Artwork: A portrait of my father

I remember a time in my youth when I was great at drawing faces and people. Throughout school art kept me going, and I always had a sketchbook on hand. After high school I got out of the habit of drawing, I switched to poetry and photography as my go-to forms of art.

About 10 years ago I found myself wanting to get back into more traditional art visual forms. I started with painting, and my early pieces were more on the surreal side, so photo-realism and proper anatomy we're really necessary. I always thought that if I ever wanted to go back to more realistic drawing, surely I'd still be able to do it, right? well, it turns out it wasn't so easy. Drawing for me isn't like riding a bike...its not muscle memory. For me its something that takes constant practice to keep the skills sharp. Over the past couple years I've been trying to do just that, to practice more and sharpen my skills. To be honest, I don't draw as much as I probably should. I have still however managed to get a bit better than I was a few years ago. So I thought I would start sharing some of my progress. Here we have one of the first portraits I've drawn from a photo (well, one of the only ones I didn't get angry and throw away!). As I do more I will post them and hopefully the more I practice the better I'll become.

This drawing was done from a photo I took of my father in 2009. I think there are still many areas I can improve, but I feel like it at least looks like him, so its a start! Now hopefully I can stay motivated and keep practicing!

For all you wonderful artists on steemit, how do you keep your skills sharp? Do you try to practice your art on a regular basis or just as inspiration hits? Do you find yourself rusty after a long time away from your preferred art form? Would love to hear your tips and tricks for staying fresh!

The original source photo:

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Check out some more of my recent posts:
Travel: Cats from around the world.
Travel: New Orleans City Park
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Art: Lost in Moonlight, oil on canvas
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Travel: Breakfast around the world.
Music: The new Summoning album
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