This is my reinterpretation of Francisco Goya’s sketch titled, “Only my Strength of Will Remains”
I liked this drawing upon first viewing, and my thought was to tie the old man’s struggle into something I’m familiar with;.homeless.
I live in Florida, there is a big homeless population here, so I see people like this fairly often. I replaced the man’s canes with a trash bin, as he searches for some scrap of food. Meanwhile, two bystanders watch him from a distance, disconnected from his plight.
I tried a few different methods for drawing the background figures, but I settled on simple gestures for them, as it emphasizes the disconnect between them and the man. I briefly had more figures on the page, but it began to feel cluttered. The two distant figures do well to demonstrate the seeming isolation of the man, as he searches for whatever meager meal he can find.
This took me about an hour and a half for the main figure, another hour or so to put the finishing touches on and work through the background figures. It was difficult mimicking Goya’s shading techniques, and while I’m still not entirely happy with how they turned out. I think it meshes fairly well with his style.
Excellent updating of the Goya drawing!
I really like how you reinterpreted the drawing with a new meaning, I think it comes across really well. I agree with your decision to have just a couple figures in the background that are less defined, it does a good job of making an audience to the main figure with a clear disconnect between the two.
I cant tell if you used graphite or charcoal but I love the depth and imprecision it creates. It mirrors the textures of the original piece without looking like a copy. The piece itself feels like it is aged, in a cool way