Prep Love: Norman Bonney
Artist Norman Bonney doesn’t work as a fulltime painter, but that doesn’t mean he’s not always looking for places to build his skills as an artist. Even though the thumbnails that caught my eye aren’t part of a specific painting… they are part of the artist’s constant skill development.
Here’s Bonney in his own words:
Because I try to maintain an art practice while working my day job as a cinematographer, I am always trying to sneak in little periods of time where I can get better at and enjoy the challenge of drawing. Sketching is something I do wherever I happen to be with a few minutes to spare to bring out the sketchbook.
It's challenging because people don’t hold still for very long! So I sketch quickly and try to remember the posture of the person even after they’ve moved. The balance and proportion of a human being is a very challenging thing to capture because we are all so exquisitely sensitive to the look and feel of the human body. As anyone knows who has tried figure drawing, even the slightest mistake is immediately noticeable.
“Sketching is something I do wherever I happen to be with a few minutes to spare to bring out the sketchbook.” -Norman Bonney
I’ve always been a fan of artists who can draw people in action like John Singer Sargent and James McNeil Whistler.
I am aware that art is a skill that takes lots of time (like playing a musical instrument) so I do practice it a lot, but I try to keep it fun by doing lots of different types of drawing such as sketching people in action.
Above are some samples of sketches I did recently when I got to work early. Some of these were as quick as 20 seconds and others as long as a couple of minutes.
To see more of Bonney’s studies as well as his finished paintings, check out his Instagram here.