Charcoal Drawing

So for art class we had to draw a picture of ourselves pulling an "expressive face" using charcoal.. that's why it looks a little weird. Anyways, please tell me what you think Thanks!

Absolutely stunning! The emotion expressed is excellent! I can feel the happiness--I love it

I just have to say off the bat that this is very, very good. Now, I apologize if this isn’t helpful; I haven’t reviewed anything in ages.

I’ll start with flaws. First off, the chin and jaw line is lumpy. No other word, just lumpy, especially in contrast to the realism of the rest of the picture. If you went to revise this (which can actually be done with charcoal -- unless it’s very dark -- using a good kneaded eraser), make it a bit smoother and more fluid. It would help a lot, and make it less of a distraction.

There isn’t any shading on her neck. There’s a crease or two in her skin, but no shadows from her jaw, her hair, or cylindrical shading. With this angle, there should actually be only a small spot of light. Of course, I may be wrong. These are just opinions.

On the right side, the hair seems glued to the face as opposed to hanging by it. I’m such a hypocrite, seeing as how I can barely pull off anime hair, but it’s true.

Now some of the more amazing points I would like to point out. First off, her eyes. Not only are they both pointing the same direction (the kill point for me), but they actually look like eyes! Those are great, expressive eyes. Nice.

Her mouth is killer. I love it. Your realism is amazing – especially at fourteen! How long have you been drawing? You’re really, really good. I can’t say much else.

Also, her hairline. How it isn’t perfect and freshly brushed, a little tousled, I love it. It really gives the hair it’s texture.


You are a great artist! You’ll be killer by the time you’re in college. Let me know if you post more!

-Tex

Wow, this is great! Really nice expression and attention to the details. The only thing is from close up, the skin looks a bit blotched, something inevitable with charcoal, really. You get it everywhere on your hands and on the surface you're working on and it's a big mess... I know. But if you just pass over it lightly to smooth it out without taking out the shadows, it might help. From far away, that's not a problem since it only looks like a play of lights.
One thing's for sure is that it's amazing. The mouth and the eyes are mesmerizing.
Keep on drawing!

-Truth-

Thanks so much everyone!
TexanWriter and TheTruthLiesWithin, I definitely agree with everything you said. I did have a bit of trouble with the chin and its 'lumpiness' but it was getting late (rather extremely early in the morning) and i just gave up.
Anyway, thanks again! Much appreciated!

I'm not much of an artist, but I just LOVE the expression on your face!!! It's like, "Hey! What's up? I'm having a GREAT day!" You're a great artist. Good job and keep up the good work!

Okay, so I must admit--this is absolutely stunning and I probably couldn't do this with charcoal (I tend to stick to pastels; it's not my favorite medium). I love the facial expression--it jumps off the page and lights up 'the room'. Very nice. And I love the eyes and hair. Excellent.

However, the jaw is a bit jumbled-looking (easily smoothed out, if you haven't sprayed it yet) and a bit of the ear probably should be showing on the (my) left side. Also, the right side of the face /seems/ to cut off a bit too sharply into shadows and hair. Next time try to lengthen that part of the face a bit?

Anyway, I REALLY liked it and I don't have anything else to critique. (Otherwise, if you see random reviews on old pieces, that's because I'll have been snooping through any possible artwork you have otherwise. Yes.)

-Casper

I am amazed by this.

This is simply awesome! (I can see charcoal smudges on your hands. [LOL]) W-O-W. OK, let's begin with the review:

Okay, first, I would like to compliment that the features were nicely done - the nose, the lips. The thing that probably really wowed me was the eyes. I love how you've shaded it out. The eyes are probably the ones that made this so much alive, and cheerful, and expressive. I also like the way you've drawn the teeth. For me, it's been always hard to draw teeth, so good job for that! I also love, love the hair, which you have drawn nicely. One could see the strands and the light parts and that's a good thing. (Though at some parts, it looks like the scalp.)

What I'd like to nitpick about this is the smudges. I know that charcoal is a hard medium to handle because it could smudge easily, etc. But that's probably where the real skill comes in. I hope next time, you pay attention at the smudges. The smudges on the forehead and cheeks made you look old, as if they were wrinkles - uneven skin. Next time, try having a transparent plastic paper-thin plate/sheet. Put it over your work when you're drawing it so you can avoid smudges.

Another nitpick I have is the proportions of the face. (See flipped image below, which is attached.) I'd like you to take note of the proportions here. Can you see the laugh line at the left side of the picture (right at the original, un-flipped picture)? The left half part is slightly higher than what is expected of the picture. I know that it might be because of the posing; but no, the part above the nose, between the eyes were not aligned right.

I flipped the image to show you flaws. That doesn't mean that a picture, which when flipped looked awkward, is full of flaws. It will just show you the proportionate parts as well as the not-so-well-proportioned parts.

But all in all, you know how much we love this. This was very well done. I love it. So this is were my review ends. Please keep on drawing! You've got talent with art!

CSI Jash ♥

WOW, it was actually impressive !!