Hi Vladimir and Natalie,
Please see below some of my artworks. How can I improve my portrait drawing skills? I know I have to practice, but what and how?
Your thoughts are highly appreciated!
Hi Roman,
Many thanks for your email and drawings. You told me that you have been drawing from photos for some time and now want to re-learn how to draw from life and imagination, but have some concerns about your progress.
Don’t be hard on yourself, many art students would be glad to have your drawing skills.
There are, however, few things you can start working on right now. Let’s start from the beginning: …
I’m 73, but learning. I love the Drawing Academy course. I have drawn things for paintings, but only to paint what I see. That’s my art background!
Thank you
Thank you for your course. I am enjoying it immensely and learning a lot at the same time.
At 70 I have a way to go but as they say we are never to old to learn…
I want to thank Vladimir and Natalie for providing such a wonderful experience. I had no training in art at all. In fact, I did not really draw or paint anything until I turned 54. It was the Drawing Academy course that got me started. I have a very LONG path ahead, but at least I have begun. The journey is the point, right…
Dear Vladimir and Natalie,
First of all, I would like to thank Drawing Academy for teaching me how to improve my artworks. Your lessons have taught me so much. Now what I need to do is work harder to reach my goals.
This is a drawing of my friend that I did when we were at a coffee shop. My goal was to capture the light in her face and her eyes, but I see a bunch of mistakes. Hair is my biggest problem. The amount of detail can be overwhelming to me; I guess cause I’m still an amateur. How can I render shade to the hair and face with over-rendering? And how to keep pencil lines smooth yet defined? …
My creative aim was to try and get photo realism. Outcome: failed.
I love this picture more and more as time goes by. Despite the failure to achieve the goal and all its perspective distortions, I honestly love the outcome. Cartoony looking but striking with color saturation and exposure.
The most obvious perspective error that an untrained eye will notice is the distortion of the blue bowl behind her. Just drawing what I thought I saw and not knowing to draw what I didn’t know to draw at the time resulted in this distortion.
The vanishing point for the perspective of the bowl is located on a much higher horizon line than the actual point of view from which this picture was taken from, resulting in more of the back plane of the ellipse being visible at the top plane of the bowl, making it look odd because you get the sense that you are seeing the dog from the front yet the further object is seen from above…
I have just started the drawing course and I love it! I am in my second week and have already learned so much and have gained a lot of skill. I know I will continue to grow! I am sending in a portrait drawing for critique, ( I also included a drawing of vases from the class).
I have included a portrait done by Natalie Richy to help explain my question. To me my portrait shows great improvement from my past attempts, but doesn’t look like art ( or at least not what I hope to create). Natalie’s does! Can you help me understand what I am seeing and not seeing? I appreciate any thoughts and comments …