Copy of portrait of Isabella Brant
Drawing by Malvina James
Good day Vladimir!
I tried to draw portrait of Isabella Brant by Rubens. I really like the original. It was nice experience! Thank you.
Hi Malvina,
Many thanks for your copy of the portrait of Isabella Brant by Rubens.
Your drawing is very good. It has likeness, shows your hand style, and is not overworked. Well done. I really like your gamut of pencil strokes – delicate short strokes, stronger and darker marks, and freedom of hatching.
I suppose, you also feel that something in this portrait makes it a bit different from the original. To see how it can be improved, let’s analyze perspective and proportions – please check the image below.
It seems that your copy has a reverse perspective. Check how the green lines on the portrait by Rubens are converging to the vanishing point far beyond the left-hand side of the drawing. Green lines on your artwork are diverging.
The same can be said about perspective lines of the mouth, marked in red.
Also, check how in the original artwork has a blue vertical line which goes from the corner of the mouth directly to the pupil of the eye.
Other small details, like a slightly fuller cheek on the left also make your drawing a bit different.
Once again, thank you for your wonderful artwork. It is great that you take inspiration from the Old Masters and learn from the best.
Best regards,
Vladimir
Thank you for your critique! It helped a lot! I knew I had to check all perspective lines and measurements through the drawing process, but simply relied on my eyes. Well, I will keep it in mind for next drawings:) Thank you:)
Malvina