Clarification

I’m having a slightly paranoid moment, so please bear with me with this post.

In my post about my first life drawing class I said that I have never been able to draw faces, and this is true. When I wracked my brain I remembered that I had drawn a few faces previously, but these were very quick sketches drawn in crayon or chalk, and it was so many years ago that I had completely forgotten about them. But I’ve never been able to draw faces in pencil. This is why I chose to draw my first portrait in my little sketch book, rather than a larger, separate piece of paper, because I didn't expect it to be any good.

It’s not unusual for me to feel excited about a completed piece of my own art, especially when I feel I have accomplished something new that I didn’t know I could do. Often this feeling wears off later when my eyes are opened and I realise it’s not actually that fantastic. So when I completed my first portrait, although I was very pleased with the outcome, I wasn’t sure if it was really any good or not. This is why I asked if anyone could recognise the person.

In the mean time I have shown the picture to a few people who have recognised the person straight away. This has left me worrying that people who read this blog may conclude that my statements such as “I can’t draw faces” and “can you tell who it is?” are displays of false modesty. Let me assure you, as pleased as I was with the outcome of my portrait, I am genuinely shocked that it is good enough for people to recognise who it is.

Now I’m too scared to do another drawing in case it’s not as good!