Thoughts on Drawing...

But how do I draw a Bird's foot?

I’m fascinated by Baba Yaga ( houses? ). This subject has been on my drawing list for a long time. But, bird legs? - yikes. I used to draw birds with the legs and feet neatly perched under the bird or a hidden by a cleverly (or not so cleverly) placed leaf.

I’ve been avoiding horses, hands and specific anatomy for a long time. I have stacks of sketchbooks with garbage drawings to back that up. So, instead of jumping right in. I took a beat - did a few pages of a bird’s leg and foot. I took reference from Law’s Guide to Drawing Birds, and The Etherington Brothers Tutorial. Reluctantly, I sketched out 4 pages of that painful object. It was a huge help in understanding the form and perspective.

Embracing that I can’t DRAW that THING ( lack of confidence from lack of understanding ) has been an uncomfortable learning process. Drawing is learning.

I’m always curious how artists problem solve.

Reference…

Great Resource for Bird Anatomy - The Laws Guide to Drawing Birds
The Etherington Brothers - How to Think When You Draw with Lorenzo

Tools…

Bic Ballpoint Pen, Moleskine Sketchbook, 3M Post it notes, Copic Markers.

This one drawn after a few anatomy study pages - more accurate stance & posture.

This one drawn last year, def expressive - took a few tries to get the legs right. This was the first time I dove in to drawing the scary thing and making it prominent. I think this started the shift in thinking.

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