Confidence - Original

"Confidence" has proven to be a pivotal drawing among my recent works. Upon completing this portrait, the amount of confidence this woman emits from a sheet of paper gave me the confidence to create new works I didn't think I could (specifically, kick-starting my "Gemstone" drawing series). 
 
This woman stands tall, straight, and is looking right at you/the viewer. And, while this piece is indeed a portrait, her facial features aren't meticulously rendered. In fact, due to the color of the paper being such a light pink, a very close color match to her skin, I intentionally did not spend a large amount of time focusing on the fine renderings of her face. The color of the paper did a lot of the rendering of her skin for me. All I had to do was find the shadows and highlights, and from there, the paper took over. This is why sketching and selecting the paper before the portrait is brought to life is such an important part of my creative process! 
 
Behind our confident mystery woman looms a large, striking, brilliant-cut diamond. This is where I did spend many hours meticulously rendering each facet to reflect the light and confidence our subject has, adding to her personality and character. This is a woman who is sure of herself - who can take on anything the day throws her way! 
 
"Confidence" was drawn with colored pencils on 187 lb. Canson Light Pink Colorline paper, completed in April 2019.