It has been a while since I have done a self portrait and I don’t think I have done one in graphite yet. I guess I am out of practice because starting this self portrait seemed daunting to say the least. I started very sketchy and small then after establishing the general shape of my head and shoulders I jumped straight in with the detail.
While looking at all kinds of drawings and paintings from Andrew Wyeth over the week I noticed that he works in a way very similar to Richard Schmid. Both artists work with very little preparation and jump quickly into the details of the subject. They usually pick out the focus of the painting or drawing and start there. All the while they work by comparing areas next to each other for drawing, value and color accuracy. This is how I worked in this drawing, starting with the details and comparing there accuracy with what its next to.
I guess I was so intense in my concentration that my expression turned out sort of crazy looking. I’m somewhat happy with the likeness but I still need to work on longevity as I don’t feel only one hour on a drawing is near enough.
