D R AW I N G P R O G R A M

Head Drawing Phase IV:

Jeff – Male

OVERVIEW
In this phase we will cover our standard time frame for portrait drawing at Watts Atelier: the three-
hour portrait. This should offer plenty of opportunity for us to delve into the abstractions, mapping,
and ultimately, rendering or finishing. I have included two of my good friends and teachers, Erik Gist
and Lucas Graciano. I think it would be nice for you to start watching how some of our most seasoned
teachers use these same concepts. Although Erik and Lucas were both some of my best students, they
have learned to use the concepts we covered in the previous phases to their own tastes. You will notice
the high level of continuity between the three of us, but also take special note of the small subtleties
that creep in from time to time. We will all execute a male and female example. I tried to choose a
variety of ages, ethnic types, etc. Congratulations for continuing to “push play” and work through
these phases. Remember, have fun above all else–you’re well on your way to proficiency which will
lead to mastery.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

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 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

M ATERIALS
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charcoal pencil
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charcoal-friendly paper
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SETTING UP
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- TIP - ‡6HWXSUHIHUHQFHDQGEHJLQ
Remember, we will be starting to move
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into more advanced executions of the
previous concepts. You may want to go
back and refresh some of the earlier
ones. Even though you went through a
phase, it does not mean you have mas-
tered the concept therein. Patience,
patience, patience.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 2
1
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

ASSIGNMENT: THREE-HOUR PORTRAIT DRAWING: JEFF – MALE

In this three-hour demonstration I am working from a Nepalese gentleman who is quite far along in
years. Keep your eye on how I am using the earlier concepts from Phase I, II and III. You will want to
continue going over these concepts until they are fully ingrained! Have fun and good luck.

Part 1: Watch the demonstrations of each of these three-hour efforts.

Part 2: Browse through the workbooks before progressing to actual drawing.

Part 3: Set up your work station as usual with either a nice printout or your computer/TV monitor.

Part 4: Proceed as follows:

1) Lay-in: This phase of the drawing will take anywhere from 40-90 minutes.

2) Block-in: This phase is usually a bit quicker than the lay-in as all the mental processing
was done in the lay-in. The time of this phase could be 30-60 minutes–just a ballpark time
so don’t worry if it takes longer.

3) Finish: The finish can eat up some time especially if you have waited to make adjustments
or corrections. These are always a lot more work when you wait to do the corrections late in
the piece.

Note: Remember to slowly work your way up to the finish. This is a tricky one, and you will want to
avoid smudging all your hard rendering efforts. You may wish to tear off a small piece of scrap paper
to rest your hand on as you bring the piece up to a finish.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 3
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

L AY- I N
In this drawing we are
approaching an older in-
dividual. This poses some
interesting challenges but
is also easier in some ways.
The abstraction that you
were introduced to in
Phases I and II will prove
to be very valuable when
approaching all heads but
especially older males and
females where age has left
its mark. Notice how I
compartmentalize all of
the small halftones,
whether they belong to the
light or shadow. This de-
sign method has ties to
painting as well. When you
venture into gouache, we
talk extensively about nav-
igating form through shape
recognition and design. We
refer to this as tiling, but
it could be thought of as
shape-recognition drawing
or painting. The challenge - TIP -
will be to learn to knit to-
There are numerous solid
gether these shapes in an
approaches to drawing. I
attractive well-designed
have spent countless hours
manner. This will be facil-
scouring, studying and
itated by copying drawings
reverse engineering these
like the ones in this phase.
techniques. The one taught
here will be a great found-
ational method that you
can rest on as you seek to
explore the myriad of
approaches out there.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 4
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

BLOCK-IN
In this phase you can begin
to see the thought process
starting to take form. Think
of it as creating a paint-by-
numbers then filling it in.
The lay-in or mapping
phase, as you have heard
me refer to it, is where you
begin to inject a middle-
value grey #5 into your
map. Once you have done
this, the drawing should
start to take on a three-
dimensional effect. At this
stage make sure you don’t
get carried away and start
injecting your blacks. Take
note that I did inject some
full value into the hair. If
you are new just back off a
bit and keep it a tad lighter
so you can make correct-
ions to your lay-in before
moving on to the full-value
finish.

- TIP -
Keep in mind at this stage
full commitment is still a
bit off. Some techniques,
which we will cover in the
Specialty classes, have you
start by brushing on char-
coal or graphite powder
and then picking out your
shapes until clarity of edge
and value are achieved.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 5
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

F U L L - VA L U E
As we bring this image up
to full value, make sure you
cross-reference often the
model or photo to maintain
control of your value
arrangement and edges.
Keep in mind, dark values
only accentuate your shapes.
If they are well designed
and knitted together it will
strengthen your piece; if
your shapes are weak it will
only magnify this. At this
stage you can also start
using some of the callig-
raphy (how your pencil/
charcoal marks are design-
ed) to bring the piece to a
nice finish. Take note of how
I work busy areas next to
simple, scratchy next to
silky, and so on. Keep in
mind the old saying,
“Variety is the spice of life,”
definitely holds true in
drawing. Have fun at this
stage–you’ve earned it.

- TIP -
Finishing styles vary
greatly and chances are
you will change dramatic-
ally over the years with
your finishes. Give it time,
and work patiently and
methodically through
these phases. You are well
on your way.

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 6
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 7
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 8
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 9
 D R AW I N G P R O G R A M
Head Drawing Phase IV:
Jeff – Male

Preserving the Traditions of the Masters

© Watts Atelier of the Arts, LLC, 2013 www.wattsatelier.com 10