Imaginative Self-Portrait

1.

1. Triple Goddess Crescent Moon: This symbol represents the three phases of the Triple Goddess. This practically symbolizes my religion in a whole and it's a big part of who I am, so it only seemed right to add it to my drawing, it is an essence of me. It's in the middle because this is a central part of my life.
2. Box With Heart: Symbolizes the metaphorical box I've trapped my heart in. It is located to the back because it is protected by everything else.
3. Vines: Symbolizes the vines that protect the box, they surround the box, surrounding it in a black cover of protection.
4. ID: Infected Design "insignia", the concept I use in many of my drawings, and since I draw with it a lot, it was important to add.
5. Triskelion: This is a symbol of action and moving forward, this shows how I jump into things quickly, it is a part of my personality.
6. The Mark of Bendrui: Symbol of the High Priestess of the Triple Goddess, again references to my religion, it's towards the center because religion is a central part of my life.
7. The Sun: Symbolizes the light and goodness within me.
8. The Wisps of Wind: Symbolizes the windows that will open for me in my life, and how I will continue to blow forwards.
9. Design 1 (lines): The actual design of infected design. Shows the corruption within to balance out the good from the sun. Since I draw with it a lot, it was important to add.
10. Design 2 (swirls): The good that comes from the infected design pattern and the flower of life. The swirls are eye captivating and pretty.
11. Eye of Horus: A sign of protection, shows how I protect the ones I love. Also represents one of my eyes, which explains the placement.
12. Eye of Ra: A symbol of power, shows how I'll need will power and strength to get through the stages of my life. Symbolizes my other eye, although it is on the wrong side of my face.
13. Angel Wings: Shows the influence of goodness and moving forward and the wish to fly free.
14. Hourglass: This shows that my time is ticking, and to live life to the fullest before time runs out.
15. Heartagram: "Modern Yin Yang", and is meant to represent the juxtaposition of 'good and evil', 'light and dark', and 'love and death'. I love balance and this is a cute way to use it.
16. Upside Down Cross: Refers to curses and bad things I have to face in my life.
17. Flower: The flower of life, turns the corruption into good which fills the rest of the head and spreads everywhere. It was a good addition because it turned something infected into an eye catching swirly design.
18. Crescent Moon: Symbolizes that I'm in the first stage of my life, it is the first stage of the three of the Triple Goddess.

2. 

The spots of dark balance out where from far away most of it looks a medium grey. I used the white value to show my skin and hairline. I feel like I have an even amount of dark and light, and that it balances out, for example, the dark wisps of wind around the sun balance out the white and the lighter color around the sun.

3. 

The strengths I found while completing this drawing were the small details and the laying everything out. I had a hard time with the balancing of light and dark, because when I drew little details it looks like more of a grey. I wish I had had more time to make this better and turn it into what it really deserves to be.

Grading.

I think I deserve a 3.5 because I worked really hard on this one, and I made sure to balance it out and lay it out so it fit. It doesn't deserve a 4 because with more time I could have done much better.

Realistic Self Portrait

I was told that the features of the face (eyes, nose, mouth, etc) were not in my face but on my face and that they didn’t sink in, but that they come out of my face. They are 3D not 2D. I think I got better at this on the chin and cupids bow, as well as the nose.
Shading. I shaded the side of my face in the final, but in the pre-instructional I didn’t do any shading, but I did try to by smudging the black, but it’s not as dramatic as it needs to be. Eyes. The details in the eyes got better. I did it more accurately, and I got the lines under my eyes better as well. Mouth. My pre-instructional mouth was not the shape of my mouth and it wasn’t shaded at all. All the lines are the same width and darkness. Outlining. On the pre-instructional I outlined everything in black, but I fixed that where I could in the final, especially on the mouth and cupids bow and the right side of my face.

Sketchbook, Portrait Drawing

Should've shaded the background better, and blended the colors more. I used the wrong color to darken the red for shading (should've used green instead of black). Should've spent more time on the dog. I also missed the hand holding the dog (because I wasn't sure how to draw it). I should've done the face with craypa instead of colored pencils.

