WIP - Charcoal Gorilla

I haven't put up a work in progress in a while, other than my coral reef, so I thought I'd share what's on the drawing board right now. I've been wanting to draw a primate for a while now, and after an awesome trip to the zoo (and several hundred photos) last weekend, I got my wish. I got really close to a bunch of animals, one of which was this lowland gorilla just a few feet away from me. And I was lucky enough to get him in the perfect pose for a drawing.

I debated for some time as to which medium I would use, and even considered doing two copies, one charcoal and one graphite, just to see how they would differ. I still may, we'll see. As (almost) always, I started with the eyes. Then I worked on the skin of the face and down to the nose. I added the background (with a charcoal-covered chamois) before I put in the detail hairs hanging beyond the face boundary, then went to the eyebrows. The plan is to work up and around the head, down the neck, then do the hand last. I should add this image is only a portion of the full drawing.

I like working on unique animals and ones that I think are a challenge to draw well (like the warthog). It helps me improve and develop my technique. The best way to get better is to step outside your comfort zone and try something different.