I’ve been putting it off for a while. I’ve drawn boats and sharks and an anchor. I’ve even drawn a few faces. I keep avoiding the terrible task of drawing people in expressive positions. for some reason, it’s a daunting task for me.

But, today I could not avoid it any longer. And tomorrow will have to be some of the same.

Today’s subject is a young “pirate” discovered hiding under a tarp on the deck of the pirate ship. When one of the Young Captains kicks at the lump of a tarp, it flies up and reveals this mad, frightened boy.

I had a young face to model, so I started there, but with such a small area to work with, I’m finding I have to get better at picking the representative lines.  It is a little bit more like a cartoon, than a likeness. I am ok with that. I would, however, like for it to be somewhat of a characature – enough that a knowledgeable person could recognize them.

I’m not sure I got to a level of recognizability with this one, but it is moving in that direction and I like the figure, overall.

One method of construction that I find useful when drawing figures is to start out with blocks:

 

By drawing in the parts of the figure in three-dimensional blocks first, I get the proportions and sense of depth and space. It’s a lot easier for me to draw a three-dimensional cube in various angles, than it is to draw an arm or a leg. 

Once I had the blocks in their proper positions, I was able to see what items cut in front of others. The foot on the right, for instance. The heel can be seen, but the big toe cannot because the line of toes cuts behind the shin.  I was able to see where the shoulders  went. I was reminded that, at this angle, you see more of the top part of the shoulders. Notice, too, that torso is made up of the solid chest and hips shapes with a squishy connection between them.

I was able to get all of that worked out and then use those lines as guides to put in the “squiggly” lines representing the clothes worn by the lad.

In drawing, like in many other aspects of life, it can help to have a process you can follow to get you from the beginning to the end.