Saturday, January 12, 2013

Charcoal Sketch of Woman With Windy Hair

Charcoal Sketch of Woman 

I did this picture one week during the odd free minutes here and there. It started when I was waiting for one of my kids at a music lesson, I worked on it when my other kid had a counselor's appointment and I worked some more on it while my other kid was at the dentist. I don't know if I really finished it or if I just got bored with it.

Charcoal Sketch of Woman with Windy Hair.


WHY I CHOSE HER
The resource material had a woman with beautiful hair blowing in the wind off to the side. It was full of dramatic shadows, and had very tangled lines; that is was what caught my attention. The eyes were smoky with a lot of makeup; I actually left most of it out.

ANALYSIS
I like how the light and dark areas balance each other out in the final piece. The black of the garment balances the dark of the hair opposite. I am mostly happy with the contrast between line and shape. There is enough variety to make an interesting painting later on.

DIFFICULTIES
The pose of the head was tilted and this is always a hard composition for me since I want to make things straight- vertical and horizontal; I find something is not lining up with the tilt. It is a goal of mine to find more material of people in this particular pose to practice it.

There are a few things I would correct if it was a project that I was getting paid for, but it is just a doodle so I will let them be as they are.

I hope this helps you in your own projects.

Please see the tab for pricing options to commission your own portrait in charcoal.