I have made very little progress on my seagull drawing mostly because I couldn't draw for a long time (and then not for very long) due to my accidents (yes there were two). So I am out of the habit.
I took my drawing with me when I went away and as I sat down to work on it I found my sharpener wasn't sharp enough to get the point on the pencil that I like for my drawings. A sharp point gives me more control on how and where I place my marks. The dull blade on the sharpener was ripping at the wood below the pigment. I didn't have a small screwdriver to change the blade so I thought I might try to do what I could.Not a good idea. Every step I took just made matters worse.
Focus and looking at what is there (rather than what you think is there) is important when working on a drawing like this and for whatever reason, I jumped in and wasn't paying attention. So I made a mess of the legs by putting yellow in the wrong place and not concentrating on the shape of the bird's legs.
A combination of dull pencils, lack of focus and less than optimal lighting.
What I need is one good positive session with this drawing to get back on track and feel motivated to continue on.
While I was away, I was lucky to catch an exhibition of religious art at Brigham Young University's Museum of Art called 'Sacred Gifts'.
Some of the works are on loan from Churches in Denmark, Norway and New York. My two favourites can be seen on the flyer below. The first is 'Agony in the Garden' by Frans Schwartz (top far left) and the second 'Christ and the Rich Young Ruler' (bottom).
You can see all the paintings and learn about the artists here.
