This morning I had the urge to put pencil to paper and geese were on my mind. They appeal to me because of their associations with fairytales and golden eggs and a bit of magic. They also make good guard dogs and one once bit my father’s thumb really badly.

I use big A3 pads of cheap paper from Poundstretcher etc so that when I draw and doodle I’m not worrying about wasting good paper.
I used a Derwent Onyx Medium pencil to draw.

I fancied doing a few heads and one or two full bodies and this was a really good learning curve for me.

Drawing the first one I was totally drawn (excuse the pun) to her curvaceous and plump body and especially to her gesture as she stepped forward – her sweet webbed feet over-lapping each other …

The next one was a sweet looking goose with an angelic head.

After that I saw this old looking one with a great angle to his head. Fun to try and get that down on paper – some shape!

The last one I FORCED myself do as I would normally shy away from something so difficult.

Again – learning to see is the main problem – not learning to draw! To help with that I would recommend “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain” by Betty Edwards.

You will come on in leaps and bounds – I know I did. You’ll love it – it really puts you into orbit about drawing and observing – such a  phenomenal book. No wonder it has become a classic.

A while ago I took photos of real live geese near Caerphilly Caste not far from where I live. This is a watercolour I did of one of them. She was a real beauty.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these simple sketches.
Alison