Graphite – CREATIVE PURSUITS

A Portrait of Mlle

The inspiration for this portrait was found via the app sktchy. I was drawn to Mlle’s photo due to the unusual angle of the pose. The photo was taken with the camera well below her face, so much so, that her chin and neck where prominently displayed in the foreground of the photo. Her head was turned so that only her left eye was visible to the camera, this restricted the main features of her face to a profile view only.

The angle and perspective was a bit tricky to work out. It’s not perfect but, it is acceptable for a sketch. I encourage you to check out her inspiration photo, I have provided a link below.

Click here to see Mlle’s inspiration photo on Sktchy.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

February 1, 2018 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: art, drawing, female, Graphite, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper 4 Comments

Ben’s Portrait

The portrait of Ben was inspired via the app sktchy. I am still enjoying using this app for the vast amount of inspiration photos as well as the community that it provides. Even if you aren’t an artist you can still upload inspiration photos and allow artist to create works based on your inspiration. It’s a very cool concept. Click here to see Ben’s inspiration photo on Sktchy.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

January 14, 2018 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: beard, drawing, Graphite, male, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper 7 Comments

Hooded Rick

This is a another portrait of Rick (inspiration via sktchy). In this portrait Rick is wearing a hood with his face tilted down and eyes looking up. It was a bit tricky getting the shadows correct due to the straight angle of the view and the fact that the light source was above Rick’s head. His face is evenly lit and therefore doesn’t have a distinct highlighted or shadowed side. Click here to see Rick’s inspiration photo on Sktchy.

Click here to see my other portrait of Rick.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

December 28, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: beard, drawing, Graphite, hood, male, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper 2 Comments

Sabina’s Portrait

This is a portrait of Sabrina (inspiration via sktchy). This inspiration photo was simply fun to draw. Her make-up with the dark eyes and vintage dress set a mood to the drawing that I simply couldn’t resist. Click here to see Sabrina’s inspiration photo on Sktchy.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

December 23, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: drawing, female, Graphite, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper Leave a comment

Skully

I’m not sure why I find sketching a human skull so intriguing…but I do. I guess I simply find the shape and form fun to draw. I enjoy shading the eye sockets and the sharp contrast of the skull against a dark background.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

December 18, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: drawing, Graphite, human, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, skull, tonedpaper 2 Comments

Aisha’s Portrait

This is a portrait of Aisha (inspiration via sktchy). What drew me to her photo was the high contrast of her illuminated face against her dark hair and an even darker background. Her face is slightly angled upwards towards the light source and her expression seems delicate and vulnerable. Click here to see Aisha’s inspiration photo on Sktchy.

I started out by roughing in her eyes, nose, & mouth. Then is was just a matter of working my way out from there.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

December 11, 2017December 12, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: drawing, female, Graphite, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper 7 Comments

Bearded Thomas

This is Thomas, I found his inspiration photo on Sktchy. What struck about his photo was the angle from which is was shot. The camera view is slightly below his face and the angle is such that you can just see his left eye beyond the bridge of his nose.

I started this sketch by locating the eyes and nose and then worked my way out. Once I had lightly sketched his entire face and felt like the eyes and nose were well established. I moved up to the hair and worked my way diagonally across the paper from left to right finishing with the beard. I am right handed and working in this direction I reduce the risk of smudging finished areas.

If you enjoyed this post, please visit the links below to see some of my other works. Thanks.

December 4, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: beard, drawing, Graphite, male, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper Leave a comment

Steampunk Rick

This graphite portrait of Rick was a challenge and a lot of fun to draw. I started the sketch by roughing in the goggles and then working my way out once I felt that I had the general location and angle of each lens mapped out. Of course the inspiration photo for this sketch was found on Sktchy. This guy’s mug is all over sktchy. His inspiration photos are unique and he simply has a cool look. I will be sketching him again. There’s no shortage of inspiration, he has over 450 photos in his gallery alone!

November 28, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: drawing, Graphite, male, pencil, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, tonedpaper 4 Comments

Sktchy Portrait #4

I’ve been doing pen and ink exclusively since the beginning of Inktober. This morning I really wanted to sketch with graphite. So, I found some inspiration on Sktchy and started making marks on the page. This is what I ended up with. The sketch was created using a range of graphite pencils from 2H up to 8B. I used a white Prismacolor pencil for the highlights.

November 19, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, Graphite, SketchbookTags: drawing, Graphite, human, portrait, sketch, Sketchbook, sktchy, skull, tonedpaper 8 Comments

Graphite Drawing – Out to Pasture

"Out to Pasture" completed drawing. — The completed drawing. 10″ x 14″

I started this graphite drawing in December of last year. I steadily worked on it until it was around 85% complete. Then, doubt entered into my mind. I didn’t think I had the skill level necessary to complete the work. So for months this drawing laid in my drawer waiting for me to find the confidence to finish it. Last week I decided I had procrastinated enough! So I pulled it out, dusted it off, and got back to work.

Now I have a completed piece! The sad part is I allowed doubt to sabotage my progress and hold me back. Sometimes it’s best to charge ahead. You may surprise yourself, you may be more capable than you think, or maybe learning comes from the experience of doing.

Out-to-Pasture-Detail-01 — Enlarged view

This drawing was created using a photo reference from pixabay.com

September 19, 2017 by Michael Lovette Categories: Drawings, GraphiteTags: abandoned, art, automotive, car, classic, drawing, Graphite, pencil, pencilart, sketch 7 Comments