The making of a Diver…..Wrap Up

The making of a DIVER….drawing style.  This only took me one year to complete!  First post here back in Feb 2014.



I started out having the diver in a blue suit.



Then in March after my daughters college Swim & Dive championship….I decided to make the suit fit her team colors.  Wasn’t sure where I was going with that choice, but it seemed the right one at the time.



After putting the drawing aside for a few months….I’d pull it out for a day or two and darken the colors.



Then I’d forget about it for awhile.



I think I figured out why I slacked off so much…..I was only working with 2 colors….Skin-tone and Green.  And boredom set in.



I even pulled out my anthropologie swim glass to keep my motivation up!  It seemed to help



Since these babies can start taking over a room fast, at 22x30 inches.  I kept the framing simple.  Purchased a premade frame during the half off sale and framed it without the mat. She’s not my proudest piece…but I’m glad that she is done.  I must say, if I drew a diver that I knew then I’d feel differently about this piece.  But I gotta practice somewhere and my photography skills are a bit weak

Diver Drawing….going green

It’s a good thing that I have wireless earphones because I’ve been in mode #3 since yesterday afternoon, enjoying this song from Despicable Me and doing my thing drawing!



I’m past the days of clearing off the dining room table each night before dinner and cooking.  This type of upheaval lasts for weeks!



You’d think that this type of sketching would be easier…..I like to draw people and it’s not like this is unfamiliar territory.  But I’m finding the same problem I had with my Horse Racing sketch with the main body of the horse.  Ya gotta keep that color consistent in a large area. And drop or add color so slightly to create the correct illusions.



Added yellow watercolor over the blue.  Then when it was dry continued on with green colored pencils to change the suit color to green.



Still much more to do, but at least she’s looking more the way I want her.

Diver Drawing in Pike Position

I only started this Diver a month ago.



When I was all excited about watercolor and quite frustrated with my Ballerina due to my poor paper selection.



I’m learning that my watercolor application has it’s limits….had to continue on with colored pencils.



As much as I like the white background….I know I should start doing backgrounds.  Just applied a wash here of green & blue watercolors.



A close up view of the feet.



Some of that w/c pigment stains and is quite dark.  Trying to make this work for me.



Had to grab my graphite drawing b/c I was having a hard time figuring out those leg muscles.
And the other thing I need to figure out….is the suit.  I need to make it green, “it’s a team thing”.  Wish me luck

Inward Dive….Drawn

Here is the image that I color-sketched.  I think this is the Allison Brennan a US National Diver. 





Thankfully my Art instructor was “all better” and she was in class today.  Had to pick her brain about a thing or two!  Haha





I think sketching hair with colored pencils is easier than with graphite.  The colors do amazing things….Some colors when applied if they are “opposite” on the color wheel bring in shading.  But I can go in and add some lighter highlights by working the lighter variety (to some extent). Unfortunately, once I go into the untouched paper with color I could lose that really nice highlight if I’m not careful.





As is my habit, I didn’t model the picture too much for the hair.  Just applied lots of line-waves to show movement of the ponytail portion. 


Talk about layering color!  I used Red, Green, Blue, Brown, Pink, Orange, Dark Pink, Salmon, Tan,…..I could keep going, but you get the picture.  Lots and lots of different colors up there….who’d have thought?





Sometimes you just gotta call “uncle” and be done with it.  I know to others this isn’t done…but I’m not that good and I’m still limited on what I can see and duplicate.





What a fun piece to sketch!  This final shot appears to have lost that line to show the back of the leg.  But you can see it better in the early photos.


Now, I think I’ll go play with my markers!!

Inward Dive….Delayed

I was a bit bummed because my Art Instructor was sick for my once a week class.  I really, really needed guidance for my diver’s face.  Instead, it was Open Art Studio!  Which was fine, but….I didn’t receive any pointers.





So…I did what I do….and tweeked.  I enhanced the shading some more;… in the back…on the legs…on the front arm….the left hand and the feet.


I took it only as far as I dared!  I so wanted to get that face down. 





Since this post doesn’t have much new information, I thought it would be beneficial to show how the color-sketch has progressed so far.


These Digital Series help me to see things as they should be, not as I think they ought to be.

Inward Dive….looking Back

I thought I had omitted a rib or two….I guess I drew more than I thought.





Color Wheel….a MUST have.  Have I referred to this often or what?  Remember, in colored sketching or painting… we aren’t suppose to use gray or black for shadows.  We are suppose to use color.  If we want a shadow, we have to go to it’s opposite.  

For instance…if I’m using blue….and I need to show shadows, I have to apply orange.  Otherwise, we’d make it all muddy with a gray/ black.  Muddy isn’t pretty!





This ladies back is a bit deformed.  I’ve made no curve in that upper section.  You know, those 7 cervical vertebra.  (Had to look that up…I forgot the name of this portion too).





Rounded that upper back out some (will still need to tweak)…..and gave her some spinal knobs along the back.  Not in the picture but I have creative license remember!  Haha


It’s head time….so I’ll probably avoid this by doing another drawing for awhile!  Tis my habit!

Inward Dive….Bend

I was on a sketch roll and continued on with the legs.  It’s always a bit of a learning curve if I put my pencils up…then sit down again….I have to figure out how to match the color combinations….you know, so that the upper leg looks like it belongs with the lower leg on that same person.





I am not getting the swimsuit at all!  It’s looking very jagged!





This poor diver has more ribs than she needs….will have to tone down that ribcage.  I did go in with my markers on the blue/red portion of the suit and to separate the legs.  Always makes the color-sketch look better when the markers are applied…IMHO (in my humble opinion).

Inward Dive….begins

I was ready to take-on colored pencil figure sketching!!  So….had to get a wider selection of skin-tone colors.  When I spotted these I thought they just may help. 





Personally….I think the best sketch I’ve done is this one.  My graphite diver that I did back in April ‘11.  I think this was a break-through sketch for me and that’s why I like it so much.





Since I knew I could sketch a diver, it was time to find a new diver to try my hand with.





My Art teacher was the one that told me that there was just a tiny touch of blue in the legs….otherwise….I probably wouldn’t have noticed.   Really need to work on my “observation skills”.  Haha





Someone had commented that I should try to keep my pencils super sharp to help my drawings, so I bought this metal sharpener….it is THE BEST!





I like this diver picture for a lot of reasons:

• Good lighting
• Interesting composition
• No Face

Diver Done

Well, I had to go back and at least try to fix the back area.  Yes, even though I already shaded in the area and it was “passable”, it still bugged me.



I want to share a little tip I learned (don’t know where).  Take your little gummy-eraser and dab.dab.dab, as you blend.  It really helps to get that graphite blended, and it’s a wonderful way to smooth the whole area out.



Two more views of the diver-in-process.



Had to go back in and adjust that neck line.  I can only see things as they should be in relation to the other parts.



Here’s my little diver-girl Graphite only.



But, my favorite part of sketching is this part.  Where I take my micron pen and outline the figure with permanent ink.  Helps me to see it better, and I think in the long run it will keep the boundaries in line.



I really should give the photographer credit.  This picture was found here.

I think I made her arms longer than they should be and her “pike” position isn’t as piked.  This was a real fun picture to sketch.  I was a bit intimidated by the shadows the arms made on the legs.  I can see that I have to work on my graphite gradients…..those legs look like they belong to another person.

I think I’m avoiding drawing faces…..I’ve printed out another senior picture of my daughter and have yet to start it.