Unassuming.

Unassuming (30x24) oil on linen

Had the pleasure of working with this lovely model last week; a friend donated the kimono to my studio's costume wardrobe a while back, and it complimented this redhead quite nicely... 

(Initial lay-in session)

About 2 hours was enough to establish the drawing,  colour notes and block-in all the major shapes. From there, I could stay on track with the colour key and retain the broken patterns of brush strokes, keeping the overall spontaneity and freshness of the initial session. No need to fill in every square inch -- in fact that would have killed the energy I was after in what could have been a rather static pose.

Could have left it even more "undone", but I still get carried away...

More Life Drawing...

Heather (oil pastel 16x12)

Kira (charcoal 12x9)

Just the facts, ma'am...

Grace (25x15)

When sketching from the live model in one session, you just go for the facts; light & shadow, edges, value & colour....but no details. Details will bog you down with unnecessary information and cause you to lose spontaneity and kill the overall freshness of the picture. Instead of trying to record everything you see in the time allotted, edit as you go, deciding what's essential and what is extraneous -- it's surprising how little information is actually needed to capture the spirit of a subject. A few accent strokes will will do for the illusion of detail and help hold the shapes together... the tricky part is to know when to walk away and quit messing with it (something I have yet to learn my lesson on...)