Nude Man On Knees and Other Drawings

1. Nude Man On Knees                    

2. The Naked Reader                        

3. Portrait Of A Man Drinking, While Awaiting His Lover

4. Three Points Of View                                        

5. Couple By The Fire                                           

1. Nude Man On Knees, is a favorite of mine, drawn with micron pens. This version was actually sketched with a ballpoint pen first. It turned out better than I expected, because of the free hand method in ink, without any opportunity to erase unwanted lines. I am used to drawing free handed, with ballpoint pens and ink washes, but it was more risky with this piece, because I preferred a cleaner drawing, surrounded by an empty space.

2. The Naked Reader, is another one of my favorites. I was in the grocery store one day, and noticed this man pushing a child in a cart. He was a little shorter than myself, and his hair was almost completely shaven. I thought his head, and facial features were very interesting, such as his nose, mouth and the glasses he wore. His legs were muscular, stout like, and had hairs lightly over them. He wore sandals, and carried himself in a quiet, dignified manner. I thought this was a man I want to draw, from memory, by at least capturing the essence of his features. I like drawing men, who appear to be bottom heavy. I tried to capture this in the drawing. I added my own theme to his appearance, with the shadows and setting. This piece reminds me of George Michael's " Father Figure " video. I remember seeing it numerous times as a kid, when it came out. I thought the woman featured in it was pretty. But I when I got older, and watched it many years later, it occurred to me, how attractive the video is! I thought "Wow! This video is very attractive!" It was beautifully done. The mood and shadows in certain scenes, are very artistic and effective, for the song and sound. There is a particular scene, where the models are standing in a room, that seems to be lit by the sunlight, from a large window, and sheer like curtains are hanging over it, with some women staring through them. This drawing reminds me of that scene. I also remember reading an article about the writer Walter Mosley ( Devil In A Blue Dress ) who said that he preferred to write nude. I thought this was interesting, and sexy in a way. 

3. Portrait Of A Man Drinking, While Awaiting His Lover, is another favorite of mine. It is rich in shading, from the smooth blending of ink washes. The darks are very effective, as they sharply contrast with the lights in this drawing. This is another piece, featuring the same setting of a tree, in the background. The man is royalty, in which I created a crown, and African inspired patterns on his robe. He writes with a feather/quill, in which I created to emphasize he is a man living during the time of ancient civilization. I love his face, and the gaze of his eyes, in which expresses anticipation and something of excitement, like that of a lover, coming to see him, thus giving inspiration for my title of the drawing.

4. Three Points Of View, is about the various men I see throughout the black community. I have witnessed scenes, outside of stores, along plazas or in shopping malls, when there is a debate among such men. One man strongly represents black pride, culture, heritage and spirituality ( man in white ). There is also the intellectual, who is a college graduate, and more conservative. He tends to be critical of the culture and concerned about individual thought and philosophy ( man in suit ). And then, you have the man representing more of a " street " aspect of  the culture, who can possibly understand the two differing points of view, but has his own, based on personal struggles, observations and experiences. He is cautious about following the others' opinions, because he thinks of common sense, and the present time as being the most important factor, regarding survival ( bald man ).

5. Couple By The Fire, has an interesting tint over the entire drawing. It enhances the mood of this piece. I do not think it was intentional, but it is effective. This is from a small series, I was interested in creating, to explore characters and techniques. Some pieces were drawn with colored pencils, to see if the medium was a better preference, than ink washes. I chose the washes, because the colored pencil results appeared less satisfactory at the time.

 

'Got Somethin' For Ya & Other Drawings

1. 'Got Somethin' For Ya                   

2. Boy In The Attic                          

3. Good Eatin' No. 2                      

4. I Cover The Waterfront                 

5. Lovers                                                                

 

1. 'Got Somethin' For Ya, was a fun piece to create. It was inspired by a man, I noticed, who attended one of the same high schools as myself. I sat in a car, outside of the mall, waiting for my mom in the parking lot. And I saw him walking to his car. I also noticed how he had some nice, thick legs, with ankle socks on, along with flip-flops. He was cute, and seemed to have a bubbly personality. I never interacted with him in school, but it was a reminder of the guys, I saw in the shopping malls, who mingled together in cliques, just like in high school. This piece is also about the homoerotic undertones that sometimes appear, when some men grab themselves in the presence of other men.

2. Boy In The Attic, is about the importance of self esteem among black children. It is crucial, how they see themselves, in the world, and in society. The focus is specifically on black boys. When I was a little boy, and even as a teenager, it was not known to me that there were so many blacks who came before me, doing incredible things, that I would later take a serious interest in. I did not know, what I struggled with, was not uncommon for black boys and young black men. The experiences I had, within, was something that other blacks encountered also. The boy in this piece sees himself as a king. He uses whatever he could find in the attic, of his home to express his imagination. He can dream and realize, that anything is possible for him, regardless of his differences.

3. Good Eatin' No. 2, definitely turned out to be my kind of drawing, technically. The ink washes blended beautifully, creating the richly shaded depth, I usually hope for in my ink wash applications. The proportions and position of the figures, also utilizes the space very accurately and effectively. This is one of my favorite pieces. The African sculpture adds to the natural atmosphere, and masculine, erotic spirit, projected by these two nude male figures. My fetish revealed itself dramatically, with the size increase of the hands and feet of the man in the chair. I was really satisfied with this work, and consider it a great accomplishment creatively.

4. I Cover The Waterfront, is a piece, that began on my lunch break. I was sitting, and saw a photo in a magazine, that really caught my interest. It reflected an era, that I was exploring then, with the flat caps, worn by many black men, in the early twentieth century. Although the photo, was a contemporary ad for fashion, It reminded me of the fiction, I was reading during this time, in which this drawing was produced. There was art and literature from the Harlem Renaissance, being observed and read by me. The model seemed to be out of a Langston Hughes story, who is my favorite writer. The title of this drawing, " I Cover The Waterfront ", was inspired by a rendition of a song, with the same name, performed by my favorite singer, Sarah Vaughan. I love a live version, she did, back in 1947, that is very moving to me.

5. Lovers, turned out better than I expected during this period. I like the bottom, in this one, and the way he grabs his partner's feet. The position was drawn effectively. This is why it exceeded my expectations as a drawing. I placed the photo of them on the dresser to suggest, that they are indeed a couple. I did this in several drawings, during this period to explain the men's love interest or something else they were fond of.