Creating Textures with Lines and Strokes
As you start to draw from nature, you will want to indicate textures such as stone, wood, grass, shingles, etc. Not only will this give your drawings authenticity, but it will also add liveliness and interest. Remember, however, that you are not copying an object, but indicating it this means that you do not want to strive for a photographic copy, but, you do want to combine values and strokes to simulate the quality of the object's texture. When lines and tones are combined, you achieve the...
Eye Level The Foundation of Perspective
Many students fail in their attempts at drawing because they're unaware of eye level. Actually, it's such a simple concept, so seemingly obvious, that perhaps it's this very quality that causes it to be overlooked. Eye level refers to the height at which your eyes observe an object. You may want to write this sentence and place it where you can see it often, so that it becomes part of you. It's that important to your development as an artist. To actually demonstrate what is meant by eye level,...
Creating a Center of Interest
Ferdinand Petrie struggled before deciding to make the end of the fishing pier his center of interest for this drawing. The long flat rocks with the boats and houses would have made an interesting subject. He also felt the floating dock and stone pier were importanl, and the large shack and trees in the background could make good subject matter. Care had to be taken because there were actually three drawings that could have been made of this one subject. To use the end of the fishing pier, the...
Drawing Dogs
1. Here is the hunting animal on the job with tail cocked, nose alert for scents, muscles tensed for constant action. The artist began by completely drawing in the dog's outline and indicating its more important muscle, tendon, and bone structures in the torso and legs. At this stage, he was most concerned with getting the animal's shape, proportions, and attitude as correct as possible. 2. Here, the artist was concerned with values. Since this is a short-haired dog, the values will be closely...
Drawing Horses
1. To begin, the artist drew in the outline of the animal. Then he marked j a few indentations to indicate bone or muscle groupings such as in the , shoulders and the point of the hip. He ' took care to show the shapes of the tail and the forelock and the placement of the eyes and nostrils. He marked off the junction of the hairline and hoofs, and he showed the protrusion of the elbow. 2. At this stage the artist established the light source and placed the shaded areas lightly on the right side...
Drawing Spherical Objects
Besides the obvious, perfect spheres that form the structure of a ball whether a golf, tennis, or basketball there are those objects which have shapes based on the sphere in one form or another. An egg, a nut, an apple, and an orange all have a modified sphere as their basic underlying form. Objects such as a bowl, a cup, and a tea kettle can be based on part of a sphere. DEPARTURES FROM THE GEOMETRIC SPHERE The departures from the geometric sphere may be quite radical at times, but all the...
Drawing a Cottontail Rabbit
1. The artist drew the outline of a rabbit squatting in a very alert position so it can feed without being disturbed. Note that all lines pertaining to the animal's proportions and actions are included. The eye is somewhat more finished off than the rest of the features. To indicate folds and breaks in form, the artist used dark strokes. 2. With short brisk strokes, the artist shaded in all the fur making sure to follow the patterns of the forms and muscles. There are no hard edges anywhere...
Selecting Colored Pencils
Dersonal experience is the best guide lo finding the brands ot colored pencils most useful to you. Here are some of the pencils now available, with a few brief remarks about them A. Berol Prismacolor USA Excellent, smooth lay-down superior hue saturation and soft, thick leads. B. Venus Spectracolor USA Close runner-up to A C. Derwent Studio Great Britain Adequate lay-down hue saturation less strong than A and B medium-soft, thick lead. D. Niji Japan Similar in quality to C but fashioned as...
Drawing a Harbor Scene
1. Simplify the harbor scene if there are 200 boats in the harbor, don't try to indicate 199 of them. Select a few that make an interesting pattern and forget the rest. It is also a good idea to draw a moveable object first. There is nothing more frustrating than to be half-finished with a harbor scene drawing and have the boats leave. The shacks, docks, and trees will always be around, but the fishermen have a habit of moving their boats at the wrong time. In this harbor scene, an early...
Using Colored Pencils with a Solvent
All colored pencils are to some degree turpentine soluble, but only some brands are water soluble. Those that are water soluble include the Caran D'Ache Supracolor, Venus Watercolor-ing, and Mongol brands. The Pris-macolor and Spectracolor brands are among those that are not water soluble. For the look that most closely resembles watercolor or painting, the water soluble pencils work best. Pencils that are only turpentine soluble also yield a fluid and painterly effect, but they do so with less...
Drawing Cylindrical Objects
After doing so many drawings with straight lines, you can probably do them now with ease and confidence. They'll become still easier as you continue with future projects. But if you're to draw objects based on the cylinder, the cone, or the sphere, you must also practice drawing the curved lines that form them. Hold your pencil still the ordinary office kind in the position you prefer the usual writing one, or under your palm. Swing your arm from your elbow, and even from the shoulder, if you...
Practice Exercises
Collect four boxes and draw them at different distances below eye level. You might place them on top of one another and draw the topmost first remove it and draw the second, and so on until you've drawn the fourth. Notice that as you come down to the lowest box, you see more of its top plane than you did on the first box. Compare the top planes of all four of them when you've finished. This type of practice exercise is indispensible. It doesn't result in a drawing worthy of being hung on a...
Drawing Cubic Objects
Note that the broken guidelines indicate that the table Is a cubic form. You can use the same office pencil that you ve been using, but now get several drawing pads. They come in varying sizes 9 x 12 23 x 30 cm. , 11 x 14 28 x 35 5 cm. . 12 x 18 30 x 46 cm. , 14 x 17 35.5 x 43 cm , 19 x 24 48 x 61 cm. . Don't let a salesperson sell you any fancy or expensive paper its not necessary at this stage of your development Besides you're going to use reams of it just doing the exercises. So get the...
How To Handle the Pencil
When you starl to draw, hold the pencil two different ways. The first is the way you hold a pencil to write a letter The second is how you normally hold a brush lor oil painting belween the thumb and firsl finger, wilh the pencil under the palm of the hand Notice in the illustration right how the little finger acts as a guide for your hand. It is easier to control the amount of pressure on the pencil when you et the nail of your little finger glide over the paper. In both methods of holding the...
Fundamental Strokes
There are a few basic strokes that will be helpful when drawing on location if you apply them You will discover many more strokes on your own as you practice and sketch. Three pencils, 2H, HB, and 2B, were used here, but do try each exercise with different grade pencils. Keep in mind that strokes of all kinds and combinations should be drawn without trying to create a picture, although some of the exercises may take on the appearance of actual objects see below . Here are some of the many...
Creating Values
The placemen of values is of prime importance in the composition of a picture. It is possible to create all the values in a drawing by using just one pencil. To do this, you must use a pencil that will make a dark value. Try using a 2B. By varying the pressure on the paper with a 2B pencil, you can render all values between white and black. Another way of creating values is by using different grade pencils for different values. You can make all the values between white and black with seven...
Mixing Colors
Mixing color with colored pencils is a quick, almost instant procedure that requires very little equipment. Artists who work with these pencils often report experiencing an intensity of concentration a total absorption which takes them by surprise. The medium's speed and directness of handling usually spurs these colorists on to further experimentation, which is excellent, since an active pursuit of color often brings fresh and unfamiliar results. This is a good time to think about starting a...
Handling The Pencil
Like the athlete who is ready for the challenge of competition, you are now ready to begin drawing. However, before the athlete starts the game, he must loosen up to ' relieve tension. The same is true for the artist. You must loosen up before you meet the challenge of that white paper. In this section you'll learn how to hold the pencil and how to loosen up. Then you'll discover how to create values, forms, and textures with the pencil and how to smudge