Vikings 2nd Set

Tags

brausenibs, deleterink, ink, inkportraits, sketch, StillmanAndBirn, vikings

Continuing with the series here is the nect two portraits

Queen Aslaug

This portrait took me two attempts, the first one was overworked and I ruined it, then with more familiarity with her features the second one show here was more relaxed. I wanted to capture her beauty, elegance and sense of entitlement 

Then comes Athelstan, I looked at different pictures and could not find one that hadenough detail and at the same time express who he was. So I decided to base my portrait in one and take some artistic liberty

These are done in Stillman and Birn paper with highins and Deleter Inks. In the image above you can notice the dufference in the black saturation of the inks, the deleteris noticeably  darker in the final accents.

There is a reason why I enjoy portraiture above all subjects, every face makes me very curious, I try to find what makes the faces unique. It’s never an exact replica because I add/eliminate expression lines, and exaggerate the main features. When I was young, not so long ago 😜 I was very impressed by the work of Patrick Nagel from whom I learned after carefully studying his method, how does he render eyes. Years later it was Hajime Sorayama and his hyperrealistic girls, from him I tried to learn the natural beauty of the “girl next door” his women were not perfect (their faces) they were REAL relatable faces. 

Then I became very interested in the aging process of faces and how recurring expressions leave a mark. The face is totally asymmetric like two faces in one! I tried to understand what I call the light side and the dark side and enhance the best qualities of those features. The tilts of the head and the glances say a lot about character; lastly, the hair is an impression of mass, not detail, like creating a rhythm of blacks to balance and keep the viewer circling back to the face, like choosing a beautiful frame for art too. 
Ideally, if everything is blurred the contrasts should make a beautiful balanced abstract composition.

I enjoy very much this process, one can get away with adding an extra branch to a tree but it is unforgiving to add an extra line that ages people beyond their true age or creates a cinycal smirk instead of a subtle smile or adds 10 lb of weight. If the eyes or the mouth is misaligned people can forget everything else that is good in the drawing and focus on that ONE awkward mistake. We instantly recognize those mistakes because faces reflect back to us as humans and we know instinctively something is off.
For this and reasons of utter beauty I find in people across races cultures shapes and sizes and what makes them unique as a fingerprint of nature, how could I not keep trying?

Vikings

Tags

drawing, ink, inkportraits, portraits, sketch, StillmanAndBirn, vikings

I decided to start a series of portraits of the chatacters in the Vikings TV show. The outfits and hairdos are stunning!

Ragnar had to be the first! 

After a trial that left me with the itch of wanting to do something better I was finally happy with the likeness. My first try was in regular paper here:

It was too “accidental”, the new ink I am using: Deleter dries very fast and it’s very opaque and permanent, which is great! But for the final I had to use better quality paper that doesnt warp and wrinkle as much.

Before doing a final, I tried  Lagertha, to refresh my eyes from Ragnar and go back to try again.

And here is Ragnar again, this time in Stillman and Birn Zeta Series paper that I cut from my large 9×12 sketchbook

I was really happy with this, ink flows nicely and smooth and wrinkle free! I specially enjoyed working the pattern in the clothing, and the beard. Scribbling is fun.

Very happy with the ink as well. I used nibs and holders for this drawing, the “blue pumpkin” and other Brause nibs. The ink dries to a rubber-like texture so it is very important to clean up the nibs very thoroughly!!  

All About Trees

Tags

drawing, ink, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, trees, Tutorials

The Arboredum in Forrest Hills is a great source for drawing and learning to represent the characteristics of different trees and they are identified by label! They also have an enclosed section with beautiful Bonsais as well

I recently did a demo video on a generic tree. Here it is:

 

Here my test collection of trees in different inks:

Sketching People

Tags

drawing, ink, sketch, Tutorials, watercolor

I decided recently to start a YouTube channel, I thought tutorials are fun to do and we all contribute with our own ways to do things. I wanted this to be a fresh approach, a casual way to look at how-to’s.

I this series in YouTube (https://m.youtube.com/watch?sns=em&v=k2esXE-_VyU ) you’ll notice I refer to “Haikus” They are a Japanese poem form that totals 17 syllables in a count of 5-7-5. You will see that they may be in my videos in sets of three lines at once, or sometimes scattered through the video when the sketch is done in a shorter time.

About the process:
I rarely use pencil unless it’s a large complex drawing. Here you can see the process in a time-lapse but I will explain more below:

 

Step by Step:

I usually start by setting the horizon line

I continue by working on the figures in focal point and near surrounding space. I used Higgins permanent ink and a fine nib and holder

I try to vary the pressure here and there to have different widths of line to create a visual rhythm

I then add the environmental elements, trees and foliage.

I test the saturation of the watercolor prior to applying as the first wash must be very light. Fitst wash it’s the “base color”. I let this first layer dry completely.

…continuing with a light wash on the rest of the elements

Time for a second pass with more saturation, and only on small areas I want to draw the attention in the focal point.

I like to play with different greens, not necessarily accuracy with the right green but more the right value . Also this tells the viewer it’s a separate element not part of the same group (background, mid-ground or foreground)

…going for a third pass on contrast. this is the strongest saturation almost no diluted at all.

