Doodling Before the Final

In a mood strongly influenced by procrastination, I spent the time I should have been working on my final project on random doodles. My art class teacher has thrown down the gauntlet (to show off what we have learned about light and shadow) for the semester. Rather than rise to this challenge with the gumption I should have, I decided to draw whatever was on my mind onto a piece of scrap paper.

I have recently been trying my hand at human form. Faces, hands, and the rest of the body are so capable of expression that the slightest misplaced line or shadow changes the the mood entirely. For example, the face in the top right corner started off as a single eye that I grew a face around. I tried to keep eyelids, eye liner, iris, pupil, and reflection of the eye in the sketch, as well as the shadow of the eye socket. This worked out so some extent, but is foiled by the overly scrunched nose and poorly placed lips. To be honest, I really have no idea how to place these elements. Trying to construct a face usually result in an angry looking person (neither male nor female, despite my attempts).

People have eyes, and we all know that. People have noses, and we know that too. We know that the nose is above the mouth, and we know the eyes are to the side of the nose. The eyes are typically white, with some color, and a black spot for the pupil. We know the cheeks are below the eyes, and the jaw line is the bottom of this group of features. But where do they all go? How do you show someone is male or female? How do you show that they are young or old? How do you show someone’s ethnicity? How do you show whether they are in sunlight or under a tree? These questions are not as easily answered.

It is near the end of the semester and I still do not feel sated. I hope to scan my work since the midterm and upload it here to show what I was able to accomplish in a few months.