mystery girl

,... this one will definitely turn out to be a very long term project. One of those that you touch every now and then, but mostly simply let happen to draw out the best you have,..  I believe she is already recognizable, but keep in touch and you will see more and more of her,...

(Hint:  it is someone we all know)

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"la maison" in progress

A friend asked me to draw this for her and I am glad to oblige.
I am working from a 3x4 picture and have managed to pull details from the picture with a magnifying glass.  The original request of making it approximately 6x9 turned out to be too awkward and I finally rested on 9x11 with fading borders (maybe it can be cut down closer to her original requested size).

Here is the evolution,... so far,...

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Eagle Owl / Horned Owl (fini)

My final impression of a Horned Owl (also known as an Eagle Owl).

... the most difficult part was (by far) the feet/claws/talons since I had to draw these from imagination with some minor study of owls in general (personally I am not pleased, but this is my best at the moment - I will certainly be working it more in the future).

Here are some minor improvements,...

In contras what I am truly happy with is the head and eyes,..

.... but maybe that is just me.
sB

(eye on) an Owl

As I still work on completing this latest piece, here is a closeup,.. if it conveys a sense of a cold calculating stare that seemingly sees right through you, I suppose I have succeeded well.

This close up you can also get a idea of the pencil strokes/marks needed to give the correct illusion on the entire piece. It is turning out to be a minor complex project due to the downy feathers and all the different directions they fold to as well as all the different textures and markings.   I am loving it,..
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Horned Owl (wip)

Finding wisdom with life rushing through and right by me,..  maybe this is the inspiration I am seeking.

My Inner Grizzly (completed)

Final product for the bear drawing.

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My Inner Bear

So I have this large 80 lb paper (18x24) and when the thought of drawing a bear came to mind, the idea of drawing it (almost) life size was intriguing.  Turns out I would probably need paper twice that size,. these creatures are HUGE!   However I still feel drawing a large animal, on even just half scale, allows for details to come out as well as emotions.   So this is somewhat my mood I suppose,.. angry at life, screaming at the world, determined to be menacing enough to be left alone,...

(I drew this in about a weeks time, so this will be a single post progression,.. followed by a post to show the final product).

Close ups were maybe more interesting on this drawing,.. the particular details due to the size are more easily seen.

 

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Tools used:   HB and 4B graphite pencil, kneading and pink erasers. Felt a little lazy to experiment on this one, other than playing with the detail of the fur.

Wolfpack (fini)

Of course you knew I could not let it go,.. here is the final product.

I darkened the eyes, added some detail to the bodies and more definition to the snouts,.. well worth the time I believe.


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Wolfpack -or- Couples out for a meal.

I believe this is done.  I often find myself going back to what I thought were finished works,.. I always see improvements to be made in my dreams.  However, I truly believe this one is done.

These duplicate faces were a little challenging,.. they are similar but different and I often went back to the previous faces to tweak the eyes or nose.  All in all it was fun though.

Here are some closeups of the pairs, I like to imagine they are two couples even though wolves in courtships have been observed to often isolate themselves from the pack only to come together for feedings.    Hope this image does not make you too worried,...

   

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Wolfpack (wip) Trois

Been up a lot at night and have been spending that time with my Woldpack.  Slowly but surely they are emerging from the snowy woods.

Almost done with the basis for the wolves,.. then I'll work in the background and final touches for the wolves.  I hope to have the completed image project the wolves forward and if I get a quiet strong menacing feel, then I will have succeeded.

,.... grrrrrr.