Robin Williams Complete

Here's my completed tribute portrait of Robin Williams.  This is 9 x 12 graphite on Strathmore Bristol Smooth paper.

Robin Williams WIP Continued

Here's another update on my tribute portrait of Robin Wiliams.  I'm really trying to focus on realism with this one.  I'm still using Pentel P205 mechanical pencils with 4H, 2H, H, B, and 2B leads.  I'm blending using a q-tip cotton swab, a medium tortillion, soft bathroom tissue paper, and a hake brush.

I'm pretty much done with the head/face now I'm moving on to the sweater.  More to come soon!

Tribute Portrait of Robin Williams WIP

Here's a work in progress image of my latest portrait.  This is a tribute portrait of Robin Williams.   I'm still making adjustments to the skin tone as I go along. I'm still using Pentel P205 mechanical pencils using 4H, 2H, H, B, and 2B leads. The light strands of hair are being "drawn" in using a Tuff Stuff Eraser stick which I cut at an angle so that I have a nice sharp edge. More to some soon!

JT Complete

Here's the finished version of my portrait of JT.  This is 11 x 14 graphite on Strathmore Bristol smooth paper.

I had a lot of fun with the shadows in this one.  To do the shadows, I took a 2B pencil and worked the dark areas.  I then to soft bathroom tissue paper and blended the dark area.  I then added another layer of 2B graphite and blended with a blending stump.

I also loved the intense focused stare he has in this piece which is really what I wanted to focus on.

Portrait of JT (work in progress)

Here's an update on my portrait of JT.  I am still working on tone and texture of the skin.  I'm blending using a blending stump, a cotton swab, and soft bathroom tissue paper.  For dark tones, I'm using a 2B pencil and for lighter tones, I'm using an H pencil.  For the highlighted hairs of his beard, I'm using a Tuff Stuff eraser stick/pen I cut at an angle to get a nice sharp edge to "draw" the highlighted hairs (negative drawing - taking away graphite instead of adding).  More to come soon!