A better photo of the bearded old man portrait, chalk and pencil drawing

This is the other drawing that I submitted for the group show. It has a certain softness that the other one doesn't. I have both drawings framed and matted. I went with a wide 8 ply gray mat, slightly darker than the paper, inside a simple wooden frame. I will post more about framing in the future because I believe it can make or break a good piece of art. I titled this one Philosopher. I hate titling work and I will say more about that in a future post as well.

pencil and chalk portrait studies

Here are a few new ones. I have been working hard, trying to keep busy and stay motivated. I've submitted two drawings for a show and they are currently being framed. I hope they at least choose one for the exhibition. 

This first one is unfinished currently. I think it's off to a good start. I don't normally draw like this but I've decided to use some pastel.

This next one is finished and one of the two submitted for the show. I had wanted to do something with a lot of texture and I am happy with the result. I hope to do more portraits like these two. 

Graphite and Chalk Chiaroscuro Portrait Drawing Final Form

This is the drawing in it's final form. Graphite and Chalk on Canson toned pastel paper. The paper has a textured side and a smooth side. I used the smooth side. 6B is the darkest pencil I used for this. I am always shy about going too dark. This drawing is not matted yet. This image is just the drawing with a pre-cut matte held up to it. I'm not at all sure how I want to display this but I am leaning towards a wider matte ultimately.