Old Sketches, new thoughts...

     Over the past few days I have been combing through my sketchbooks looking for some of my older sketches that I can post up and talk about. As stated in my previous blog, there is alot that can be learned from going back and looking at your older works.
   
     When you look at your older stuff, sometimes it brings back the thoughts that you had when you first drew it. And sometimes it stirs in you ideas you had that were quickly sketched down and then forgotten. Both of the below sketches do that for me, as well as teach me a few things about where I have been, and perhaps where I am going.

     I did this waaaayyyy back in 1996! I was actually still in the Army, and this was probably drawn while out on maneuvers. Young men out in the field far from civilization, what else is there to think about and draw, than a mostly nude female. The sketch is quite primitive, but conveys quite a bit of movement and emotion. I am not insane enough to think that the sketch is quality, but somehow its simplicity is attractive. Is she laying down, or performing some ritualist dance? Hard to tell, and to this day I am not sure myself. 

     This was drawn well before I felt comfortable drawing female faces, and thus the reason for her face to be covered by her arm. And while not perfect, her figure is actually surprisingly proportioned well. This was of course drawn from imagination and no model was used. I remember thinking back then that I had to get the shoulders right for the sketch to work. Looking at it now, I think I could have done better, but in its simplistic style it's not half bad in my opinion. Her mid-section leaves something to be desired. 

     What do you think? What could I have improved upon in this sketch? I would love to hear your comments. 

  

     Onto the next sketch:

     This one comes from even further back, 1995. During this time I had just finished reading "the Raven" poem, and was inspired by it to sketch this out. Back in my younger years it seems that my attention span was quite short, and I rarely finished sketches to finals in ink, or paint or other medium.
     Overall I am still intrigued by this sketch. This man is obviously a vagabond, vagrant of some sort, perhaps a street fighter, or thief. He seems to be dressed in a more modern flair, with the pockets and collar of his jacket lending this feel. Again the hair obscured the face, as I was not comfortable with drawing facial features at this time. He is sort of a dark character, and one I would like to revisit in the future, finishing the sketch, and maybe doing a side by side comparison. Request it, and when I get around to it I will post it up.
   
      As far as overall technique on either of these sketches, they are rough, I didnt have the feel for really spending time on a piece and really "fleshing" it out. The straight countour lines tend to tell me that I had not yet started to experiment with crosshatching, or lights and shadows. Both Characters need work, in the face, and hands, being obscured by hair, or not detailed. I think I have come along way with both, as you will have seen already or will see on this blog in the future.

     Thanks for looking, keep drawing!