Overworked and Underpaid

No, this post has nothing to do with being underpaid. But it does have to do with overworking a sketch, and knowing when to stop.

Latest incarnation of the Owen Sketch:


I should have maybe stopped fussing a while ago. This was drawn and shaded in charcoal, and my initial idea was that I wouldn't smudge and blend it at all, but rely on crosshatching and pressure for values. Then I found a couple of those rolled paper tortillons, and succumbed to the urge to blend. Yikes! Do they come in different "softnesses"? These were hard and pointy, and rubbed the charcoal deep into the paper. (Up until this point, that paper--the Strathmore Toned Sketch  pad, in tan--has been wonderfully receptive to abuse.)

To rectify the scraped-in streakiness, I started finger blending. That worked better, but the streaks are still evident in the forehead.

And there's one other wacky wonky overworking problem (well, surely, more than one, but....) The left side of Owen's face (on the right) went down quite easily. The right side (on the left) did not, and it was erased and reworked time and time again. Reworked so fervently that I lost track of the big picture, and as you can see, that shirt collar ended up severely misaligned. Dang!

Back to the drawing board!

But not with this one.

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