Bargue Plate 40

I've been in a deep slump this year, hence the large gap since my last post. However, I'm back with renewed determination and summer plans for continuing with Bargue as well as starting to learn watercolour. This plate is of Julia Mammaea. Unfortunately, the contour of the face is off, probably a reflection of the stressed circumstances under which I've been very slowly chipping away at this plate, since before this plate I had been steadily improving. Resuming Bargue should go smoothly henceforth. My Bargue summer goal is one plate per week starting next week.

Bargue Plate 39

Head from the tomb figure of Anne of Brittany. It was refreshing to draw the face from a recumbent position. It was also a little creepy, knowing that the figure is of a dead person, but one could easily imagine that the head is lying in a sleeping posture.

Bargue Plate 38

Profile of the Roman emperor Caracalla. This plate was more difficult than usual, mostly because of the hair and beard. I found myself often wishing Caracalla had shaved! I skipped plate 37 (a horse's head) because it was too ugly to spend hours staring at it intently.

Bargue Plate 36

Marcus Junius Brutus, the guy involved in the assassination of Caesar. I had to do the line drawing twice and it was painful erasing three hours of work the first time. The second time went much smoother, especially after I realized that the profile resembles that of John De Lancie or Q of Star Trek.

Wildflower Page Updated

I've added some new flowers from my sketchbook and some from past blog posts. Most are from the past two years. This year has been quite barren because of the drought.

Bargue Plate 35

Profile of a statue of Cardinal de Birague. This was a swift plate. I'm fairly satisfied with the shading part of the process, but am still having difficulties with the line drawing. After I complete the line drawing, I take out my measuring tools and often find I am slightly off in certain areas, particularly those involving longer curves.

Bargue Plate 34

Profile of Dante. The horrid heat of the past weeks slowed work and after gazing for so long at Dante's ferocious frowning face, I almost feel compelled to pick up his epic and re-try reading it (my first attempt did not go well).

Bargue Plate 33

Profile of a young girl. Positioning the sparse strands of hair was sometimes frustrating, but otherwise this was a straightforward plate.

Bargue Plate 32

A profile of Cardinal Ximenes. This was a generally straightforward plate; the interesting part was the scant hair and beard.

Bargue Plate 31

The head of the notorious Nero as a child. This was a satisfying introduction to the basic proportions and structures of the face. It took about 12 hours.