Portrait of Nicole (and a Tuesday figure)

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About 11x7.5", pencil on stonehenge paper

Here's the conclusion of my four-week Wednesday night portrait of Nicole. Overall, I'm not too displeased with it. It lost some of its freshness along the way as I backtracked and corrected (this was about 11 hours with the model), but I think that will get better as I practice more. Experience should help me know where I currently stand in the drawing process and where I need to go next, which are things I sometimes struggle with. I also have a tendency to oversize features, and I think her eyes are just a little bit large in the sockets, which decreases the likeness. Maybe next time I attempt a portrait from life I will try charcoal so I can get more realistic darks in there. 

Also here's my figure from Tuesday. This was a bit of a chase-y pose. The angle of the shoulders and position of the head were pretty shifty, but I did the best I could ;) 

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