The Hidden Half

Photo

Tue, 21 May 2013 02:08:49 -0500

starting-to-live: omg… :$

Tue, 21 May 2013 02:07:10 -0500

starting-to-live:

omg… :$

How I Draw Portraits

Tue, 21 May 2013 01:51:00 -0500

1. Get a muse—hopefully, an amusing one.

In times of belaboring stress and seemingly infinite workload, it might be a little tricky to come up with the motive and inspiration to produce a work of pride and integrity. To me, I think this is one of the stepping stones (or a boulder) that drives an idea to completion. Music. Emotions. Beauty. Experiences. Whatever it may be, let it inspire and let it provide the energy and the maelstrom that cascades throughout the right portion of your brain. Put it on repeat as if nothing else mattered. Then, all you have to is capture that muse.

2. Begin with an idea.

Art is half composition and half execution. Similar to a well-thought out essay, a master-plan must be determined and defined like a backbone to a skeleton. Though the delivery can exhibit creative freedom, the abstraction of a main idea and theme will be the reference point during the molding process.

3. References and materials.

Depending on your type and style of work, references may be needed. If you intend to depict the human body, perhaps its best to brush up on human anatomy. If you intend to depict a horse, it’s advantageous to understand the basic anatomy of the equestrian. It’s important to fixate on a personal style and break away from the cookie-cutter “How to Draw” books. As for materials, know what you want to do, or know what you want to try. Media are like various instruments. You might know how to read music i.e. construct ideas with harmonious balance and principals, but different media could give a while new feel. A flute is to a piano as watercolor is to oil.

4. Sketch.

Thin lines with pencil, the most forgiving of the media. Avoid scratching up hairy and fuzzy lines, especially dark and hairy lines. Aim for clean concise lines light enough to erase and dark enough to withstand unintentional smudging. My advice is to draw broad points first that encompasses all the elements, such as the rounding shape and contour of the head, along with arching necks that follow the curvatures of the chin.

5. Execute.

Now here is where you are free to do your bidding.

5a. Start off with the eyes.
In my experience, the eyes make or break the piece. That’s because in portraits, they are generally the focal points. Your eyes are intrinsically drawn to another person’s during contact. To mimic the interaction, thus giving a depth to the piece, see to it that the eyes stare back. Much like the infamous stare from Mona Lisa, the eyes can layer mystery or in the case of Sharbat Gula, a daring emotionally intense glare. Note that the sclera (whites of the eyes) are not purely white.

5b. Symmetry.

Completing the second eye is one of the toughest aspect because of symmetry. It also must be carefully noted how the two irises and pupils should align to give a coherent directional gaze from the portrait’s eyes. The distance between the eyes are equivalent to the distance of an eye. A trick of symmetry is looking through a mirror at your artwork. When you are attuned to your work, things might appear correct could look different otherwise. When looking into a mirror, you see it at another perspective and can pinpoints various discrepancies.

5c. Moving down.

Slowing moving to other major features should be your next objective. This could be continuing down to the nose, and then connecting the eyes with shades of skin. It could also be focusing on the lips, the next feature that the viewer tends to look into. I personally, go towards the nose.

5d. Nose goes.
The nose is the bridge between the lips and the eyes. It’s appearance can be tricky in a directly front facing perspective (0 degrees), since it has to be depicted less of lines and more of hue. There are little strong lines to guide, besides the nostrils. The nose is a gradient, and it has to give the illusion of dimensionality.

5e. Lips like sugar.

Lips are all about texture. Teeth are all about sheen. Generally, the top lip is thinner than the lower lip. The top lip lacks strong contours and needs to merge into the skin delicately. The bottom lip has a lower shadow that darken the contour between the skin. As for lips themselves, the crusting texture of the lips with creases and folding are the details to consider and mainly focus on. If teeth are involved, use the dark gums to contain the teeth. Teeth are not completely white, much like the sclera, and slight coloring will give realism. The pure whites are for highlighting the gleam caused by enamel reflection.

5f. Skin and hair.

Texture and grit. The skin will be reflective of the persona: Silky, dusty, well-aged, radiant, oily. In my experience, a coat of hue by smearing will give a smooth appearance of skin. With a blending stump (tortillion), I use a circular motion to equalize the charcoal deposited. Layers of blending will give darker shading and build on top of previous layers. If wrinkles are present, add the lines on top of darkened areas. Pores are the finest details that skin can visually obtain, and if done correctly will bring absolute attention which will attest to your patience. Hair comes after skin. Methods of hair can be done by chunks, but I prefer to darkly cover a base layer, and highlighting with darker and lighter streams to delineate single strains.

