Inktober 2018 Day 12 "Whale"

Day 12 of Inktober, prompt word "Whale." I previously wrote about Inktober here. This is an edited version, but I'm posting these daily on my Instagram, @St.Rhinoceros:

Day 12 of Inktober 2018, prompt word "whale," after a painting by Mary Cassatt. This was my second attempt, at first I sketched out an interior scene of my own invention but it didn't have the right mood and looked too... invented. When I realized I wanted it to have the feel of Mary Cassat's painting, I decided to simply copy the painting and add my whale under the watery floor. I always thought the big blue sofas looked like they were floating in an ocean in the original. [Image description: black and white ink wash painting of a living room with several overstuffed skirted sofas and chairs in it at odd angles. In the chair closest to the viewer sits a little girl, bored and slumped back with her feet dangling. Instead of a floor, there is the surface of water with little ripples. The black shadow of a whale swims through the living room toward the viewer and underneath the chair the child sits on.]

Portrait of a little girl in a hat (detail) by Ciana Pullen

Portrait of a little girl in a hat (detail) by Ciana Pullen. Charcoal, drawn from life, 2012. Image: head and shoulders of a 6-year-old-ish Hispanic girl wearing a hat looks up at the viewer. She's lit from the side which creates graphic shadows on her clothes. Drawn in realistic black & white charcoal.]

This is only a portion of the drawing since it's for a client. This girl sat for me while her parents distracted her with a smartphone. She was *so* serious.

[This is a re-post, originally published April 8, 2012.]