Describe the craftsmanship of your drawing. (Is it clear, clean edges, blended well, smudges, defined space, etc.)
I think the drawing is pretty clear, although I wish there was more of a difference from where the pinwheel ends and the shadow starts. The blending is ok, I think it could have been better, however part of the problem was it was originally drawn in graphite and then I went over it in charcoal. So part of the problem with the blending is because I used two different mediums and I don't think they worked well together.
Are your values and shadows realistic? How many values did you include? How and why are values important?
I think the values and shadows are realistic, but I think the shadows look more realistic than the values. I think the shadows look more realistic because they look pretty accurate to the picture and the real still life. The values could have looked better especially in the hat, to me the hat looks to blended and it doesn't look like it has any depth which I don't like, I wish it had more depth than it does because I think it would make the piece look more complete. Values are important because it helps add depth and dimension to a piece, it can also make the piece look more realistic.
Is there a clear source of lighting?
There is a clear source of lighting because the shadows are to the right which shows that the light source is coming from the left. The clearest shadows are behind the pinwheel and the ribbon, however there are lights shinning on the still life from multiple angles so realistically the shadows can from any direction. Since most the shadows are too the right I think there is a clear source of light that's coming from the left side.
How important were the compositional sketches? Explain.
The compositional sketches were important because it taught me how to shape the objects going off the page and how to lay them out. At first I didn't really understand how to draw the still life since its so much and you're only suppose to draw one section, but after doing compositional sketches I figured out how to place everything properly. It also helped my final piece look more realistic to the picture because everything is as close as possible to the position its suppose to be.
How is your final drawing successful?
My final drawing is successful because I feel that I got the positioning of the items as close as possible to the picture and actual still life. I also think that the shadows of the items are very realistic to the actual still life, and the shading is still a little light but pretty accurate to the actual piece. Overall I think its successful because of the positioning of the pieces and the shading in the pinwheel is realistic to the actual piece.
Are the proportions, structure and perspective of the subject correct?
I believe that the proportions are a little off compared to the picture but they're very close to being right. In the picture the pinwheel and the ribbon are a little further apart so it would have looked better if I slid the pinwheel off the page a bit more. I think the hat and ribbons perspective is very accurate to the still life, however the pinwheel is still a little off. I like the way the pinwheel looks still even though the perspective is a little off.
Does the placement & grouping of objects create a pleasing arrangement (composition)?
I think the grouping of the objects does create a pleasing arrangement, although it's a little hard to see that the hats on top of a box, but I think the pinwheel hat and ribbon look good together. Also all the objects are going off the page which helps add good composition, and makes the piece look more like a section of a still life rather than a full still life. Overall I think its a pleasing arrangement because everything goes off the page and you can still see what every object is.
Is there a center of interest and is it well located?
There's not a center of interest, however when you first look at the piece I think your eye is drawn to the pinwheel because its so dark and has more values compared to anything else. The ribbon is the second thing my eye is drawn to again because of the values, I think the hat would look better if there were more values inside the hat. If you look at the center of the page its just part of the box which is also why there's not really a center of interest.
How well did you manage your time and resources throughout the process of creating this drawing? Do you see where you could improve in this area?
I managed time pretty well, I think I could have been done sooner, but I put off the pinwheel for like 2-3 days cause it seemed so difficult to draw. So while I wasn't drawing the pinwheel I was shading, although that doesn't need that many days. Overall I think I managed my time well and it could have been done sooner than it was if I drew the pinwheel earlier. The only improvement I think I could make would be to not putting off drawing something cause you think its hard, just draw it and get it over with and if it doesn't look 100% you can add values and shading to make it look better.
What challenges did you encounter during this project and how did you overcome them?
One of the challenges I encountered was drawing the pinwheel, I've never drawn anything like the pinwheel before so it was a little difficult at first. I overcame drawing it by trying as best as I could, and just adding shading, when I was drawing it the first thing I did was draw each curve so I knew where to shade and I think that really helped. The second challenge I had was shading and making things darker, that seems to be a problem for me and I think its because I'm scared that I'll make something to dark, although the shading of the pinwheel looks really good compared to when I first shaded it.
