Drawing and Painting the Landscape – Pencil Drawing

 

Ladram Trees
Pencil Drawing - Drawing and Painting the Landscape
Pencil on Paper
22cm x 16cm (8.75" x 6.25")

Between the lessons on Erased Drawing and Wash Media in Drawing and Painting the Landscape by Philip Tyler there is a sub-section on Pencil Drawing - in which Phillip recommends making a series of pencil studies,  revisiting imagery you have used in previous exercises.

This is the first of my drawings. I’m not waiting until I have a series because I haven’t posted recently and this felt like a pivotal moment. When I started drawing and painting, this is the sort of picture I wanted to create. I quickly realised (and as Philip points out) this sort of pencil drawing takes a lot of time and I prefer drawings that appear less painstaking.

This is the same scene that appeared as "Near the Otter Estuary" on the earlier post (Drawing and Painting the Landscape - Duotone). I think it is the same stand of trees Ian Sidaway recently included on his blog - June 2020. He has painted them from Ladram bay and I have drawn them from the other side – approaching them along the coastal path from the Otter estuary. Ian says Ladrum, I say Ladram, but I'm pretty sure they are the same trees.

I haven’t done much drawing recently. I suspect the uncertainty caused by coronavirus has been sapping my enthusiasm and affecting my mood more than I’ve realised or acknowledged. I’ve been using pressure of work as a reason not to draw, but this may be an excuse more than a reality. I also think I am getting bored with drawing from photos. Drawing and painting outdoors is still a challenge, but I might be missing it.