Bargue #3 - Done and Done!

The Belvedere Torso

Bargue #3- complete

~18 x 14"

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2014

After months of part-time work equaling hours and hours and HOURS of drawing time, my third and final "Bargue" is complete. I am feeling pretty dang good after putting the final touches on this baby at yesterday's class. I am officially moving on to the next stage of the drawing program at Atelier 2302 which is based on the Charles Bargue Drawing Course. Next I will be drawing from a cast- a real life, three dimensional object instead of a copy of a plate from a book.

Although each of my first two Bargues represented a milestone of sorts, this third Bargue feels rather monumental by comparison. The completed Belvedere Torso feels like it was all me... and it was. I started from zero, just me and the plate I had to enlarge and copy. No pre-done construct, no shadow shapes already worked out into light and dark, no work done for me in any way as was the case with the other two. Not only did I have to measure and transfer this image accurately, I had to enlarge it! Hello concept of comparative measure, nice to meet you! I found a section on the plate that was to be my unit of measure, decided how much to increase it by (about 30%) and then transferred that new unit onto my paper in the right location. From that point on all measurements were compared to those units and transferred accordingly as I built the construct of the drawing. Right now I can't believe I did it from start to finish, but here it is! Fully rendered and fine tuned. DONE!