Head sketch 2-6-08

Head sketch

Charcoal on newsprint

Head study 02-05-08

Charcoal on newsprint

A practice drawing from a photograph.

Still more head inventions

Still more head inventions.

Charcoal on newsprint

Even one with hair. Sort of.

More head inventions

Head inventions

Head inventions

Charcoal on newsprint

Another training exercise is to draw invented heads. As you can see, there is a sameness to their appearance. They are more organic and natural looking than "planes of the head" studies. The purpose is to become very familiar with average, ideal features placed in a well-constructed head. Developing a variety of "characters" or types is not the idea here -- just practice drawing idealized heads. My instructor once recommended that we draw invented heads "by the thousands". Why are they bald? Because the focus is on construction and features. Imagining various hair styles for these heads would take time and attention away from the basic focus -- the head itself.

Planes of the head

Planes of the Head

Charcoal on newsprint

Not to be confused with "Planes of the airport", these head studies are used to help the artist and student understand the construction of the human head. They are somewhat mannequin-like. They have average proportions (falling in the middle of the range of head proportions), and as a result are ideal looking -- handsome and attractive. It is recommended that a student learn these planes thoroughly, by drawing many of them, from many viewpoints. Construction is extremely important in the process of drawing.

Head sketches 1-31-08

Charcoal on newsprint

More samples from my sketchpads. These are practice sketches from photos.

Head sketches 1-30-08

Charcoal on newsprint

These are practice sketches I've done in the last fifteen years or so. I selected them from my sketch pads. The sizes vary from two or three inches to maybe seven inches high. They are not "finished", just taken far enough to show the characteristics of the subject and show some form. I've done a lot of sketches like these. The bald headed guy in the bottom photo is invented. The rest are from photos.

Head study

Charcoal on newsprint, about 6.5 x 7 inches

This is a practice drawing, done from a photo. The subject is Beryl Markham, a well known aviator. She was the first pilot to fly the Atlantic from east to west, which made for a long night. I think the year she did it was 1935. In art school, we did a lot of drawings on smooth newsprint. The rough variety, which seems to be more commonly available, doesn't work as well. But smooth newsprint and charcoal pencil work really well together. It's a softer surface than most other papers, very nice to work on. Unfortunately, it's not archival. It yellows quickly.

Figure study

Oil on canvas board, 16 x 20 inches

This paint sketch was done in class in the mid 1990's, at California Art Institute in Westlake Village. I have many good memories of that school. The instructor for this class was the legendary Neil Boyle, BSWCA. (BSWCA means Big Shot West Coast Artist.) Although I didn't adopt his colorful painting style or his preferred subject matter (dance hall floozies), I enjoyed his great sense of humor. I followed his practice of using kerosene for paint thinner for a while, but I now use odorless thinner. If you're interested, you could Google Neil Boyle.