*Main image credit goes to Ferrymorse.
After two weeks of resting (this was in late October), I got back to work at a new job with higher pay. But my creative energy has been really weak for several weeks and I believe it’s due to the stress of work and dealing with people who don’t like me. So I decided to pick up my pencils again and draw another piece.
I picked another fruit to be the main subject and after looking up some images, I decided that a watermelon would be a good choice. I also chose a watermelon slice to add to the drawing so that it wouldn’t be boring.
I chose to make my drawing on a 9 x 12 drawing pad because I did want to go bigger, but the thought of drawing such two subjects on a bigger scale intimidated me a little. Also, my energy was low and I didn’t want to push myself really hard.
So I started by making the outline of both subjects with my 3H pencil and going back in with the H pencil to darken the lines a little. I had a little trouble with the whole watermelon’s shape, but I eventually got it down correctly.
My B, 2B and 4B pencils were used for the shading portion, but I used a different technique for shading in the watermelon. Since some parts were lighter and some were darker, I sacrificed a spare sheet of drawing paper for rubbing my pencil really hard against. I then used one of my blending stubs to “pick up” some of the graphite on the paper and “shade” in the lighter areas of my subjects. It was tricky as I had to control the amount of pressure I was putting on the paper, but it worked.
As for shading in the watermelon slice, I did stop a couple of times because I got frustrated that it wasn’t turning out the way I wanted it to. So I would stop playing with it and take a break until I was ready to finish. This method really helped and I did get the slice to look the way I wanted it.
By the end of November, I managed to finish the drawing and put my personal signature on it.
Overall, I love the way the watermelon slice came out, but I’m not satisfied with the whole fruit. I just think it looks somewhat flat because of the way I shaded it. In a way, this drawing reminds me of the drawing of the whole peach and the peach slice, but that one looks a lot better than this one.
But this drawing is just proof that I really need to nurture the artist in me more often.
le fleur artsy 