My next scheduled Event is to draw Caricatures as though they were Mermaids and Mermen. Giving some thought to it ahead of time ~ the first thing I did was to loosely copy the Reference picture that my Client gave me ~ He wants them to look like that. Then I made my first attempt at applying it ~ to a random face I found online:

Nice. But I was feeling like I could have chosen better Proportions my own first pass at making one of these things. So I redrew it. Yes ~ I liked that. So I decided to play around with proportions some more and the next one (with the yellow background) became a little difficult for me to pull off ~ lol ~ you really wouldn't see much difference in the proportions, but it really did affect my internal concept.

Once again, I would expect that I would become more facile with it if I get more chances to draw them this way. It's more like a 'monster' ~ aka sea Creature. Not really necessary ~ the proportions of the first one that follows is fine. But I can probably mix it up a bit when I'm At the Event. Something I'll be able to play with. And that is what drawing is about, isn't it:

Hmmmm... now that I see my first 4 studies, I'm seeing that the Simpler ones that are mostly just Lines (without the Color) have a cleaner impact. I might go that route more. It's a good thing when I can preplan (if my Clients let me make my own decisions about things like whether or not to Color). I'd rather figure it out Before the Event than after.

Then I turned my attention to my Client's Reference picture of a Mermaid. Since I haven't had much dealings with either Mermaids Or Mermen, I really had to depend on what other people tell me they look like (Actually, I've Never met one in person). I simplified and drew the reference picture, and I got the idea. Then I made my own Mermaid based on a random Face that I found online.

Oh this one is getting Funny already ~ and I'm not even At the Event yet. Happy to be me ~ no matter what I'm drawing. Art is for Fun

Okay okay. Time to get real. People at Events like the Entertainment Art to keep moving. Gotta draw what is There ~ At the Party. So I'll just have a little time to add just what's needed to make them look like Mermen and Mermaids.

Practiced that tonight using random photos of faces that I found online. And while I was at it, I kept the exaggerations Small ~ because my Client at one of my other upcoming Events told me "all the 12-year-old girls and Pretty, and she wants me to draw them that way." Uh-oh. I'm hoping I'll be able to get some 3/4 views of the Girls.

~ and maybe I'll still get time to practice more exaggerations for the Mermaid/Mermen Faces ( the body/scene has to be similar to my Client's request).

When Clients ask me to draw other things besides What I See right in front of me, like at this upcoming Event where I'm supposed to draw everyone as Mermaids and Mermen, I start feeling like an Illustrator. Even though I was hired to draw Caricatures. So I tried to get it back into the Caricature thingy tonight.

I drew this practice Caricature. I feel happy with the picture, but I spent too long on it ~ because of all the details in the Hair. I would probably have to pull back on that part at the Event ~

Focusing on my upcoming job for drawing Fashion Sketches at a Sweet 16 Party, I felt like I should revisit standard Fashion Sketches. Because people are already trained as to what an 'artistic' Fashion Sketch should be. My Client is probably not wanting me to draw the way I'm affected by the fashion. She is probably expecting a conformity to the dramatic long-body long-leg standard that is considered a Fashion Sketch.

Then I ate breakfast. Outside. Looking at the tree across the street. Again. But this time, I felt like Really looking at it. To find out What's interesting about it? What feels good/calm to me? And I started seeing it sort of like puzzle pieces. Yes I've frequently painted negative shapes around tree parts, sort of like the puzzle pieces I'm referring to today. (That's an Artist's exercise.)...... But this time, I was able to enjoy the Solid Branches that made up that still/static 'puzzle'..... and I also started wondering about the shape/feel of the small end-pieces, but that doesn't add to what I'm currently grappling with.

What it is that's on my mind is about Conformity. I guess we have to conform to what a Client wants when s/he hires us. But is s/he really hiring an Artist if she wants us to draw what's expected? Or is s/he just hiring a 'Draw-er', someone who knows how to imitate the Styles of visual representation that have been created before us?

That's referring to 'Artists' who draw standard '8-head' long bodies that look like Fashion Sketches as well as 'Artists' who represent the way light and shadow describes the form of a tree (a face, a bowl, a fruit......) the way light and colors affect our moods..... the 'how to draw' and 'how to paint' that beginning artists usually aim for. I'm feeling like that stuff that can be taught (and learned) is not really Art. BECAUSE CONFORMING TO WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN is not deep enough to satisfy a person who is interested in UNDERSTANDING VISUAL CONSCIOUSNESS. Understanding our Existence. What Consciousness is.

What is sold as Artwork is usually just a Job.

Then I practiced some 'Fashion Sketch' Samples. I am planning on doing a good job for the woman who hired me to draw Fashion Sketches at her daughter's Party.

Follow Up on March 4, 2019:

I was talking with my Friend ~ about choosing to Focus on 'the Sounds of Silence' even when Louder Talk is happening.

I realized that we can also see 'the Sounds of Silence' ~ well.... not the SOUNDS of Silence, but the 'Sights of Blindness'. Some people experienced something like this while Driving. Very Dangerous. It's when a person's mind wanders, and she misses her exit, or just realizes that she's been Driving for blocks (miles?) without being aware of it.

Of course, we must turn our attention to Focus onto the Physical World when we're driving. But I am looking forward to applying that ability to my (almost) Daily Meditation. To be able to Choose what Sights I want to Focus on ~ with my Eyes Open. Just like I can choose to hear 'the Sounds of Silence' when I'm taking a Peaceful Break, I can also choose to see 'the Sights of Blindness'. With Open Eyes.

Some people who unfortunately have Vision Problems, can't see past 'Floaters' Inside their eyes ~ so they see inside their own bodies instead of seeing the World beyond their eyes. That's like when I focus inside my body during Meditation ~ noticing things like my Breathing or my Posture.

