Week 13

 This week, our third shell contour drawing was due. This drawing also included an ink wash, which I was nervous about at first, but wound up really enjoying the ink. I had never worked with ink before, but have always enjoyed the way it looked and the mood it conveyed. The object of the assignment was to define the form of the shell with the contours in a way that somebody who had no knowledge of what a shell looked like would be able to define it. I’m not sure if my lines were successful in that sense, but I do think it was the best contour drawing I have done to date. The ink was supposed to suggest water and represent the waves of the ocean. The ink and the lines were supposed to relate to each other, almost as though the waves formed the shell. Again, I’m not sure if my ink relates overly well to the form of the shell, but I do find it successful from a visual standpoint.

We also spent time on the hand this week. We didn’t spend a lot of time on the hand, because they are very similar to the feet, which we spent a good amount of time on already. It was good to learn about the planes of the hand, because whenever I drew thumbs, they turned out looking strange and almost disconnected from the rest of the hand. Amy explained that this is because the thumb is located on the side plane of the hand, while the rest of the fingers are on the top plane. Good to know!

 We also went over the skull this week. I was excited for this, because the face is one of my favorite subjects to draw. It was interesting to learn about the internal structure of the skull and the cranium and how that related to the face the facial features. Amy explained that the eye sockets were one of the most important features to convey, which is contrary to what many people think. I am pleased with the way my drawings turned out this week, because I can see that I am making progress, which is always encouraging!