Working with Old Photographs

Old photographs, mostly all from the 19th and early part of the 20th century, provide a lot of inspiration for my drawings and paintings when I want to draw a human. The photos can be found in antique and vintage stores. Many times people will just give photos to me. But when I choose a photo to work from for a drawing or painting, it is often because of some element that the person (or people) has that catches my eye. That’s when the story begins. I let the image of the human(s) tell the story. Anyone else might see a completely different story. For example, one photo of a couple in their wedding clothes told me a story of a couple joining up as partners on a midwestern farm. The clothes indicated this was a winter wedding, which would allow them time to prepare for the heavy spring work ahead. They both look knackered and they both look like they just want to crawl under warm covers and recover from all the wedding preparations and celebrations. There’s work to be done. But if you looked at the photo, you might see something else.