Ian McKellen

Last one for a while, as far as I know, this one from steps 1-6 was done in two hours with cheap gouache which I bought at the university book store having left my paints back home (groan). I have to say that the cheap paint performed very well, 12 tubes for $8.50 not a bad starter set. The final step was done at home in an additional 30 minutes, I was tempted to keep going but that defeats the object.

The Cricketers

Another drawing from my recent trip back to the UK, great pint to be had in this place.

The Artichoke

I was back in the UK for a while visiting the folks, had many a pint in here with my parents, I've got many drawings to share, I just have to get back in to the habit of daily blogging, bare with me.

Joel Kinnaman

This was yesterday's demo for my class at FIT, Using washes of transparent gouache allows me to hold onto the drawing whilst building up the values. Each step pushes the values darker and the final stage involves lifting paint back up to create highlights. A simple but effective technique, about 3 hours total painting time.

Jessica Brown Findlay

This was for my class in Montclair, this time I remembered to photograph as I went. The trick with an image like this is that you are dealing with subtle and close values. Using reds and greens to make the skin tones allows for a more harmonious palette.

Elizabeth Olsen

The issue with this one was I got so carried away with the first session I forgot to photograph it. Some times the paint just rolls right. You will also notice that the colors are always richer in the top image, that is due to the fact it's scanned whilst all earlier ones I shoot with my camera in a classroom setting.