plate no. 8731

Harriet Mathew

oilNeoclassicismportraitportraitfigurehairhatface

some experience helpful

Recreating this drawing will help students develop skills in rendering form with graphite and understanding tonal values to create depth. It will also improve their ability to capture likeness and proportions in portraiture.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 6 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the overall shape of the head and shoulders, focusing on proportions.
step 02
Refine the facial features, paying close attention to the profile.
step 03
Block in the basic shapes of the hair and hat.
step 04
Begin adding darker values to define the shadows and contours of the face.
step 05
Develop the hair by layering graphite strokes to create texture and volume.
step 06
Add details to the hat, using varying pressure to create different tones.
step 07
Refine the overall drawing, adjusting values and adding subtle details.
step 08
Erase any unnecessary guidelines and clean up the edges.

color palette

primary · graphite · white (paper)

secondary ·

Vary pressure on the graphite to create different shades of gray.

techniques

·hatching
·cross-hatching
·blending
·contour drawing
·rendering

common pitfalls

→Overworking the drawing and losing the freshness of the sketch.
→Failing to capture the correct proportions of the face.
→Creating overly harsh lines and shadows.
→Not varying the pressure on the graphite enough to create a full range of values.