"Alisa," 14" x 11," 
  Black and White Pencil on Toned Paper

Up to the time of the drawing Alisa had posed only for photographs. For being only eight at the time she showed remarkable grace, poise and discipline. The promise of ice cream and a strawberry treat helped as well.

"David,"  14" x 11,"
  Red, Black and White Pencil on Toned Paper

The Old Masters frequently completed such quick drawings before committing a lot of their time to a painting. In this manner their potential clients would get a fairly specific idea about the final outcome.

After a Photograph of Grace Kelly, 11" x 8.5,"
   Pencil on Paper

For a painter a drawing can be seen as practice or a dress rehearsal toward  a full-fledged painting. Drawing is to painters what daily bar and floor exercise is to dancers.

Study of a Head for "The Holy Women at the Sepulcher" 
after W. Bouguereau,  11" x 8.5,"   Pencil on Paper

Many with an interest in art are curious as to how long it takes an artist to complete a painting. In the case of Bouguereau, he was reportedly able to paint a full length life size figure with a background in two weeks, but he would spend several times that length of time in preparation. He would do some research at museums to see how previous artists treated a subject. He would need to find a model and frequently combined the feature of one model with the coloring of another to create the desired look. He would also need to find costumes, props, and a proper location. He completed many drawings of the overall scene as well as important details and their variation of faces, hands and feet prior to beginning the painting.

"Little Hans,"  14" x 11," 
Black and White Pencil on Toned Paper

This is a drawing of a sculpture completed in clay by Hans Schuler the Elder of his son. In the academic tradition of art education, students were required to draw before learning to paint. The drawing lessons started by copying drawings of established masters, followed by drawings from sculpture, and finally from live models. The whole process of drawings lasted from one to two years.

A Study after Michelangelo,
11" x 8.5,"  Pencil on Paper

There is no better way to learn how to draw than to copy an Old Master drawing- one pencil stroke at a time. The genius is often in what was not put down or recorded.

"Mother and Daughter,"
after a Black and White Photograph
  11" x 8.5,"  Pencil on Paper

Pencil drawings, like black and white photographs can be powerful tools of communication. Simple and direct. For some images it's as if color gets in the way. It's little wonder why so many fine art photographers work exclusively with black and white images and why the greats like Rembrandt found endless fascination with etchings.

"Olaf," 15" x 11,"
  Black and White Pencil on Toned Paper

Olaf is a Norwegian master physical therapist and acupuncturist who teaches advances courses all over the world. He was a trainer for Olympic athletes.
He is exceptionally strong and works out regularly. Reportedly some young tough guys were snickering at this old man working out and he challenged them in a competition of endurance chin-ups. After they were too tired to continue he kept going as he sang "Yesterday When I Was Young."

"Stephanie," 14" x 11,"    
Red, Black and White Pencil on Toned Paper

Stephanie is an exceptional artist in her own right. She produces amazing still life paintings in both oil and watercolor. On the day this drawing was completed her floral painting was not going well, so when she heard that the portrait model had cancelled for the afternoon, Stephanie volunteered to replace her. Stephanie had a quiet demeanor, but a strong presence and we were glad to have her pose for the portrait class ... and few days later her her floral turned out well after all.

Study after a Black and White Photograph
11" x 8.5,"  Pencil on Paper

Like sculpture, black and white images can help an artist learn how to translate millions of colors into a few shades of gray. The challenge is to capture a certain essence of the subject matter with a minimum of fuss, to make it look easy, and to get out of the way.