Self Portrait- click to enlarge further

22 days- assignment completed!

Day 21- own hand

After the course of this program I thought I would be better than this with drawing hands- but this one is still terrible! it looks like a knarled witches hand. I'm trying much too hard, and overworking it. Proportions are better, but now thumb is too small!

Day 20- observation study of paper

Day 19 - Observational drawing- Twisted Paper

Day 18- Gill

Pen sketch of our Oscar fish 'Gill'.

Day 18- Fish Studies #2

Day 17

Day 16

Day 15- coloured pencil (bird)

Day 14- Charcol fish sketches

Day 13- Gumleaf study

Day 12- Observational Drawing. Gumnuts

Day 11- Saturday afternoon beer

Day 10- Head and Neck studies

Day 9- Pen scribbles

I was watching a bit of television last night so wanted to do some drawing that I wouldn't have to concentrate on. These are just a few strange little characters (drawn with a red biro) that I came up with.

Day 8- Things on my desk

Quick stylised pen sketches of some everyday objects on my desk..

Day 8- Drawing from photograph

I'm not very pleased with the way this drawing of Finn turned out. It was hard making teeth look right in the mouth, and I've overworked it in some areas (the left eye for example).

some links I find inspiring (in no particular order)..

http://adisillos.blogspot.com/

http://www.penelopeillustration.com/

http://www.illustrationfriday.com/

http://www.boygirlparty.com/illustration/

http://camillaengman.blogspot.com/

Day 7- Sketch of My brother Pete

A 30 minute sketch of my younger brother Pete watching T.V. Although not perfect- there is a definite likeness to him, and I think I captured his 'essence'. His lips are a too thick in this drawing and the eye looks a bit wrong, but overall I am quite happy with it.

Day 7- Finn's sketch (my sketch book hijacked by a toddler)

I love the spidery feel of Finn's drawing. I love the freedom in his lines and use of space.

Day 6- Drawing my own foot

I love sketching in biro. I quite like the stylised feel of this particular drawing- It kind of reminds me of Brett Whitely.

Day 6- Drawing from imagination. soft toy design

Here are some characters drawn from imagination which I may try to make into 3 dimensional toys at some stage.

Day 6- Observational drawing of wooden sculpture

I thought this wooden sculpture would be quite a simple thing to draw, but once I started I realised it was much more complicated than I first thought. The wood gain, cracks, tones of the wood and shadows proved to be quite tricky. I am not very pleased with this one..

Day 5- Observational still life

Although far from perfect. I quite like how this turned out. I may try to use the same combination of fruit in different lighting conditions. I am finding drawing everyday is becoming very addictive and I want to practice all the time. I'm also finding it a bit of an 'escape'. Making time to draw is pure joy for me.

Day 5- Hands

I find drawing hands incredibly frustrating and I know how it 'should' look, and I know this isn't right. Although this attempt is better than my last. I do feel like I really lack confidence with drawing hands, and when I was in high-school I used to get around it by hiding my subjects hands in pockets!. It is something I would like to master, or at least get better at.

Day 5- Portraiture

Day 4- Still life

Day 4- Observational drawing (unfinished)

Note to Self: Try to draw what you actually see, not draw from memory or how you think it should be.

I ran out of time with this sketch. But I actually like how it is not finished, and the gnarled and knobbly features of the plant.

Day 3- Sleeping Dog (Ruby)

A portrait of my sleeping dog. She looks fatter in this drawing than she actually does. I think I have captured her character.

Day 3- Pencil cat sketch

I like this little sketch of a cat. I used much heavier lines for this drawing, and a softer lead in the pencil. I like the fast, scratchy feel this drawing has. I can feel myself loosening up with my drawing style, and gaining confidence in my abilities.

Day 3- Pen sketch

Experimenting with pen. I love working with felt tip, and I think it is great that the lines can't be rubbed out. By maintaining the incorrect lines means you can work over them and get the right. I'm trying to draw in a variety of medium and a variety of quick and more detailed studies.

Day 3- Drawing own hands

I'm terrible at drawing hands!! I hope to improve through practice. The bottom (closed fist) is better than the top sketch, but they are not good!! I'm keeping all my drawings, even the ones I think are pitiful as I'm sure to see improvement over the period of this folio task.

Day 2- Animal sketches

These little illustrations having been taken from a variety of books. I just wanted to practice on shape and composition of different animals and try to capture the animals characteristics. In drawing these animals I broke the subject down into simple shapes and worked on the detail.

Day 1- quick obvservational drawings

My first day of the drawing folio assessment task. I chose simple objects from around the home and on the table to work on. Each one was quick and not too bad considering I haven't really 'drawn' since Finn was born (18 months ago). I do feel rusty and stiff in the way that I approach the task, but even after these few sketches I could feel myself improving. I think my drawing skills are there, it's just a matter of practice and spending time and really looking!