Self Portrait

do you want constructive criticism - or would it offend you?

Hmmm

Hit me with your best shot. It's my first try, i won't be offended.

I am not a perfect drafts person, so I am not going to say anything about perfection or how to make it better. Not knowing what you look like, (and that is not an invitation to post your photo...)
I like it.
I really do.
The portraits I have drawn/painted of myself are never what other people see, I am sure.
I am interested in others opinions, though, on this topic.

I made a self-portrait once for a graphic design class' final that was really good. I wonder why I never bothered getting it back from the teacher.

It looks good for a first try, you obviously have talent. Maybe you just got impatient about it and rushed to finish it. Did you use a photo or a mirror?

The skin strokes are a bit uneven and dark. Use a soft pencil and start very very lightly and work your way into the shades according to the lighting on your face. It does take time though.

Re: Self Portrait
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hi - I asked because i never mind critical feedback myself if it is constructive but not everyone wants it , I didn't want to give it without permission - so I'm not going to 'hit' you! someone recently gave me some very blunt comments on my work and said a couple of things that really made me think about the way things are going. Feedback is valuable in learning - even if it only strengthens your own opinion and makes you argue your case and defend your viewpoint.

For a first attempt it is good and you obviously have some talent

- so it is only a matter of work work work and practice and looking at other artists work. No matter how good you are you always need to work and practice and keep on learning - once you are satisfied you stop learning and stagnate.

What I would say is - don't outline everything. Draw what you SEE and not what you know is there. That means that some things may be soft edged and unclear and others sharp and clear. teeth need careful handling as they can look a bit like tombstones if you clearly outline them all!

You need to consider the underlying bone structure - relate the eyebrows to the nose - the eye sockets sort of flow up from the nose and curve round with the eyebrows - don't outline the nose so positively, look at the very soft shadow that defines it in areas like the eye sockets and nostrils and bridge of the nose

is it from a photo? I take it you didn't keep that smile up in a mirror? Working from life is best and working from a mirror for a self portrait is something artists have always done, so work from life/mirror if at all possible. In a photo half the work has been done for you in translating from 3D to 2D. It also cuts out the individual quirks that occur when you draw from life - one of my tutors pointed out (I hadn't noticed) that when doing still life type set ups, i have a tendency to play with the perspective slightly to enhance a feeling of zooming over it. We all have these characteristics in our work but working from photos stifles it as we relate to this rigid 2D image.

Look at the work of other artists - it gives you ideas on how to make marks, how to go about bringing out a character etc - Lucian Freuds portraits are a little cruel and harsh at times but he really can draw. Look at the drawings of Rodin (the sculptor)

Remember the head is 3D and try to emphasise this feeling with the shadows and the way the marks are made - again you need to look at other artists work - there is so much on line that you can study but also go to galleries.

Have you ever used charcoal? it is a lovely medium for portraits as you can get the softest subtlest greys through to inky velvety black from it and it is very painterly when smudged and yet you can still get hard lines. It is very good for changing mistakes as well, as a rub of the back of your hand removes most of it (until you fix it with fixative or hairspray)
You can imagine the colour I end up when i use it from that - charcoal covered hand- brush hair back from face - push sleeves up - charcoal everywhere!

It is better not to draw a head in isolation really - the background defines the edges of the face without actually having to draw a line - look at areas of light against dark and dark against light and then dark/dark or light/light where edges are lost - don't draw an 'edge' that you can't see clearly.

I hope this makes sense to you - it's some of the stuff that I teach my classes but obviously I'm only able to say a bit of it here and I hope it hangs together enough to be helpful.

if you want to discuss this further I'm happy to

but carry on drawing.

I think you are brave doing a self portrait - I've only done it once and was brutally honest - it is at the bottom of a pile of drawings never to be shown!

http://www.gis.net/~scatt/drawings/seated_freud.html

link to a Lucian Freud self portrait

do you teach yourself Vivian? I think you would make a good teacher, you see good in alot of things when you have given advice...

yes. I teach adults

- I think having the confidence to experiment without fear of 'failure' is really important - and there is usually something going well even in work that as a whole doesn't work isn't there? the thing is to develop the judgement to know yourself

I really appreciate the input and comments of friends, it helps me sort things out often - even if it is to do something quite different! the discussion helps me think a problem through.

A friend recently said she thought a landscape painting was too purple - I realised that it was in fact too yellow in places, that enhanced the purple too much - that is being altered and the purple stays!

I have a friend who teaches kids painting and drawing who have a short attention span (refusing to use the word that they have a disorder).
I think it can be a real growth experience to teach people that have some type of experience. Not just children.

It is interesting what people see. It is everyone's perception of the colours of the world.

I enjoy watching their abilites grow and one thing that came up spontaneously at several groups was the fact that they now see more. I try to help them see all the subtle colour variations in things, rather than just the tonal values.

Your friend sounds great, a very challenging task.

she is indeed constantly an amazement to me what she can deal with.

Yeah, at the end I did hurry through it, my neck hurt because I was using a mirror, imagine smilling for that whole time!
and i don't exactly have charcoal or even drawing pencils right now, that was made with a number 2 pencil. I'm still getting all of my supplies.

gosh it must have hurt smiling all the time!

was any of what I said any help? Charcoal is the one thing I'd suggest you get.

I think everyone got something from what you suggested Vivien...

sarcasm?

not at all!
Sorry if you thought that!
I honestly thought it was interesting what you said.

relief!

giving opinions is difficult as it is easy to offend or come over as thinking you know all the answers - and in art in particular, you never do, there are so many opinions, options and ways

I know I'd rather have contructive help and learn - the computer/internet forums have been great to me with problems, explaining patiently and telling me about stuff like Spybot and so on and what cookies are (apart from the 'moment on the lips, forever on the hips ones) I've learnt (to me) an immense amount but still have huge gaps in my knowledge

I am personally good at sticking my foot in it - so I tend to stay more often silent these days.