100. Gallery Drawings: Velazquez

After Velazquez, The Rokeby Venus,

Conté Crayon on A4 paper

After Velazquez, The Rokeby Venus,

Willow Charcoal on A4 paper

Diego Velazquez, The Rokeby Venus, 1651

Hi Everyone, well I hadn't been able to get to the gallery sessions for eight weeks! Where did the time go? Fortunately, I was able to go last week and it was good to see everyone again.

As usual, we were given a background talk, then we were told to draw three lines: one thin, one thick and the third blurred. We then had to use white Conté on black to reproduce sharp or blurred lines as he did but only drawing the left hip and down the leg. We turned over and drew her more fully (top) and were asked to show something of the weight of her body too.  We then changed to white paper and charcoal. Time was up before I could include Cupid or the mirror, etc, but, as ever, it was a great session.

87. Gallery Sketches: J M W Turner

(After J M W Turner.)

Conte and wax crayons on black pastel paper, A4

Above is a (wonky) photocopy of 

Margate(?) by the Sea by J M W Turner
and beneath it is my 5 minute sketch of the piece, Mars Lumograph 100.

Our instructions in this instance were to take the three colours given to us and use tone to re-create Turner's painting retaining the black of the paper for the darkest tone. The colours were sanguine and white Conte crayons and a yellow ochre wax crayon. It was impossible to work over the wax crayon so I just used it for the foreground grasses and blended the sky using the sanguine - hence the redness.

Can I see a smiley face on the page?

At the end of the session, we were asked to do another sketch of the painting but this time we only had five minutes so I opened my sketchbook and did it with a pencil (can't remember which grade).