This is my neighbor, Cate. Single mother of three and devout Christian. She has agreed to let me photograph her every Sunday after church, so I may draw her later. This is the first of hopefully many to follow. I told her I don’t have the opportunity to draw black women that often and I was having a difficult time drawing her facial features. She prayed for me right there. I got a kick out of it, because I have a difficult time praying for success with my art. She has no problem praying for anything and truly believes God hears and answers all prayers. Well, this is a first hand example of a prayer answered because I finally finished it.

As forementioned, this was a difficult process. Her eyes are extremely dark and I had to strike a very delicate balance between her eyes, lashes and lids, all of which have little contrast. Her skin was about as delicate. When first drawn and shaded, the differences in her cheeks and jaw resembled a beard more than skin. Through an iterative process of adding and subtracting (erasing), her cheeks and jaws evolved into what you see here. I didn’t spend a lot of time on her body, just because I had spent so much time on her face and needed to move on.

Q:

So, Kevin, if you have so much dfifficulty drawing black women, why would you draw her every week?

A:

…Give me a minute…