Drawing Birds

“Drawing is a lot about trusting your instincts.”
~ Lauren Levato Coyne of Sidetracked Studio

Drawing creatures is fun. Ever since daring to stretch my comfort zone with a drawing class, I keep getting lured in to the occasional workshop. Next month Lauren Levato Coyne will host a butterfly drawing workshop.

The bird drawing workshop Lauren hosted in April was a surprise for me. I won the workshop during an instagram campaign, and was a bit daunted by drawing our feathered friends.

Instructed to pick out a bird ahead of time, I discovered the Dickcissel on a birds of Illinois web site.

The Dickcissel has lovely markings, and I liked the pose. Lauren instructed us to ignore the bird and focus on shapes first, and from those would come the bird.

She stated that if we noticed something wrong, it is likely the beak or the eye in relation to the top of the head. We were given an overview of different pencil brands and their relation to wax and oil. Lauren also gifted us with two special pencils that she uses in most of her drawings.

Although the general rule is to start with the lighter color first and then color darker, I was instructed to do the greys first.

With a few adjustments from Lauren, the time passed quickly, but a whole bird was completed.

Of course I am more awed by my classmate’s work than my own.

Everyone is so gifted!

Lauren’s upcoming butterfly drawing workshop will be held in July at Sidetracked Studio in Evanston. The fee is $60. Contact sidetracked studio for more information.

You will receive a wooden panel and 2 important pencils, along with valuable instructions on how to draw a butterfly.

There will likely be a few real specimens, and photos will be used as well. I am looking forward to this one!

“The mood of the thing is more important than the thing itself”
~ Lauren Levato Coyne of Sidetracked Studio