Art is a process with many refinements. We gather ideas to draw in our mind, those ideas evolve into sketches on paper, and eventually these sketches are transformed into a final painting or sculpture.
Often these intermediate stages are lost and forgotten, but not so for figure painter Daniel Peci. Daniel celebrates his sketches and, luckily for us, shares many of them on his daily blog.
Born in Skopje, Macedonia, Daniel graduated from The Academy of Fine Arts in Macedonia in Painting and Graphic Design. He currently lives in Los Angeles, where he dedicates his time to creating expressive figurative sketches in charcoal that lead to beautiful oil paintings. Daniel’s drawings keep his ideas fresh and flexible before transforming it into the final painted image.
Daniel’s drawings are the bones of a painting. At this step in the process he is able to challenge his skills and test his observation skills. He often uses charcoal to analyze a shape or design, then sometimes adds pastels for color and better shape definition like in the image below.
Daniel’s control of lighting, proportion and expression is masterful. His compositions remain simple so the viewer can take in the full figure, whether it is a sensual woman or an innocent child.
To this end, details are added sparingly, only where they can be most effective. For example, in this next sketch the boy’s eyes are crisp and captivating, while the rest of his features begin to blend into softness.
This last drawing is one of my favorites because Daniel has captured this girl’s innocence and curiosity in such a seemingly simple way.
Again, the focus is on the face, while the rest of the drawing has larger brushes of charcoal. A touch of movement is also expressed through the slight tilt of her head looking up and her dangling hair.
To understand Daniel’s artistic process even better, please visit his drawing blog for the intermediary steps, then check out each of his finished images at his painting blog, DanielPeci.blogspot.com.