Drawing Life: Wade

Wade, 20 minute life-drawing, 24” x 18,” by Melissa Carmon

Life drawing is one of my favorite exercises.  For one, a person is not just drawing one image... A person is melding two images (due to binocular vision) of a three dimensional form and melding those views into one two-dimensional form.  This accounts, at least in part, for the subtle differences seen in drawings made from life and those made from photographs.  

The drawing process of translation between 3-D and 2-D demands a lot of energy, not to mention when life drawing, there is the added pressure of the clock.  Unlike a photograph, the reference can’t be tucked into a notebook and saved in order to be worked on later.  And the model isn't going to sit there forever, especially in a pose like this:

The mind is an ocean. A river. A sea. 24" x 18,'‘ a 30-minute life drawing, by Melissa Carmon

While I love making portraiture that focuses on the form, some of my favorite artists emphasized the 2D element quite a bit more.

Here’s some portrait inspiration from an old photocopied book on Odilon Redon. I keep this one taped to my wall in the studio: