Friday, October 7, 2011

Practicing to be Artists

 I used to draw a lot. I loved taking sketch books with me and being that quirky person that was sketching at a baseball game or orchestra concert or while lounging in the park. But probably due to my lack of free hands when I'm out and about, and my lack of time to pursue creative endeavors, I don't draw anymore unless it's a quick line drawing for a painting. But for some reason this morning, while it was just me and my second daughter hanging out, I decided to draw. Wasn't really feeling up to serious painting. My daughter grabbed a pencil too and her paints as well, and announced, "I gotta practice and practice because I want to be an artist when I grow up and I need lots of practice." I second that!
Both of these sketches are from old photos of my daughters. The first has since lost those pudgy cheeks that I adored, and the second would have a hard time getting that dress to cover the essentials, but I've kept those photos in my "people to paint" files because they make me smile. I sure feel out of practice, but I really enjoy sketching people.  It's relaxing. Feels like getting back to basics, to a comfortable old classroom or something.
I even got a little bolder for the second one and used a darker pencil (which I never pick up for my watercolors) ... at least for the dress. So they're not perfect but they were fun to do and we gotta keep practicing so we can be artists when we grow up!

3 comments:

  1. Lisha I LOVE these!! I've always felt the same way about drawing. It has always been soothing. Which probably explains why I drew the most senior year. I love the ones of the girls. Keep drawing!

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  2. Keep it up Alisha. You are amazing. The girls are darling!

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  3. A good drawing is the base for a good watercolor, and you can also use a darker pencil for watercolor. Franciso Castro, an award-winning watercolorist Spanish, used to do to get texture in the rocks. You can see some demostrations on his blog.

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