Friday 26 August 2022

The Fundamentals of Drawing

I just finished a summer art course called "The Fundamentals of Drawing." Each week in class, we drew and shaded a freehand rendition of a black-and-white photo using graphite pencils (2B, 4B, and 6B were the ones I chose).

I'm very pleased with how mine turned out, all things considered. They help to overcome the memory of my attempt at watercolour balloons, LOL! My bruised ego has been soothed.




My Jack Russell terrier looks more like a fox 
because I made its muzzle too long and narrow. D'oh!


This is a leafy bush in long wild grass,
in case it's not immediately apparent what it is
(and it might not be, LOL!)


In my defence, the kid's toque (knit cap/beanie/bobble hat)
was ridiculously large in the photo too but,
on reflection, I think I overdid it in the drawing.



52 comments:

Sixpence Notthewiser said...

Love them!
Pencil drawing always brings (to my untrained eye, of course) a level of depth and detail to drawings that you don't see with other tools.

XOXO

Lady M said...

Toque - such a fine Canadian word. Nicely done. Your drawing skills are primo.

Mistress Maddie said...

I have liked all your artwork Debs....buy must say I think you found your niche with the pencil!!!! These are all spook good!!!! My favorites. I'd gladly hang any of these.

Marie Smith said...

Great drawings, Debra. You have talent!

Frank said...

Very nice. You are so talented. The seagull is looking at me. Cute dog.

Boud said...

Nice shading there. You must be pleased. What's the size?

Travel said...

Those are really great

Bob said...

Not only do I like your work, I like the fact that you challenge yourself, something a lot of us might not do.

Rosemary said...

Love all of them Debra - keep it up.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Boud == These were all done on 12" x 16" paper.

baili said...

I felt stunned and speechless when I saw this flawlessly awesome and fascinating art of your's.
Proud of you and hats off to you dear Debra you proved once again you Rock!

Each pencil art is really beautiful. You are truly an inspiration. I loved them so much

pam nash said...

Those are all great! Such talent you have.

DVArtist said...

Wow! Very well done my friend. These are all excellent and what a great idea to take a black and white photo. Have a great weekend.

Fundy Blue said...

I didn't think your balloons were that bad, Debra, and I like your courage in sharing them. It's too easy to imagine artists making beautiful creations that just pour out with little effort, perfectly executed. I think that idea discourages people from attempting art. Your seagull is amazing! And I really like your bush in the grass. I knew exactly what it was, because I've taken too many photos of bushes in grass. lol! You captured it well. Have a great weekend!

Mike said...

I can see you with your pencils trying to decide on the last finishing touch. "Hmmmmm, 2B or not 2B".

bobbie said...

They all look great to me! I loved the gull and the rose ~

Old Lurker said...

Yay! More Debra art!

Why is that gull giving us the side-eye?

Moving with Mitchell said...

I wish your activities could inspire me to get back into drawing. You do such beautiful work.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Old Lurker -- It's eyeing those French fries you're eating and trying not to look too obvious about it before swooping in and stealing some.

Rommy said...

You did a terrific job with these!

The Blog Fodder said...

These are wonderful. And frameable. I love pencil drawings.

Tundra Bunny said...

You really have a great talent for drawing animals -- your sea gull is perfect and witty at the same time! And I prefer to think of your dog as a Fox Terrier, LOL!

Richard said...

Those are great! Thank you for sharing them. Each drawing tells a story. I don't know how to do this, but it is very cool.

jaz@octoberfarm said...

these are wonderful. i love to do pencil sketches.

John said...

I really like the rose. Maybe I'll try drawing someday.

roentare said...

These drawings are very good! I used to paint nudes in the younger years. Again, pencil sketches are similar to black and white photography in a way emphasising on texture and shades.

angela said...

I think they’re perfect.
I’ve been watching YouTube’s and learning to draw can help with painting
So maybe I’ll add that to the list of new things to learn
One day I’m going to very clever lol

Joanne Noragon said...

What's not big enough in the sketch of the kid in the toque is the puddle he's stomping in.

Kirk said...

"In my defence, the kid's toque (knit cap/beanie/bobble hat)
was ridiculously large in the photo too but,
on reflection, I think I overdid it in the drawing."

Or does it only SEEM as if you're overdoing it? Just as truth is stranger than fiction, so too, a photo can be stranger than a drawing.

River said...

The seagull is excellent.

Rostrose said...

Oh WOW, your drawings are just gorgeous! Of course, I also immediately recognized the bush in the grass. As for the Jack Russell Terrier's muzzle, it may be longer than on the photo, but it has personality. And besides, as a viewer, I tend to look at the beautiful eyes.
Happy weekend and all the best from Austria
Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2022/08/mallorca-reisebericht-teil-5-tag-9-bis.html

JM said...

Those are beautiful

Liz Hinds said...

Wonderful as always.

Anonymous said...

These are wonderful! Such a talent you have! Thank you for sharing them with us. Maybe the kid has a lot of hair and it's all stuffed into the toque... :^)
E

How do we know said...

Oh wow!! These are fantastic!

peppylady (Dora) said...

Lovely work. I'm looking to be more creative when I retire.
Coffee is on and stay safe

roughterrain crane said...

Thanks for sharing wonderful drawings. You expressed the feel of materials fully.

LL Cool Joe said...

Your description of the leafy bush in long wild grass, made me laugh. I really like your pencil work. Excellent!

Bea said...

You have a very keen eye! I very much enjoyed them all, but especially liked the pepper, your sweet-looking pooch, and the bush in tall grass.

Busy Bee Suz said...

I am beyond impressed with your artistic skills!

Bill Lisleman said...

all are great but I like the young child about to jump off the glacier the best. Hey while I'm attempting a joke, I wondered about toque. Back in the 60's were there lots of jokes about offering/asking for a toque vs. toke?

yellowdoggranny said...

oh Debra...........you are really good...

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Bill Lisleman -- Good guess but actually, no, there weren't a lot of jokes because "toque" is not pronounced anything like "toke." Despite its spelling, it's pronounced like the word "too" with a soft "kuh" on the end. There are variant spellings of "toque" that might make this clearer, such as "touque" and "tuque." There, you've had your first lesson in Canadian-speak, LOL!

Richard said...

Thanks for the lesson. I was saying something that sounds like "toke" and it sounded wrong. I even tried it in Spanish and that sounded even more wrong. Touque it is, or even tuuk would work. We are communicating in English, so all rules are arbitrary.

Adam said...

Absolutely phenomenal detail

Martha said...

These are fabulous, Debra! Way to go you!

Ur-spo said...

yes yes yes
pencil remains my favorite way to make art.
good for you!

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

I liked the one with the kid with the brain swelling. His bravery in the face of his medical crisis is inspiring.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness -- I can always count on you, Cal. LOL!

Laura said...

oh my! i LOVE your drawings! they are wonderful!!
love & magicks
~*~

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

Wow, wow, wow. I love that rose - it captivated me.
Roses are a favorite subject of my art, which can't compare to yours. Yours is exquisite.

Laura Morrigan said...

Amazing work!