Drawing Grids

Mr. Richardson was one of the few teachers (and names) that I remember from grades seven and eight of middle school, He was a giant compared to our pre-teen selves, and he commanded the class with a big booming voice and steely eyes under dark bushy eyebrows. I always thought the image of him, delicately holding a paint brush or charcoal pencil in his large hand, painting landscapes or flora or fauna, was an oxymoron. His was one of the few classes that I remember being interested enough in exerting myself.

One of the lessons he demonstrated was using a grid on a smaller image to enlarge an image on canvas. My one brain cell, being overwhelmed with the span of an entire piece, could compartmentalize the smaller contained images. Instead of being lost by the immensity and complexity, I could break it down into smaller, more manageable components. My mind was on fire with possibilities.

The first image I chose was the cover of the fantasy novel I'd been reading:  Stephen R. Donaldson's "Lord Foul's Bane."  The image is a depiction of Thomas Covenant's group, on their way to take the Staff of Law from Drool Rockworm, under Mount Thunder. My image focused on the bridge, the braziers, and the individuals - I do not remember doing the detail work of the stalactites and stalagmites. I'd like to say I kept my 8 x 11.5" paper copy through the years, but I"m sure it didn't survive the Great Purge (aka the Great Move to California), if it even made it that far beyond middle school.

Here's the image that inspired me:

Stephen R. Donaldson's "Lord Foul's Bane"