With all the holiday hullabaloo winding down, I have spent the last few nights finding my way around the background of this drawing. It is hard to believe or admit, but I have reworked this little area over and over the last three nights. The depth of the shadows must be figured out at the beginning of each drawing. They set the bar for the continuity of the rest of the piece. Usually, I make better progress by starting on the darkest area. My dread of all of those little leaves, or the fact that they are out of focus, might have been part of the problem. My brain was telling me, once they got up on the screen, that the composition could go darker yet. The best thing for me to do is to wait for the rest of the greenery to go in before pushing the darks any more. These leaves are suppose to be out of focus. My eyes may be wanting to add more depth to bring them out to the viewer, when the truth of the drawing is that they must stay flat to create the depth of the farthest part of the background. Does that make sense? Maybe only in my crazy head! ;)
It is tempting to follow the paper down and work with the subject next. And no... this has nothing to do with my personal thoughts about drawing plant life! ;) After a little thought about the composition, I have decided to create the rest of the background with the drawing paper upside down. This is a technique that comes in handy for me when I tire of looking at the same familiar repetitive shapes. I guess, it just makes the background subject a little more exciting to create. :) So if I were to start the little puppy and hand next, it is not going to be a hindrance when creating the foliage. The final decision will be made tonight, and you will all find the answer in my next post! ;)