I was trying to come up with a way to See beyond the Physical World. To see beyond the positive and negative shapes. To see beyond the way Light falls on objects. Things. And I'm wondering if this is perhaps the path.

To sit with my Eyes Open, but not See what's in front of me (Only for a few Chosen Minutes Please!) To instead Watch my Thoughts. Perhaps if I can Focus My Vision away from the Sights of the World, by letting my mind wander the way I would Not want it to wander while driving, even though my Eyes be open..... Perhaps then I would be able to See the Thought so I can Drop the Thought ~ leaving me in a position to See what is not Seen.

The Next Day:

I did it! I felt satisfied with my experience of 'The Sights of Blindness' today.......

Sitting outside ~ the snow was so bright that I couldn't even lift my eyes to see enjoy the dark sky. I realized that I was trying to take things too far yesterday. I realized that 'The Sounds of Silence; that we enjoy...the metal tag clinking in the wind, the water pouring out of the drainpipe, the traffic in the distance, the car that just went by, the sound of chewing this carrot, the sound of swallowing it, the sound of my breathing, another car went by... those sounds are actually In this Physical world. And it makes me feel peaceful to slow down and focus on that cacophony of sounds. That are here all the time, but we're usually too busy to focus on them.

I applied That to my new idea 'The Visions of Blindness'. Simple Light and Dark and Patterns. Just Not focusing on them as the Things they represent (only for during this Meditation, of course). The way we do as Artists, but with No intention of making them come together to represent a Thing.

I'll try to describe something here. Things like the pattern of the dark grass patches popping through the snow, the texture of the dash-dots of grass-blades all over the lawn, the pattern of the shadow shapes affecting the footprints, the calmness of the neutral tone of the cement, the reflections on the cars, the transparent areas where I could see through the windows of the cars... But NOT SEEING THEM AS WHAT CAUSES THEM. NOT SEEING THEM FOR WHAT THEY REVEAL TO US...oooh ~ I love the dark soil in the fallow garden that has tiny pebbles... NOT SEEING WHAT THESE THINGS TELL US ABOUT OUR VISUAL WORLD, but seeing them solely as what they Are. Never labeling them. ...... Just like I don't sit there labeling each sound that I hear when I am listening to the 'Sounds of Silence'. THE CLUE TO PEACE IS SIMPLY SEPARATION FROM KNOWLEDGE.

I call it A MENTAL VACATION.

I'm not a machine. I can't just switch between this type of Art and that type of Art. I can't just say, "Now I'm going to draw an Exaggerated Caricature. And then I'm going to draw a Simplified Caricature." This is a feeling, an Art ~ not a Craft with rules to follow.

I really loved my Exaggerated Caricatures. It was so much Fun ~ for me as well as for the Cool Guests at the Parties. I admire Artists who draw in an Exaggerated Style. I don't like dinky Caricatures, but I do also admire Artists who draw in a Simplified Style. So I felt compelled to figure out that Simplified Style earlier this week. I did very well with that.

But my Client for tonight's Party surprised me. She's making a Party for 12-year-old Girls, and she actually said to me: "I don't know how to say this, but you know sometimes they draw well you know, but I want happy pictures with Color yes with Color that you know like Fun Pictures Not Boring."

"You found the right Artist", I happily said like yeah ~ This is what I like to hear! ...... I felt totally surprised because this isn't what I usually experience at 12-year-old Girl's Events..........

So I took a moment to get back in to my Exaggerated approach for drawing Caricatures, and I felt oh surprised. It's just been a few days now that I've been using my new Simplified Style, and I couldn't jump right back into my previous Exaggerated Style.

The First Picture posted here was my first attempt at drawing a 12-year-old Girl from a random photo that I found online. With my Exaggerated Style. Oh that's awful. That's not it. I've got to loosen up.......

So I drew a 2nd Caricature ~ ~ that one looked the most like the girl. But it was more in the Simplified Style that I had just developed earlier this week......

I was working from a Side-View Photo. Then I remembered that I had been Turning Front View Pictures in my mind to draw them 3/4 view ~ so I decided to do that with this Side-View Photo ~ this is Not easy to do. So the 3rd Caricature that I'm posting here was turned in my mind to be a 3/4 view. But it still wasn't Exaggerated enough. I'm still doing the Same Thing. The Simplified Style I switched to earlier this week. ......

About to post the pictures here, when I said 'I can do this. Just go for it. And I drew the 4th picture. It is more Exaggerated, but not enough. I know what to do. I know what to do. Let me do it again......

But I have to wake up in 2 hours for my first Event of the day.

I'm glad I'll have several Hours after my Early Morning Event before drawing at the Exaggerated 12-year-old Girl's Party.

I know just what to do. But I'll feel better if I do it right Before I get to the Party

Follow Up: I did it! No time to Color it ~ I got to get out to this Party. But I'm back. Back into Exaggerations. Perfect!

I don't see why a Special Needs Prom would be any different than anybody else's Prom. But that's how my upcoming job was described to me: to draw Caricatures at a Special Needs Prom.

People are people. And all I'm doing is drawing them. But in choosing what to draw for my Pre-Gig focus, I Googled "Special Needs Prom".

Obviously, the Feather has nothing to do with Special Needs ~ but that's where my experience took me. I noticed that I spent way too much time on the 'Feather'.

So I gave attention to the 'Feather' situation here ~ I had approached it with a Quick hint at what I used to draw for Ornamental Calligraphy. So now I learned how to Simplify ~ Cartoonify a Feather. Drew a better Party Caricature approach for Feathers.

Then I decided to Simplify the Caricatures altogether. To up my Speed: