Exercise Drawing your face
I drew these self portraits, one from a photograph and the other using a mirror. The first is from a photo and I think captures the likeness better. The second is from an unfortunately angle and is less flattering. I was leaning back on the sofa when drawing. Faces are the hardest thing to draw but really looking at each feature and the shape and space around it helped to break it down and thus simplify the task. Adding shading or using soft pastels of charcoal would have added another degree of difficulty for me, so rather cowardly I stuck to pencil.
Portrait from memory.
Drawing a portrait from memory is difficult but I tried to remember the rules of proportion and shape. I don’t think this portrait looks anything like me but at least all the features a roughly in the right place. The mouth is too narrow but that can easily rectified. I should rework one of these sketches to add shading which will give a sense of perspective and depth.
Check and log
Which drawing materials prodded the best results? Why?
Well, I stuck to pencil, so I guess I need to go back and try some other mediums.
Does your self portrait look like you? Show it to a couple of friends or family members and not down their comments.
I think it does. My husband, who is not easily complementary thought I had made a good effort and could recognise me. My daughter giggled a little but said she could see the likeness and remember where the drawing was from, which was encouraging.
Did you find it easy to convert your sketches into a portrait?
I didn’t use my sketches to work on when doing the portraits. I started afresh. The sketches helped to break down the parts of the face and proportions.
Were your preliminary drawings adequate?
They weren’t particularly helpful and were not of a good quality.
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