…and the final sketch.

Downtown Crossing

Tags

drawing, ink, lamy, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, urbansketcher, Urbansketcherboston, USKBoston

Here is an ink drawing from last year that I didn’t publish, I think..but I was happy with it. used the Lamy Safary  on a Stillman and Birn notebook zeta series

Starbucks at Harvard Square

Tags

drawing, ink, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, urbansketcher, Zeta Series

Urban Sketchers Boston had a meetup at Harvard Square, and the interior is so cozy and nice with a warm atmosphere. For this I used the Carbon Platinum fountain pen, the finest point I have ever seen on a fountain pen! and my favorite brand of notebooks Stillman and Birn, Zeta series, great for ink

The Boston Opera House

Tags

beta series, drawing, ink, PentelBrush, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, urbansketcher, watercolor

This weekend I went to the Boston Opera House and It’s such a beautiful interior ! I couldn;t resist to make a watercolor of it. The colors are so rich.

I did this is a Stillman and Birn sketchbook as usual. I recently got more art supplies and wanted to try my new brushes this is the Escoda Versatil #12. To be synthetic it’s a pretty good brush!

For the darks I used the pentel brush and I drew this not with my usual Lamy but a nib and holder.

I haven’t sketch in a while. I feel rusty but I think this came out acceptable 🙂

MyArtSketch

Tags

beta series, drawing, ink, lamy, myArtSketch, PentelBrush, portraits, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, watercolor

Portrait commission

I Used Stillman & Birn Beta Series paper and for the sketch the Lamy Safari and Pentel Brush. I am experimenting with a new palette, not quite happy yet but it’s getting better 🙂

Testing some inks

Tags

beta series, drawing, ink, isabey, sketch, Sketches

On a cold day with 3 F outside and listening to Leonard Cohen a lady dances in my head to the end of love.

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inks: purple wampin, Rome Burning, black Red and Vampire red (private reserve) and the Zebra nib on Stillman and Birn Beta series paper cut from the notebook.
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The problem I have working wet media on a notebook is the stains it makes on the back of the previous page, so I tore them off and trimmed with the guillotine. This ink dries fast, though!!

Daniel Radcliffe

Tags

drawing, ink, isabey, koi watercolors, lamy, portraits, S&BBetaSeries, sketch, Sketches, StillmanAndBirn, W&N, watercolor

I made this portrait of Daniel Radcliffe from a black and white copy. I made up the colors using my usual palette for skin tones and Walnut ink for the hair.

My procedure for portraits is based on simplification. Drawing is not what you draw but what you leave out. I begin with a very accurate ink drawing. If the features are somehow hard to get I start with pencil first, but Radcliffe has a very distinct face that is somehow easy to do. The likeness is pretty much attained by an exaggeration of the eyebrows and getting the eyes right. The jawline is also key in this case.

As in anything, things come out better when you are in familiar territory, your usual palette, your best paper, and your favorite brushes. I particularly feel at home and use no other paper for all my work than the Stillman and Birn brand, because it absorbs washes beautifully without warping. The heavy stock is just perfect for watercolor. This Portrait was done on the Beta Series on a 9×12 notebook, Natural white, Rough Surface, Extra Heavy Weight, 180lb. When I use only Ink I usually go for the smooth surface of the Heavy Stock Zeta Series. The Beta has the extra tooth that holds the water runs better.

All my sketches are done with my favorite fine point fountain pen.

When I do portraits I try to create a rhythm of contrasts so your eye jumps from dark spot to dark spot back and forth keeping the interest in the portrait in a circular motion. The warms and cools also play a part in that rhythm. Since in this portrait most of the real state is warm, the cooling factor is the blue eyes. Eyes are the feature that we feel mostly attracted to in a face, so a very bold blue in that focal point compensates for all the warmth that is around. This cool color finds then a visual connection with another cooling color, the greenish blue of the shirt, between those two I feel I accomplished a balance and the portrait feels right. The shading in the face is done using about three layers of watercolor, allowing the first layer to dry completely.

Depending on the light source direction I start my first wash with The main skin tone. then I add the first pass of dark brown and follow with the lighter and darker skin tones once the first layer is dry. The cooling touches are at the end. The coloring process is about 15 min, The drawing part takes about 25-30 min

I included my palette here with my regular colors that are both for landscapes and portraits. I have a special spot for skin colors as you can see, my darks and lights and my neutrals

Here the list:

Alizarin Crimson,Cad Red Light, Orange Yellow, Raw Umber, Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ocher, Cad Yellow Pale Hue, Pelylene green, Sap Green, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, Cerulean Blue, Violet, Lamp Black (Lamp black is opaque and highly staining, it makes the darks really dark as opposed to the Ivory black that is a warm semitransparent black that blends better with other pigments, I personally prefer more opacity)

Gouaches: White, Beige, Pale Peach, Flesh and Jaune Brilliant (Main skin color)

On regard to brushes I always use natural hair as it holds more pigment.

Here below are some short clips that show the normal speed in which I usually work as in watercolor you pretty much work with the flow and must be a rather quick application and in every layer pass, more and more specific in small spots/areas to create contrast.