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In my two hour instant download workshop Drawing Children my subject is a 5-year-old African American girl in 3/4 profile. In this workshop you work and study from a finished master drawing step-by-step from beginning to finish. There are no gaps, no wondering how I got from one stage to the next. Expand your knowledge and skill and learn to draw children while tackling the issues of drawing ebony toned skin. |
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Rubens’s Portrait of Isabella Brant measures 15 inches by 11.6 inches (38.1 cm X 29.4 cm). Rubens drew Isabella’s portrait life-sized. That is to say her head from chin to crown is a little over 9 inches (23 cm). Rubens employed red, black and white chalk on a clay-coated paper that was lightly brushed over and subtly streaked with what looks to be Raw Umber (the original is in the British Museum). My assumption is that a small amount, just a couple of drops, of egg yolk was mixed into the Raw Umber to give it some translucency and to bind it solidly to the paper. The red chalk Rubens used was likely compressed hematite. It was a predecessor to sanguine conté which is what I use. The black chalk was likely compressed from ground-up chalk or charcoal with a binder. The white was likely compressed lead carbonate. Unfortunately no one can really say what Rubens’s working method was with certainty. Like all artists of his time his working methods were a closely held secret. After Rubens’s death, and as his apprentices died out, much valuable information was lost. |
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My copy of Isabella Brant’s head measures 7 inches (17.8 cm) from chin to crown, a little less than life-size. For my media I am using Sanguine Conté, ‘B’ Black Conté and ‘2B’ White Conté on a grey-yellow toned sheet of Fabriano Ingres drawing paper. |
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The purpose of copying is not to create a replica of the original but to seek an understanding of how Rubens constructed form and by closely examining his markings (visual language). This new found knowledge can then be applied to our yown work and often results in deeper, more evocative, expression. For this lesson I am providing you a link to the photograph that I used. Just download and print out at your local shop. My recommendation is to get an 8 x 12” print. On a 10 x 14” (25.4 x 35.6 cm) sheet of toned drawing paper I sketched in the arabesque (the entire outside shape of the head and collar) with sharpened sanguine conté. Professional portrait practice is to work from the outside in. The untrained artist tends to work from the inside out, usually beginning with an eye and hoping for the best. If you’re new to portrait drawing consider my Mastering Portrait Drawing 1: the frontal pose workshop. This is where you learn the fundamentals of portrait drawing. This workshop is also available on DVD. |
