A self portrait, drawn after a night of insomnia

[femmedem]

I'd gotten about three hours sleep, and by the time I finished the drawing I'd been up for about twenty-two hours. My exhaustion shows! But I'm happy with it: it's real life, not pr.

You can see the construction lines I used for the initial proportions: the rectangle with diagonals from corner to corner, a circle. It's a method I'd just learned and it did help with my proportions.

[LiberalLoner]

1. Beautiful!

And, awesome drawing, too!

[femmedem]

4. Lol, thanks. I think I inadvertently flattered myself.

I don't think I fully captured the undereye bags.

[calimary]

15. No. You did. It's so REAL. You can look at this and get all kinds

of emotional color from it. There’s a lot of feeling in it.

Wonderful.

[Ohiogal]

2. Very well done.

I also prefer “real life” images ... I can just sense how you felt when you drew this. and I hope you finally got some sleep.

[femmedem]

3. Thanks. I did.

Feeling much better today.

[lagomorph777]

11. You were not going to be allowed to sleep until you got that drawing onto paper.

Sometimes that's just how it is.

[calimary]

16. Yep, that's most likely it.

[femmedem]

23. Yes, that was how I felt. I was determined to finish the drawing.

Also I love your user name. I had a sweet pair of bonded rabbits that both lived for a decade.

[lagomorph777]

58. Aww! Bunnies!

We had a litter of bunnies nest in the garden a few years ago. It was so fun to watch 'em grow up. After they left, the garden was dramatically more fertile. I wish they'd come back.

[femmedem]

61. How sweet! And yes, we had the best compost pile when we had our rabbits.

Here is our girl Cleo with Mr. Femmedem and Victor, a stray cat we took in. We named Victor the night Obama won reelection. Cleo was going through her seasonal molt. Her fur didn't usually look so raggedy.

[lagomorph777]

62. Whoa - cats and bunnies together.

Amazing. And also the definition of warm/fuzzy.

[Chainfire]

5. Very nice

I understand the emotion. I have been battling with sleeplessness lately as well.

[femmedem]

6. I probably shouldn't end my nights reading about coronavirus.

I hope your insomnia eases.

[Ilsa]

13. If I may make this offer:

Find something really fun and not intense to read before bedtime. Books for young adults or teens generally won't strain your brain emotionally. I prefer cozy mystery series set in another time period and overseas. It's like watching a more stylized Murder She Wrote. I can't even remember the stories, but they relax me and take my mind off politics. Some are available for free from Amazon/Kindle. Others can be downloaded from other sources, like your library.

[femmedem]

24. Wait ... you mean I shouldn't focus on the darkest, most worrying news right before bed?

I've been doing it wrong all these years.

[Ilsa]

39. That's why I think

Prayer before bedtime is counterproductive. It brings all kinds of scary thoughts to mind!

[lillypaddle]

7. Lovely, and so much character

in your face. Love it.

[femmedem]

25. Thank you, lillypaddle. n/t

[TNNurse]

8. I think you captured the weariness in the eyes very well.

Hope you get some sleep soon.

[femmedem]

26. Thank you!

I go through phases of insomnia, then a migraine, then I sleep ok for a while.

[bif]

9. Excellent!

[femmedem]

27. Thanks, bif.

[FailureToCommunicate]

10. Beautifully drawn! You look like someone who does NOT suffer fools. And...

like someone who really should try to get some more sleep!

[femmedem]

28. Ha! I suffer fools more easily when I'm better rested.

You just reminded me of stumbling upon my dad practicing his angry face in the mirror years ago.

[FailureToCommunicate]

44. That's interesting. Why would you dad have to practice an "angry" face?

Was he usually a kind hearted type dad?

[femmedem]

45. I'm not sure why he was practicing an angry face!

He was embarrassed and I never asked him. Maybe he was just fascinated with facial expressions, but at the time I thought he was practicing so he could better intimidate my sister and me.

[FailureToCommunicate]

50. That's probably a reasonable assumption. With my dad there was little doubt. When

"Mount Saint Harold" erupted (dad's name was Harold) you had better run for the hiding places. My favorite was a 7" deep coat closet no one would think to look in since it was so shallow. I had to arrange myself like an Eqyptian wall figure to fit in there...but it worked!

Are you and your sister close?

[zed nada]

12. As a fellow penciller and painter I truly appreciate this .....

...in its highest form I think a portrait is not merely a likeness but should be an insight into the subject's personality, something a camera is actually less suited to capture. So it seems to me that beyond the weariness and resultant mood you fulfilled the mandate of the portraitist, doubly difficult since it is a self portrait and harder for the self subject to be as honest and introspective. Thank you for this fine example and for sharing your development with drawing technique as well. It strengthens the resolve and spirits of your fellow leadslingers.The more than competent artist shows a window into the subject's soul. You accomplished it quite well I believe. And I love seeing peoples work on this site. Again, appreciation.....

[femmedem]

29. Thank you so much and welcome to DU!

I hope to see some of your work here someday.

