June Figure Study in Dry Brush

This is a 2 hour dry brush study from life:

The pose was based a classic Michelangelo sculpture entitled, "Night."

It was a difficult pose to hold, but the model did an admirable job. having modeled myself, I have a real appreciation for the skill. Staying still for long periods of time and resuming a difficult pose like this after a break is no easy task. Afterwards it feels like you've been through a  hard workout.

This is the first time I've used my dry brush technique to draw from life, and it was a very satisfying experience. I love drawing the figure, and dry brush is my current favorite medium, so it was a rare pleasure. I penciled the drawing out first with a 2B pencil, and then started in with my usual mixture of acrylic and india ink. There are a few things I might have done differently--dry brush is a pretty unforgiving medium.  Accidents and all, you have to go with what you got. But there were some happy accidents too, and I'm generally pleased with the results. I think it's the first figure I've done that I feel like I could hang on the wall, so it represents a bit of a benchmark for me.

 About three and a half years ago I started drawing from life seriously for the first time since college, and I feel like I'm finally starting to hit stride. It's one of  the most challenging subjects you can draw, and it's long been a goal of mine to develop my life drawing skills to a point of real confidence and I feel like I'm starting to head in that direction. That doesn't mean I don't have a lot more to learn--I hope to continue learning and improving for the rest of my life--but I do feel like I'm starting to achieve a level of proficiency that I didn't have in the past.