The Art of Seeing

The first assignment was very approachable for an intimidated beginner like me.   No portraits now, just the simple study of light and shadow on an egg.  The above is the start of a 4 week  online portrait drawing class with Misty Mawn. During this exercise I learned the value of starting with light lines and for once, used a blending stump instead of my fingers to blend in pencil markings.  I took this class for a number of reasons:

–to sharpen my sense of sight and see the world more deeply

-to play in a field outside of my comfort zone

-to get into the habit of making a sketch everyday

-to personally challenge  an apparently harsh critic that breathes fire every time I pick up a paint brush or pencil

Three days in six eggs later my pencil meets the page with a mixture of excitement joy and trepidation.  Even though Misty says, “Now jump in and draw your first portrait”, I am not quite ready.  Instead I study the face in segments:  eyes, nose, mouth….  Maybe by the end of the week I’ll get there…

Underneath and in between everything in my everyday comfortable life is the uncomfortable life and harsh conditions of Haiti.  For those above and beneath the ground, we hear your cries.  You are in our prayers.