[zed nada]

42. Thank you

And I meant it....

[calimary]

14. Dayum! You're GOOD, femmedem! You look both tired AND beautiful!

Wonderful job. You got the contours, the proportions, the expression, weariness, fatigue - the feeling in it - and I love the sweep of the hair from the brow downward. Beautiful! Beautiful work, beautiful woman. Art school grad here - this is wonderful on so many levels and that’s what the best instructors tried to impart to us students.

If that’s how you actually look then you should be a portrait artist.

I love photographic realism! Really nicely done! Such feeling in it.

On edit - I l’ve had to come back and resume raving about it several times. I keep thinking of more to say about it. It’s simply lovely. Softly care-worn. And gently and emotionally moving.

[femmedem]

30. Thanks so much, calimary. I didn't know you went to art school.

I don't know how good the likeness is. Probably it looks like a cousin or sister, not quite like me. But I like it as a drawing.

[OhNo-Really]

17. Fantastic! You're beautiful too

[femmedem]

31. Thank you. We're all beautiful, I think, if you look closely enough. n/t

[OhNo-Really]

40. Yes I agree 100%. ✨🙏✨

[Tarc]

18. That is some talent there

Well-done.

I was never very good at drawing in school, but in HS Art once one of the other kids was sitting for the rest of us to draw, and after a few pointers from the teacher, I was actually able to draw his face. Like, you looked at my sketchbook and the kid's face was actually recognizable. It was a exhilarating feeling.

[femmedem]

32. It's magic when that happens, isn't it?

Mr. Femmedem just texted me a photo of his first self portrait, and he's similarly exhilarated.

[Erda]

19. How beautiful this is -

And how beautiful and very talented you are!

[femmedem]

33. Thank you, Erda.

A lot of my drawings look pretty rough or crudely rendered, but something clicked with this one.

[JGug1]

20. 22 hours without sleep

Beautiful face. Very well done sketch. Get some rest.

[femmedem]

34. I'm going to sleep and sleep and sleep tonight.

Thanks.

[lunatica]

21. Two thumbs up and more!

I second all the wonderful critiques you’ve gotten here. You’ve captured something profound and compelling. Maybe sleeplessness tends to strip people of their usual mask. Your drawing shows the real weariness you must have been feeling and it shows it fully, in all its starkness, straight on with no pretense. The fact that in the drawing you’re looking directly at the viewer has a deep impact too. It’s very bold and so honest that it makes the viewer want to know even more, fascinated by the depth of what you already show. It haunts you.

You did a terrific job with this! Your talent pours out in this drawing.

[femmedem]

36. Thanks so much, lunatica.

I think it's my best. I'm starting to not want to draw and paint the things that come more easily. I want to work hard and learn.

[lunatica]

43. That's what I've done

I’m always challenging myself because it IS the fastest way to get there. If it becomes too easy I tend to lose interest. The human face and body are so complex that I’ve never lost interest. They are also always a challenge.

[Lord Ludd]

22. Nicely done. Kudos! nt

[femmedem]

37. Thank you. I make a lot of dud drawings but I'm very happy with this one. n/t

[MLAA]

35. Two things:

1). I’d like to be able to draw that well
2). I’d like to look that good after no sleep

😉

[femmedem]

38. Lol, MLAA. It's hard to see myself accurately, but I think it looks like I drew a prettier sister

So I guess I'd like to look that good after no sleep, too.

[Karadeniz]

41. It's great!I'm finding that Natrol melatonin, 10 mg, really helps me sleep...other brands haven't

Helped. Keep up the good work!❤

[femmedem]

47. I'm glad it's working for you! I've started taking melatonin recently, too.

Now those three hour of sleep nights are the exception rather than the rule.

[Harker]

46. You do look a tad drawn.

I hope rest comes soon.

[femmedem]

48. Yes, I was so, so tired. But I think--hope!--I'll sleep well tonight. n/t

[Harker]

49. Good night, then!

[femmedem]

56. Sorry I missed your pun on the first read! n/t

[FailureToCommunicate]

51. "a tad drawn"

[Harker]

52. ...

[applegrove]

53. How to fall asleep in seconds (WWII pilots used this technique)

https://medium.com/s/story/combat-tested-training-unwind-and-sleep-anywhere-in-120-seconds-27d5307b7606

[3catwoman3]

54. How interesting.

My husband might benefit from this. Thnx.

[femmedem]

57. Thank you! I'll try that technique. n/t

[applegrove]

59. I works for me when i take melatonin.

Last edited Wed Mar 11, 2020, 04:39 PM - Edit history (1)

[flotsam]

55. It captivates me

I think of the overwhelming exhaustion portrayed and wondered about the cause. The little fairytale boy inside me wanted to see the princess smile, the adult guy I became merely wishes something in your life would happen that was worthy of a smile...

[femmedem]

60. Most days I'm a lot happier than I look there.

Satisfying job, wonderful husband, a community of friends. But I'm glad that the drawing captivates you. Thank you.