David, what a lovely drawing. Just beautiful. Congratulations!

David, I've been thinking about this interesting statement since you wrote it and I think you've hit the nail on the head. Changing just one thing when you work often makes a huge difference in the result and the "will of the materials" may play a far larger role than we artists would like to think.

Thank you all for your lovely comments.

Linda, when I look at a Rembrandt, I'm, first of all, dumbstruck at the sheer beauty of the thing, at how alive the subject is - in some of his paintings, the subject seems bathed in a heavenly light. Then upon closer inspection, I see how abstract it all is - how it's just blobs of paint next to other blobs, dabs, or sometimes thin washes where you can see the canvas showing through. But every blob, every dab, every wash, makes perfect, exquisite sense. This is what I'm interested in. The tension between the illusion (that every representational artist is asking the viewer to buy into) and the simple, physical properties of the medium used - the reality. It's as if the painting is saying "I may be a glorious scene, but remember, I'm just a bunch of paint smeared across a piece of linen." By forcing the viewer to confront the reality part of it (and with Rembrandt there is no way around it) somehow, it can heighten the illusion part of it in fantastic, unexpected ways. Between the two, lies the magic. As far as I can tell, Sargent was a master at this; Van Gogh, in many of his later paintings and in a more extreme fashion, achieved this. I'm sure there are others...Bougereaux, Kramskoy? - I love their work, but I haven't seen any in person....

I realize that my previous drawings, though they might have been decent renderings, they're not very expressive - they rely on a very narrow range of what's possible; I've only just begun to explore the expressive possibilities of charcoal - and now pastel - (later, paint!) - as a medium. I'm not knocking having rendering skills - it's essential. It's just that...well, let's put it this way: if someone tells me "wow, that looks just like a photograph!" - I don't take it as a compliment. I mean I know it's not an insult, but it makes me feel like I failed....

Does any of this make sense? :)

David,
I always love your drawings, but this is by far, my favorite of yours. I only wish I could see it in person. I would have my nose right up to it to see your application!!

What a beautiful work David! I just loved it!