The Ladies of the Camellias (2008)

Charcoal on paper (12.5" x 19.5")

I have not been committing much art lately since all of my
time was spent on stage, playing Ivan in a local production
of The Ladies of the Camellias. This picture is a charcoal
sketch I did of the two leading ladies in costume on the set,
with some artistic rearrangement for reasons of composition.

The original was presented to the director as a present from
all of us in the cast and numbered prints, like that pictured
here, were given to all the members of the crew for their
efforts. This is the most ambitious charcoal sketch I have
ever attempted, in the course of which I used willow charcoal,
charcoal pencil, kneaded eraser, cotton cloth, paintbrush,
blending stump and fingers to get the results I wanted.

I had a fantastic time acting in this play and made many new
friends and reconnected with some old ones from theatre times
gone by. Now I need to make some art this summer while I
look for my next role...