Lioness from Wildlife Art Week
(Note that Day 1 includes finding shapes for both the lioness and the wren)
Welcome to Day ONE!
Today we are starting at the very beginning - finding shapes.
Learning to sketch from scratch is one of the most empowering things an artist can learn, and it is absolutely a skill set to continue to practise. So today we will start from the beginning, finding the simplest shapes, so that tomorrow, we can build on that further. We’re also going to have a chat about curiosity, and how it applies to art (and life!)
Let’s go!
Supplies Used
Remember: The exact supplies are not what makes the magic, that dear one, comes from you!
Sketchbook (I used Stillman& Birn Zeta Series 21x30cm/8.25x11.75”)
Pencil (I used a HB and 8B Faber-Castell Pitt Graphite Matt)
Let's take the shapes a little further today for the lioness - work first on adding just a bit more detail to our shapes so we have a better roadmap for where to proceed next, and then we will work on rendering one of the references more.
This will still be a fairly detailed sketch though, not a fully rendered drawing. Doing something with lots of detail and precision takes time - everything that is good takes time, right? You can make it a highly rendered drawing by spending more time on it though, getting down smaller and smaller shapes - be they value, detail, texture or more. But a detailed sketch is a beautiful place to be too, and may be the beginning of even more!
We had two LIVE sketch and chat sessions, and the videos for both are here!
Below is a pdf with the reference images :)
Session 1
Session 2
Today is for playing with acrylic paint!
Let’s zoom on in to a reference, draw an exquisite lioness eye, and then use layers of paint to translate that into something more three dimensional than just shapes.
Like our more details sketches, this is a sketch in paint, rather than a finished painting. Many more layers are yet required to get more realism and form, lots of light value fur strokes, followed by glazes and darker strokes. A pigment dance!
Of course, if using paint is not for you, go ahead and develop a detailed sketch in graphite of the same reference - you will find it immensely satisfying!
Supplies Used
Remember: The exact supplies are not what makes the magic, that dear one, comes from you!
Sketchbook: I used Stillman& Birn Zeta Series 21x30cm/8.25x11.75”
Pencil: I used a HB Faber-Castell Pitt Graphite Matt
Acrylic Paint: I used Golden Full Body Acrylic Paint in the following Colours:
White
Mars Black
Burnt Umber
Burnt Sienna
Raw Sienna
Yellow Ochre
TUTORIAL VIDEOS
Use the options where the arrows are pointing to ensure you are getting the best quality playback, increase or decrease the playback speed of the videos at any time to meet your needs, and make the video full screen to watch.
ENJOY!
