Mike Theuer, pencil portraits from your photos

     I live in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania U.S.A.
     I mostly do my artwork these days. I draw portraits. I teach watercolor painting at the nearby Pennsylvania State University. I also show my work in pencil, watercolor and oil paint at Galleries. That is if I am not making dinner or a hamster cage. While my wife works as middle-school counselor, I'm also the stay-at-home dad for my three boys!
     I'm not art trained. I have a Bachelor's in English and a Master's in Psychology. And before portraits, I was mainly a business owner. As for my ability in art, I got great training from a great teacher in High School. There I learned to use different media and aim my knack for details at capturing nature, drawing my first portrait from a photo. Nowadays full time since 2007 I've been learning to use pencil to capture faces. It's not always easy. Each portrait turns out to be an education . . . and a pleasure.
     I try to make a striking resemblance in my portraits. But though I am able to draw photographically (like the waterfall drawing I did in High School, click the link "first" immediately above) I try not to make them look like a photo. I feel if I wanted a photo, I should use a camera. Instead I strive to make them freer, becoming rough toward the edges of the paper. I do this on one hand because I like the look of the pencil marks. And I do it on the other hand for the challenge - drawing freely yet accurately is harder. The eyes are the only exception. I smudge and erase them to look photographic. I do this hoping they'll draw your attention. To me the eyes are where the resemblance is.