Lioness

One of my favorite animals is the Lioness.  We saw these in Kenya and they definitely are the royalty of the Maasai Mara.  We saw about twelve of them to include two who had killed a gazelle.  They had blood on their mouths as they cooled down from the heat of the chase.  Below is a picture of some of the Lionesses and some young males.

California Gull

Tonight's sketch is the California Gull.  It is the state bird of Utah since they nest out on the Salt Lake and they ate the crickets which threatened the first crops the Mormons planted back in 1847-48 time frame.  The Gulls always hang out near the beaches and I remember them hanging out in Denver on occasion especially during bad summer weather.

Wolves - S Design by Ernest Thompson Seton

I chose this simple sketch based off a Turn of the Century (1900s) artist Ernest Thompson Seton design.  This is an example of an S shaped design.  The S starts with the Buffalo across the horizon.  The farthest wolf and the nearer wolf turned 3/4 away from the viewer completes the downward movement and begins the middle cross of the S.  The wolf tracks and the two buffalo skulls finish the S design's bottom.  This type of design leads the viewer's eyes through the scene and creates interest.  I will use some of these simple but effect sketches to show you, the reader some of the great things going on in some of these pieces of art.

Crow Woman

This is a sketch of a Crow Woman statue.   I found this picture in an art magazine and liked the design.  I sketched it.  Sketching from statues is a classic art training technique though usually it is not done from non-classic Greek or Roman statues.  I liked this variant and catered it.  Happy Friday!

Skeletal studies

I have a half-filled sketchbook of skeletal sketches.  They are part of the skills to improve drawing skills.  I have a few sketches done from skulls.  I would like to do some full skeletal sketches from life but that will have to wait till retirement from the regular job and then I can spend sometime at the Natural History Museums.  These are helpful in understanding the anatomy of the animals and people, plus they make for an interesting change and some variety in the sketches.

White Tailed Deer

This is not my original design but it came from a Classic Disney animator.  Walt Disney once said a great animator would know how to draw a subject and then would know how to draw the essences of the subject through caricature.  This is an excellent idea and part of what ever artist should strive for in their work, to capture the essences of the subject.

Moose

I changed things up and I had tired of monotone pencil drawings so I drew this sketch of a Moose in fall foliage with colored pencils.  The Moose is one of those odd creatures, noble and swift but with the odd long nose.  I do like those large wide spade like horns.  Stay clear of the males in mating season they will chase you and run you up a tree or stomp you.