5g. Edits and finale.

With your whole face done, its time to look at the figure as a whole, and do minor tweaking. The portrait is about complete, and the only thing that stops it from perfecting are bits of shading and the addition of details. Do what you must, but be proud of the portrait you just finished!

I wrote a tutorial on how I draw portraits and submitted it and the committee loved it! I got a...

Mon, 20 May 2013 22:07:22 -0500

I wrote a tutorial on how I draw portraits and submitted it and the committee loved it! I got a graphic design job. I can post up the tutorial I made if you guys are interesting.

I'm one of your followers, lol.

Mon, 20 May 2013 20:59:32 -0500

With the small amount of followers I have, I should know. Haha. Do I have you on Skype?

Oh, so this is my 1000th post. Gah.

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:53:08 -0500

Oh, so this is my 1000th post. Gah.

I'm willing to model for you if you'd like. I can take a tasteful picture if myself, just give me a direction you'd like me to take and I'm down. :)

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:28:18 -0500

Haha, who is this?

Naked painting? Please expand? Do you need models??

Mon, 20 May 2013 01:23:46 -0500

My roommates were away so my first instinct was to go commando. I felt a hint of inspiration and withdrew my drawers with my supplies of well kept paint and began working on a project I’ve been pushing back. It got a little messy but hey. :)

You know, I might need models. You’re right haha.

So my friend is on a pranking spree and has pranked me twice today. I told him I was going to prank...

Sun, 19 May 2013 23:41:00 -0500

So my friend is on a pranking spree and has pranked me twice today. I told him I was going to prank him 9 times. Any ideas would be appreciated :)

"I could start fires with what I feel for you."

Sun, 19 May 2013 03:10:55 -0500

“I could start fires with what I feel for you.”

- Fires, David Ramirez (via granosdegranada)

What to do when the roommates away? Painting naked. Ask me about it.

Fri, 17 May 2013 22:03:08 -0500

What to do when the roommates away?

Painting naked.

Ask me about it.

Photo

Wed, 15 May 2013 02:14:00 -0500

My apparent okcupid character analysis…

Tue, 14 May 2013 04:41:00 -0500

My apparent okcupid character analysis…

DONOSTIA - SAN SEBASTIAN

Sun, 12 May 2013 20:27:27 -0500

DONOSTIA - SAN SEBASTIAN:

Hi, I miss you.

“What does your heart want?” Someone asked. It wants for me to ask him to come back to...

Sun, 12 May 2013 11:06:48 -0500

“What does your heart want?” Someone asked.

It wants for me to ask him to come back to my side, and be my sun and my moon. It’s telling me to stop the pain, or it’ll continue to rebel.

“I don’t listen to it,” I declared.

“I’m going to bed.”

If you click on this, you’ll see it’s a 10 minute...

Fri, 10 May 2013 18:52:08 -0500

If you click on this, you’ll see it’s a 10 minute video, and you’re probably going to think “I’m not going to spent 10 minutes on this”. But if you do, some things might surprise you.

I went on myspace and wrote some confessions. It’s like coming back to your old house and...

Tue, 07 May 2013 01:14:00 -0500

I went on myspace and wrote some confessions. It’s like coming back to your old house and carving your initials on the tattered walls. It’ll be there, and maybe someone will read it, but its the fact that it’s there. A wave of nostalgia, and kind of exhilarating to see and communicate to the past. And wow, I have not changed facially in 6 years…

we’re all obsessed with finding someone who cares for us…

Sat, 04 May 2013 22:45:57 -0500

we’re all obsessed with finding someone who cares for us…

"The loneliest moment in someone’s life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and..."

Thu, 02 May 2013 19:23:04 -0500

““The loneliest moment in someone’s life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly.””

- F. Scott Fitzgerald , The Great Gatsby (via vodkakilledtheteens)

Learning about homeotic genes again in evolution. Keep reading “homoerotic” genes.

Thu, 02 May 2013 10:31:52 -0500

Learning about homeotic genes again in evolution. Keep reading “homoerotic” genes.