I think the drawing is pretty clear, although I wish there was more of a difference from where the pinwheel ends and the shadow starts. The blending is ok, I think it could have been better, however part of the problem was it was originally drawn in graphite and then I went over it in charcoal. So part of the problem with the blending is because I used two different mediums and I don't think they worked well together.
Are your values and shadows realistic? How many values did you include? How and why are values important?
I think the values and shadows are realistic, but I think the shadows look more realistic than the values. I think the shadows look more realistic because they look pretty accurate to the picture and the real still life. The values could have looked better especially in the hat, to me the hat looks to blended and it doesn't look like it has any depth which I don't like, I wish it had more depth than it does because I think it would make the piece look more complete. Values are important because it helps add depth and dimension to a piece, it can also make the piece look more realistic.
Is there a clear source of lighting?
There is a clear source of lighting because the shadows are to the right which shows that the light source is coming from the left. The clearest shadows are behind the pinwheel and the ribbon, however there are lights shinning on the still life from multiple angles so realistically the shadows can from any direction. Since most the shadows are too the right I think there is a clear source of light that's coming from the left side.
How important were the compositional sketches? Explain.
The compositional sketches were important because it taught me how to shape the objects going off the page and how to lay them out. At first I didn't really understand how to draw the still life since its so much and you're only suppose to draw one section, but after doing compositional sketches I figured out how to place everything properly. It also helped my final piece look more realistic to the picture because everything is as close as possible to the position its suppose to be.
How is your final drawing successful?
My final drawing is successful because I feel that I got the positioning of the items as close as possible to the picture and actual still life. I also think that the shadows of the items are very realistic to the actual still life, and the shading is still a little light but pretty accurate to the actual piece. Overall I think its successful because of the positioning of the pieces and the shading in the pinwheel is realistic to the actual piece.
Are the proportions, structure and perspective of the subject correct?
I believe that the proportions are a little off compared to the picture but they're very close to being right. In the picture the pinwheel and the ribbon are a little further apart so it would have looked better if I slid the pinwheel off the page a bit more. I think the hat and ribbons perspective is very accurate to the still life, however the pinwheel is still a little off. I like the way the pinwheel looks still even though the perspective is a little off.
Does the placement & grouping of objects create a pleasing arrangement (composition)?
I think the grouping of the objects does create a pleasing arrangement, although it's a little hard to see that the hats on top of a box, but I think the pinwheel hat and ribbon look good together. Also all the objects are going off the page which helps add good composition, and makes the piece look more like a section of a still life rather than a full still life. Overall I think its a pleasing arrangement because everything goes off the page and you can still see what every object is.
Is there a center of interest and is it well located?
There's not a center of interest, however when you first look at the piece I think your eye is drawn to the pinwheel because its so dark and has more values compared to anything else. The ribbon is the second thing my eye is drawn to again because of the values, I think the hat would look better if there were more values inside the hat. If you look at the center of the page its just part of the box which is also why there's not really a center of interest.
How well did you manage your time and resources throughout the process of creating this drawing? Do you see where you could improve in this area?
I managed time pretty well, I think I could have been done sooner, but I put off the pinwheel for like 2-3 days cause it seemed so difficult to draw. So while I wasn't drawing the pinwheel I was shading, although that doesn't need that many days. Overall I think I managed my time well and it could have been done sooner than it was if I drew the pinwheel earlier. The only improvement I think I could make would be to not putting off drawing something cause you think its hard, just draw it and get it over with and if it doesn't look 100% you can add values and shading to make it look better.
What challenges did you encounter during this project and how did you overcome them?
One of the challenges I encountered was drawing the pinwheel, I've never drawn anything like the pinwheel before so it was a little difficult at first. I overcame drawing it by trying as best as I could, and just adding shading, when I was drawing it the first thing I did was draw each curve so I knew where to shade and I think that really helped. The second challenge I had was shading and making things darker, that seems to be a problem for me and I think its because I'm scared that I'll make something to dark, although the shading of the pinwheel looks really good compared to when I first shaded it.