Vacations are a blessing and a curse. The blessing part is pretty apparent for most of us. Time of from work, and chance to sleep in, catch up on projects, go visit some place new. The downsides of vacation are not always so obvious, but they are there some what disguised. Ok. Yes there are the obvious downsides when you return to work. I’m
talking about the ones during vacation. Where you stay up too late and then sleep in and get your whole schedule cock-eyed so that it then becomes difficult to get motivated to get things done. That can be very frustrating when you were planning on getting several things done.
As you can tell my vacation from my day job has not started out with quite the bang I had hoped. With some luck and a little discipline on my part, I have time to turn it
around. I last week I was so excited about vacation I was almost giddy. I felt a little silly about it. I’m not going any place. I’m staying home. But I have only 3 things I’m really hoping to accomplish instead of trying to do everything and that might be why I was so excited. Of course being so excited might be why I didn’t get done some of the stuff I wanted to last week. It was Tuesday before the weekly post went out. Though I did have it written the night before. And then it took me a couple of days to get the pictures together and the article written for the Sticks post. Those did take up most of my week. I tend to not register how much time it can really take to write the article and then get it posted. So when I get done getting a post up, I usually have run out of day.
I have been reading “Creating Characters with Personality” by Tom Bancroft and trying to experiment with what I learn. Sometimes it works out pretty good and others, not quite as I expect. It has helped a little with my understanding and it even seems to be stretching my skills some. Of course I’m not putting near the practice time in that I could. Still the concepts seep in and they start to have some influence over what comes out on the paper. The book certainly had some influence on a couple of the sketchbook pieces last week. I even had a bonus piece or two. Though the week was a little slow to get started.
I guess, when you can’t think of anything else to draw a good ol’ clay style pot will do. So that’s what we get for the first entry.
An attempt to use one of the techniques I had been reading about. I had intended it to look like a person with a bit of a pear shaped head on top of a pear-shaped body. That
so didn’t happen. Instead I have sort of odd-looking penguin? I think?
This is working a little better. It’s closer to what I was thinking. I kind of like the way it came out. It’s a little different from what I usually do and that’s ok.
This was definitely influenced by the idea of breaking things down into primitive shapes and also using tilt and angles for posing. I was a little surprised it worked out as well as it did. And no, I’m not sure if it’s an Elf or a Vulcan. You can choose.
For this one I started with the glasses. I was going to just drawn sunglasses but it turned out there was a face behind them. So I did the face as well. I am particularly
fond of the way the lips and the nose turned out. Drawing noses and mouths or lips tend to give me tremendous angst. So for both to turn out so well for the same piece,
that’s just an awesome feeling.
I did have some extra stuff this week. I was at work and about to go to lunch when this gem insisted on being committed to paper. Anyone know her? She looks like she might be
trying to get into some trouble.
And after reading far enough in the Tom Bancroft book I had an urge to draw one or more of the characters from Big Hero 6. So I got out the book I have on the art of the movie and found a nice sketch of GoGo to work from. It turned out to be surprisingly easy. Though I did have some trouble with a couple of hair sections at first and right hand didn’t quite work. Still I’m very pleased with the results. Oh and the copy notice on the picture is obviously only for my rendition of the character. Disney and Marvel Studios own the copy right on the character and her design.
That was the sketchbook. I did get that promised article about Sticks posted, in case you missed it. I made a trip to the art supply store to try to find an option for the frame for the guitar piece. That was a bust. Though, I did get some good information and a better understanding of what’s available. So I will probably go with something stock and just let it be cropped to 11 inches by 14 inches.
I also got started on the finishing touches for the guitar piece. I’ve got some detailing that I’m working on and then I’ll see what areas might need an additional layer of
dots. That’s one of the small set of things I’m working on for the vacation week.
Aside from getting some chores done and making it to a third class of Taekwondo this week and going out to see a band play, the rest of the weekend was a bit of a bust. Perhaps next weekend will be more interesting or productive or successful or whatever this one wasn’t. Check back to find out.