This one is much more about surfaces and focal points than the first work and it was unnerving to draw. I like to have a sense that the piece is coming together as I move through it. This one didn't do that until very far into the effort. With so much flat area the "pop" of there being depth in the work was a long time in coming. It arrived with the completion of the dark area, behind the wheel on the upper right. Without the view into those deeply shadowed zones the drawing wouldn't have worked. There's always the risk of that happening with every work and it tends to give me pause at the start of a new composition. I suppose it's another aspect of having patience, which is something I find this sort of drawing demands on a consistent basis.
Another aspect of this work that made it challenging was the lighting direction - it's upside down from the real world object. This isn't a natural way for objects to be illuminated and it proved a bit hard for me to get right at times. The easy test, of course, is to rotate the page around and see if it makes sense. After looking at the composition for many hours doing this actually looked odd as well. It's an interesting comment on how the eye and mind work together to create a familiar view of the world. We're highly visual animals and rotating something 180 degrees jars that familiarity and forces a reevaluation to take place. I think that's one reason the piece grabbed my attention. I'd be interested to know if you have the same sense looking at it.
Here are the final progress photos and the finished work. Hope you enjoy it!
Jacob
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