unique in that it is completely separated from the other coral ecosystems around the world. Because of this seclusion the Hawaiian Islands are given a generous amount of reef species that cannot be found in any other ecosystem. “Generally speaking, 25 percent of all coral reef species in the islands can be found nowhere else,” said Gulko, the leader of a film expedition who documented this reef in 2000. The team was called the Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society. They set out to illustrate the newly discovered changes in the reefs’ ecosystem.
Deep under the earth’s surface is a plume of magma. As the pacific tectonic plate of the earth moves, as the hot spot grows closer to the island more magma seeps from the islands volcanoes. As long as the island is over the hot spot it will grow. But as it moves away from the hot spot it will erode and sink. The erosion of the island may separate itself from the reef leaving it an atoll.
Separation from the reef would be devastating, but it seems that it is the only thing tearing us away from the reef. Scientists say that small-boat fishermen have been over-fishing the area. Jacks, sharks, parrot fish, and other reef dwellers have been disappearing from these reefs. But they don’t have any hard facts about the number of fish being taken, however that is the only explanation given. The result is poor economical flow. The ecosystem can’t sustain itself, without these fish the maintenance of the reef has been compromised. The reef is becoming overgrown with algae since there aren’t enough fish to eat it off and some of the coral has disintegrated. But scientists agree there is still time to save it.
Though it would take many years for the reef to separate from the islands, these geographical and human-related traumas will make an impact on the ecosystem. New birth may arouse positive change in the ecosystem, but as time takes its toll the reef it may not be the same eclectic assortment of unique spices that it once was.

01-29-09

Today we discussed some important questions about what we think Drawing is. How we feel viewing it, how we feel making it, discussing what it means now to what it might have meant in the past.
Here is a list of the things drawings can be used for:
documenting, drafting, decoration, research, language, pleasure, commission, there are many more...
How have you experienced drawing as a veiwer?
As a group we thought that as viewers we look and compare the technical parts of the drawing and how it moves us as an audience.
How have you experienced drawing as a drawer?
We all felt that we have grown in our drawing skills since we had first started. It was mentioned that using drawing as a way of understanding something, I thought that was pretty fun.
Well, there were some more questions we answered as a group, but as with most group assignments the information didn't get into my email...so I guess I will be filling in those gaps at a later date...

Found Photo Definition: a visual way of communicating an idea. Drawing, and photo drawing is also a way to express, show, understand, and reflect. The means of drawing are broad, but one should be able to utilizing the mediums and techniques.

In our small group we discussed the definition of what we had just created with our cameras. I have posted our conclusions above. Then we briefed a comparison with our photos and our definition. Then, based on what we decided as a definition, we chose the best two images from each group members' collection.

Photo Drawings