Joseph Clement Coll

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Amy

The above charcoal drawing, by portrait artist Mark Schartz, is of popular Los Angeles figure model, Amy. Below is an 18” oil based clay sculpture in which I utilized Amy as the model. I say “utilized” because most artists will alter the models appearance.

Like many artists I adhere to an idealized cannon of proportions using the head as a system of measurement. I use the standard of 7.5 heads high, two heads to the breastbone, and four heads to the crotch and so on.   Other alterations include the elongation of the legs, smaller hands and feet and a slightly larger head on the females.Yes it is true, we humans are not as glamorous, symmetrical, and well proportioned as we would like to believe.When God made man he was in a hurry and did not do as good as job as he would have liked, so he created the artist to tidy things up a little bit :)

 

Computer Art

 

 GARRET

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This pencil rendering was copied from Shorpy’s which is a historical photography website.

The computer is a great resource to draw from. It gives one the ability to down-size a photograph at will, which helps one to concentrate on the major values and shapes early in the procedure and not get mired in the detail. As the need arises one can than enlarge the photo.

No fancy-shmancey art materials were used for this rendering. This was drawn on 8.5” x 11” piece of bond paper with Ticonderoga pencils (2, HB, F) sharpened to a razor point.

William Meade Prince (1893-1951)

William Meade Prince 

 (1893-1951)

By today’s standards the following illustration would be considered politically incorrect and perpetuate African American stereotype. This of course would be true.

  However, it is important when encountering art of any type (literature, theater….) to take into account the tenor of the times in which it was created rather than sending it to the proverbial museum basement.

  There are three separate ways of analyzing a work of art: from the historical context, the aesthetic and the pseudo-psycho analytical stand point. (Thanks to Freud and the Surrealists delving into the mind)

  These three different ways of looking at art change depending on what’s popular at the present time with art critics and historians.

   With that caveat out of the way, let’s look at this from the aesthetic point of view. This appears to be  charcoal on toned paper (for the half-tones) with white gouache for the highlights.

In the master’s hands, this is an effective and simplified method of creating a drawing that reads well on the page. All you need is a charcoal stick and a little white, the paper takes care of the rest.

    This composition is enhanced by the animated gestural qualities of both the figures and the application of the flowing line quality. And the chosen highlighted areas nicely balance out the tonal areas of paper and the charcoal. This is fantastic drawing from the aesthetic point of view  and is a benchmark of how far we have come  from an historical perspective.

Thanks to Today’s Inspiration and guest author Tony Gleeson for the illustration and information on this forgotten artist

   

Frank Frazetta

borrowed from: Frank Frazetta.org

Frank Frazetta

This exquisite line work was created by Frank Frazetta who was a genre defining fantasy and science fiction illustrator.

Today his imagery influence can be seen in the movie industry and now in the gaming industry as well.

Planes

GARRET

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 Planes can be flat and planes can be round.It is important for a sculptor to understand the planes of the body. The combination of planes coming together to create form give solidity and a sense of volume to a work of art It is the manipulation of these planes to reflect more light or less light that create values (shades of grey) for us sculptors. Sculpture is the manipulation of light.

The artist below has made a career out of the manipulation of planes in her animal sculpture.

 Rosetta

historical reenactment drawing

 

8X10 PENCIL ON BOND PAPER

 GARRET

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Drawing from a historical reenactment