Week 2: Huh, References are Helpful

Thursday: Given last week’s performance, I am pleasantly surprised with how this came out. It turns out that repeatedly looking at what you want to draw actually makes it much easier to replicate. 

The climbing rose featured here has actually grown quite a bit since this photo. In the background you can see the supporting structure on which it ‘climbs’. I’m incredibly proud of it. 

Friday:

“Cabeg”. 

I was at an Indian supermarket in California and found these cabeges. Honestly, after seeing this, the official spelling of the word “cabbages” feels underwhelming. 

The roundness of the vegetable was surprisingly hard to capture. I’m slightly let down by how I drew its shape. The more I look at my drawing, the more it looks like an oddly-shaped human brain with way less wrinkles. 

Saturday and Sunday: I am (unsuccessfully) trying to understand how the notes on a guitar work without having ever played or owned a guitar. Why? I saw someone playing a guitar and I realized that I have little to no idea what is going on and that bothered me. Anyways, the reason I’m telling you all of this is because I did not draw flowers on these days. From this point on, you can safely assume that I will only be drawing flowers 5 days out of the week. With this new adjustment will come excuses valid reasons as to why I skipped drawing flowers. 

Monday: 

Pansies are arguably the cutest flower. I have not done them justice. 

Something about pansies makes me realize that conventionally cute pets are overrated (excluding cats). I would prefer pansies over a puppy any day. Their multi-colored petals create something akin to a pretty face. I can’t really describe why, but they look incredibly friendly. Maybe it's their size. They’re extraordinarily tiny. 

Tuesday: 

 

Election Day was mainly a let down. I asked five people in my family to go out and vote, but none of them did. Anyways, I decided to give pansies another try, and I’m definitely more satisfied with the results. The petals are a step up from the last one. The lines are more confident and connect for the most part. 

Wednesday: My aunt took this photo. I love it. Look at the fuzzy little leaves. Look at petals and the small veins running along their surface. Look at the tiny ladybug, gently resting on its surface. 

In the span of a week, I’ve had three lady bugs land on me. One on my hand, one on my clothes, and one on my mask. Whenever I see a ladybug, I immediately find myself with a want to hold it in my hands. For the record, the vast majority of insects do not evoke this response. 

Endnotes: This week has been fun. After looking at a reference, I tend to get distracted and do my own thing. But, I was much better about not doing that this week. In some photos, you may notice the writing on other side of the paper peaking through. If you do see it, just know it's probably a practice SAT test that I thought could serve as scratch paper.

See you next week. 

-Safa