1 Hour 30 Pencil Study: Sanguine & White (Conté á Paris), Strathmore Tan Toned Paper

Today was an exercise in letting go. I had to stop trying to be too rigid, stop trying to force the anatomical lines, feel the pose of the gesture and let my lines flow with my arm. I really love the way the figure on the top right came out. It screams to me from some unknown depth of my soul. It’s saying that somewhere inside me is an artist dying to be freed and every day that I practice, I’m closer to freeing that creative force. You may notice also a darker toned red in this grouping, This is the Venetian Red 6300 pencil I was telling you about yesterday. I tried only to add it where it made absolute sense and as a means of conveying a darker valued area. Perhaps some more practice with all of these and I’ll really be getting in the zone.

Your turn: Do you feel compelled to be as accurate or lifelike as possible when drawing or are you comfortable letting go and letting your lines flow where they may? Share your thoughts.