I did something a little different today and got a TON of extra time in the cabin getaway to work.
After my rush of a day yesterday, my wife and I had a conversation about accomplishing more work on the projects I’m passionate about. She agreed (and volunteered) to wake up early so I could finish my mornings at the cabin without any interruptions. It was one of the most productive days in recent memory. I got to catch up on my studies, I had plenty of time to draw, I had plenty of time to write, and I felt GREAT.
Today’s warm-up went well. I’d like to start doing a more structured warm-up like Chris Beaven does on the daily, but I’m happy with my process at the moment. I used a 1710 Conte Pierre Noire today, as my last Cretacolor Nero Lead broke. I forgot how much I liked the darkness of the Conte, but it doesn’t go on as smoothly as the Nero.
My gestures felt more natural today. Daily practice is helping me get back into the swing of things. There were still some challenging poses here, but I’m happy that they didn’t feel like a real struggle today. Plenty of room for improvement, but I’m focused on progress, not perfection.
THIS made me laugh out loud when I did it. Another blind contour drawing exercise from Nicolaides’ The Natural Way to Draw. The model is quite slim, but…well…my drawing is NOT. I have a lot of work to do on following contours blind. The results are still amusing!
I did another simple tattoo design when I got to the studio today, which I’m actually happy with. It was a tattoo full of meaning for my client, and the interesting grammar made it a ton of fun to work on. I’m a nerd like that.
I still wish I could work more exclusively on large designs, especially with my dexterity still being limited. Larger designs are just easier to work on for me right now.
I did finally find some time to work more on this design. Based on a good bit of feedback, I decided to simplify parts of the design from earlier sessions and balance the design a bit better with a bird. 😀
What went well?
- Lots of art time today.
- Getting an early start in the cabin.
- Having time to work on a personal project.
- Executing a good tattoo.
What needs work?
- Fine motor control for smaller tattoos.
- Dialing in how productive I can be on a regular day.
- Something seems to be missing from the carnival design.
What did I learn?
Bigger tattoos are probably my best bet right now. It’s easier for me to do larger lines in tattoos. It’s the type of work I prefer doing, anyway, so this might be a blessing in disguise.
I’m pretty excited to have a more solid morning routine “template” to follow, too. It was nice to have the extra time and less pressure.
Session: #3
Duration: 3.25 hours
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