MIDTERM PORTFOLIO POST

• I have learned quite a bit already this semester. In past classes instructors have said 'here is this thing, draw it.' So, to actually be shown what is underneath what you're drawing, and what makes up that figure, is extremely helpful. I have learned more anatomy and terms than I have ever learned in any science class, and I appreciate that. I have also increased my knowledge of the human figure so I would be able to draw it from memory, which is something I have never been able to do.

• My strengths and weaknesses are slightly sketchy at the moment, meaning that I am not sure how to critique them. For my drawings, I feel that I am pretty good with the 3-5 minute gestures because it gives me just the right amount of time to get all the information down. However, my 30 second gestures are a different story because I do not allow myself to enough time to get the full figure sometimes. Another area I believe I am doing well in are my proportions. Most of my drawings seem quite accurate, or close too it. Another weakness I would include is my understanding of planes. The last two class periods with long drawings, I have had an odd angle of the pelvis and have struggled with it. Understanding that form and the planes that make that up will greatly improve my drawings. As for the manikin, I think there are at least two areas that I could improve on that. One is the thickness of my muscle pieces. It is hard sometimes to see the thickness of the pieces in the book, and I feel like my pieces get a little big sometimes. The other weakness spot could be the curves of the muscles. I noticed first with my back, then the gluts, that my muscles lack curvature sometimes, so being more organic with them would be better.

• There are a few things I would like to learn or get better at. The first thing I'd like to improve on is definitely my lines. I do not like my lines at all, and they often look pretty flat. Some variation in thickness and weight would be good and improve my drawings drastically. Another area of learning, or just getting better at, as previously mentioned, is my understanding of the pelvis and how to draw it from every angle. The front and back view are relatively simple, but once the model moves in an abnormal position, it takes a little thinking to figure it out.
  

• Overall, the first half of the semester has gone pretty good. At times I have found myself getting a little bored with the repetition of drawing for 3 hours, but I should stick with it and focus on working on my weaknesses. I enjoyed the first half, so I am looking forward to what the second half of the semester brings.

Link to image site:
http://s606.photobucket.com/albums/tt147/BSoccer1030/

Week #5

The clay got better with the second assignment. The first ones were a little big, but this time I think I got the thickness' and sizes much closer. I started to enjoy it a little bit after I got the hang of it. I decided to go without buying the clay tools, so I thinks it's slightly harder just working with your hands. As we build each section, it greatly improves my understanding of the muscles, and helps a lot in the drawing portion.
Drawing with the model on Thursday was nice to get more practice with the pelvis area. The rib cage is coming along, but it definitely needs a little more practice. For the long pose I found I had an odd angle, so I had some trouble figuring out the pelvis and what directions it was going in. The foreshortening was also tough to deal with, but overall I don't think it turned out too bad.
Some things to work on are still line variation...it still looks odd..and also using the planes to figure out the pelvis will help a lot.

Week #4

I am enjoying having a better understanding of the rib cage area while drawing. It makes it a lot easier when you know what you are drawing. The lectures helped tremendously in showing and explaining everything. Again, having things explained in 'art' terms is so much easier to understand.
The short gesture drawings are still a bit tough because I tend to want to do too much detail right away. I can definitely work on focusing on what is wanted.
The longer poses went pretty well. I liked having time to get everything down and correct my mistakes. Something I will need to work on is line quality and weight. I tend to have the same line quality throughout the drawing, so changing it up will hopefully add some more depth and dimension.

Week #3

Starting the maniken...at first I didn't really know how I felt about the clay muscles. I thought it was going okay until I got to about the third or fourth muscle on the neck area and realized my first couple were probably a little fat. It was slightly frustrating, but after a while it did get better. The book was very good and helpful with showing all the connection points, but it got a little tougher because the maniken is slightly different from the one used in the book, so it's hard to tell sometimes.
After the first assigned muscles I am very thankful for this project because it definitely gives you a better understanding of how the body works. I never paid attention to anything having to do with the body, because it was always talked about in 'sciencey' terms, which I am horrible at.

Week #2

Week #2
The second week of Life Drawing went pretty well. I continued to enjoy the gesture drawing, but I found a difference in my drawing with the new model. The first week we had a female who seemed extremely comfortable with modeling and did very good poses for drawing. The second week was a little tougher...the male seemed quite nervous and not as comfortable yet, and his poses showed that. He was a little tense and unsure of how to vary his poses, so it was a little harder to draw them.

The shell drawing was a bit difficult as well. I began to grasp the contour concept a little better, but i was pretty BORED with my shell, and it probably shows in the drawing. My shell was extremely smooth throughout, with hardly any variation, only a little spiraling at one end. My lineweight is the same throughout, also making it look flat. For the next shell drawing I will try to correct all of these mistakes, varying the line thickness and weight more from side-to-side and front-to-back. I will also look for a different angle to draw from, so maybe I can find more variation in the shape.