Portraits on Toned Paper

     I’ve been away for a while and am now returning to the practice with a few portraits taken from Art Models 7. By the time I took my “short break” a few months ago, the final crunch of the semester was fast approaching. Getting everything squared away took longer than I thought, as always. It’s just as well. I only ever notice an increase in skill after a break.

     I don’t think I’m using the toned paper and white charcoal to their fullest, but I can say that my portraits have never looked better. Naturally, they are not as accurate or swift as I would like, but that comes down to practice. What matter is this: I can get a face on the page. Not gracefully, but sure enough. What remains is to draw face after face after face, so that I am comfortable enough with the placement of features to invent faces from any and every angle. Then, I can work on honing my technique—and my technique is very rough. In short, I have to master the long way before I can start working on shortcuts (for instance, laying down the shading in one or two layers, or leaving certain portions of a portrait strategically unfinished). I’ll only consider myself skilled when I can sketch one feature to the next with proper proportions without laying landmarks beforehand. But of course, that won’t happen overnight. So, for now I sketch portraits.

     I’ll be breaking out the watercolors when I have a palette and easel next month. For now, I’ll post every Sunday. Posting every other day was a bad idea.