Sketchbook, Half-Portrait Drawing

I learned that I should shade more, and add more definition to the face and hair. The cheekbone looks a little too skinny, and the lips a little too full. I should've shaded in the shirt, sweatshirt, and chains better as well. I didn't color in the background either. The ear is a little misshapen.

Eyes, Nose, Mouth Exercise

Purpose: To demonstrate understanding of the structure for each feature: eyes, nose, & mouth; To practice using black & white charcoal to render a drawing, using brown paper as the middle value.
 
For the mouth, I need to remember not to blend the colors, and to use the brown as the middle value, and make the light part of the shading more prominent. The lines that I draw need to be darker. I also need to shade the cupid's bow better and make it more accurate.
For the eyes, I need to remember to let brown through as a middle value. I also need to shade under the eyes more accurately and add that glimmer in the eye that makes it seem alive. I also need to work on the curving of the eyelashes and make them curve the right way and the right length.
For the nose I need to make it bigger, and less narrow. I also need to shade around the nose better to make it look like my nose is coming off my face and not flatly pressed into my skin.

2-4-15 Portrait Homework

Part I: Biographies:
Alice Neel: Neel was born and grew in Pennsylvania. She was a descendant of a Declaration signer. She graduated high school and took business courses after school, then takes the civil service exam. She then worked as a secretary for the Air Force Corps while taking art courses by night. When she leaves her job with the air force, she declines another secretarial position at Swathmore College.
Robert Shetterly: Was born in Ohio, graduated college from Harvard University with an English Literature degree. He taught himself drawing, printmaking, and painting after moving to Maine. Did the editorial page in The Maine Times Newspaper for twelve years and illustrated a children's newspaper called Audubon Adventures, as well as thirty or so books. He is well known in the US and Europe. His painting has tended towards narrative and surreal, but has also engaged in a wide variety of political and humanitarian work. Robert Shetterly lives, with his partner Gail Page, a painter and children’s book writer and illustrator, in Brooksville, Maine.
Rembrandt van Rijn: Born in Leiden in 1606 and was the son of a miller. Although his family was somewhat poor, they thought education was important. He first studied at Latin School, and at the age of 14 he was enrolled in Leiden University, but his studies did not interest him. He soon went to study art, first with his local master, then in Amsterdam. When he finished, he then started to teach art. Had four children, but only one survived. And she ended up dying soon after at the age of thirty. Died in Amsterdam in 1669.
John Singer: Son of an American doctor, born in 1856. He studied painting in Italy and France until 1884. Was England's leading portrait painter.
Part II: Similarities:
They all used some amount of color, not just black and white. A solid wall of color behind the person being drawn. They could all draw/paint ears better than I can. No one in the paintings are smiling. Can't see pupils of the eyes in any of the portraits. All people had wrinkles/creases in skin. All of them used shading to some extent.
Part III: Differences:
Most paintings had one person, but one of them had two people. Different amounts of color used (painting four was mostly shades of black, white, and brown while painting three had many colors like red, yellow, blue, green, and purple). Paintings one and two go down to the shoulders while three and four are full body. Some people look more formal/dressed up than others.
Part IV: Purposes of Portraiture:
Wikipedia Definition: "A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, or even mood of the person." (Wikipedia). I agree with this for the most part, but I do not believe that the face needs to be predominant. Like in portrait four by John Singer where the girl is turned away from the painter, that itself can show a characteristic of a person being solitary, lonely, isolated, or shy. It also shows an elegance of the woman being painted in the portrait (portrait four).
Part V: Copy Drawing:
Picture I am going to copy-draw: (Margaretta Drexel, Countess of Winchilsea and Nottingham by John Singer).

I am motivated to be successful by my music and the few people that are close to me. I like to take the emotions I feel and the feeling and beats I get from music and incorporate them into the drawings I do.

The teacher can help me to be successful by letting us listen to our own music, but with one ear bud. If we have one ear bud we can use our own music and be inspired in our own way, but still be aware if another student is asking a question that we might need later on.

I really want to get better at shading and shadows, mostly in painting, but in drawing as well.