Revise or Take the Lessons and Move On?

Why am I OK with drawing a crow but not a robin?  That niggling question was the reason for revisiting a crow picture this week.  Another drawing, I revisited because it held a nub of an idea that begged to be developed.  What happens if I run with it for a little while?  Yet another picture, I returned to because it wasn’t working; I was curious to see how I could fix it. 

I’m not sure why, for so many others, I took the lessons and moved on.

Here’s a look at the three approaches to revisions:

Robin or Crow.  You may remember from the other week — how mark-making resulted in a sweet bird (more robin than crow) in one case and an edgy, sharp bird in the other.  Same pose, two different birds. The first one bothered me. I liked it, but I quickly followed it with a real crow.

Why is it OK to draw a crow but not a robin?

My writer friends advised me to embrace the sweet—return to the robin and draw an over-the-top cute bird—pink with frills! By doing this, they advised, you attack directly the part that's got you stuck. I accepted that in principle but saved the exercise for later.

Instead, I took both crows I’d drawn—the sweet and the edgy—to see what happens as they merge. Easy to do in Procreate. I rather like the ones in the middle. Slowly approaching crow-ness—a ruffian robin and a gentle crow.

Maybe next time, I’ll add even sweeter and edgier birds to both ends of the spectrum.

Clearly, I haven’t finished exploring my aversion to cute.

Bird within a bird.  I experimented with frottage to create this bird within a bird concept. Then, into Procreate to explore different textures and marks, where the idea deepened through making rendering choices. 

What's the inner life of this bird, and how does it affect my perception of the bird's external appearance? Visually here, the outside bird is still the first “read,” with the second read being the inside one.  But, who’s point of view am I taking in—the bird’s or my own?

Clearly, I haven’t finished exploring points of view — and the different permutations that animals and people may have.   

More story, please.  The original picture (on the left) was made with a brayer, paint, charcoal rubbing, pan pastel, and eraser. The revisions (on the right) were made using Procreate

I was okay with the relatively flat composition, but it felt incomplete. I wanted more contrast between the bird and buildings as well as more clues about what I was looking at.

The revision is an improvement, but there is probably more to do. I'm thinking of an even bigger bird and giving more shape to the flocking birds below—adding more structure to the conspiracy of ravens over the city.

Why is there such a colossal conspiracy of ravens here anyway?

Clearly, I haven’t finished exploring the story.

A closer look

I'm on my hands and knees to prepare the paper—rubbing textures and carefully leaving white space. It’s a wonderfully tactile experience. When I return to the drawing table, the beginnings of a crow are already there.

I’m calling this one done — taking the lessons and moving on.