How To Draw: Sketch and draw anything, anywhere with this inspiring and practical handbook

JakeSpicerisanartistanddrawingtutorbasedinBrighton,England.Heisheadtutorattheindependentdrawingschool,Draw,aco-directoroftheDrawingCircusandheregularlyrunsportraitandfiguredrawingcoursesfortheCamdenArtsCentreandNationalPortraitGallery.

CONTENTS

1JUSTDRAWWhyDraw?HowDoIDrawMoreOften?WhatDoIDrawWith?Paper&SketchbooksHowDoIUseThisBook

2FIRSTMARKSMakeMarksDrawYourselfAFigure

3MAKINGDRAWINGSTechniques&Attitudes

AtHomePortraitsDrawingRoomsDrawingLight&ShadowDrawingAnimals

Out&AboutSketchingonPublicTransportUrbanSketchingRuralLandscapesDrawingTreesLittleFigures

AtMuseums&GalleriesCastDrawingFocussedTranscriptionsStealLikeanArtistSketchbookofCuriosities

AtWorkSequentialNarrativeDrawingforDesignMaps&DirectionsTheUltimateStickman

InaLifeClassWarm-UpsGesturalDrawingsNegativeSpaceTonalDrawingConstructedApproach

AttheDrawingBoardPapertoPaperDrawingHandsFolds&FabricsFromScreentoPaper

4DRAWINGSKILLSAboutDrawingSourcesofImagery

CoreSkillsEdgesRelationshipsShapesToneProblemSolving

CompositionArmaturesDirectingtheEyePerspective

ResourcesAcknowledgments

HowtousethisEbook

Selectoneofthechaptersfromthemaincontentslistandyouwillbetakenstraighttothatchapter.

Lookoutforlinkedtext(whichisinblue)throughouttheebookthatyoucanselecttohelpyounavigatebetweenrelatedsections.

Youcandoubletapimagesandtablestoincreasetheirsize.Toreturntotheoriginalview,justtapthecrossinthetopleft-handcornerofthescreen.

1JUSTDRAW

EVERYBODYCANLEARNTODRAW.Andanyonewhocandrawcanalwaysimprove.Theworldweliveinisahighlyvisualone,andweareincreasinglycommunicatingthroughpictures.But,incontrasttothoseinstantaneousvisualblasts,theprocessofdrawingencouragesustotakethetimetoreallylookatanotherperson,objectsandoursurroundings.Theresponsewecreatewithmarksonatactilesurfacedemonstratestheefforttoseeandunderstandthosethingsbetter.

Manyofusfalloutofdrawingatayoungage,someofuskeepdrawingsporadicallyandafewofusmakeitpartofourday-to-dayroutine.Althoughmostchildrenenjoydrawingandpainting,aswegrowupweoftenbecomeself-consciousaboutitandfrustratedwhenourpicturesdon’tcomeoutasweintended.Althoughsomepeoplehaveanaturalaptitudefordrawing,theabilitytodrawisn’tatalentthatyouarebornwith;it’saskill,likelearningtoplayaninstrument,oranotherlanguage,thatrequirespatienceandpractice.

Whateveryourlevelofexperience,theonlywaytogetbetteratdrawingistodrawmore.Thisbookisintendedtogiveyouconfidenceinyourowndrawingandtomakeiteasytofitdrawingintoyourlife.

WHYDRAW?

PICTUREMAKINGAdrawingcanbeapicture;arepresentationofathingwehaveseenorimagined.Drawingasaprocessisanimmediatewayofstructuringanobservationorbringinganideaintobeing.Painters,printmakersandanybodymakingpicturesandobjectsinanymediumwillbenefitfromdevelopingfundamentaldrawingskills.Drawingasasensibilitycanextendbeyondtheconventionalmediumsweassociatewithit;sketchescanbemadeinpaint,film,builtinthree-dimensionsandsoon.ForthepurposeofthisbookI’llbewritingaboutdrawinginitsmostconventionalform.

VISUALCOMMUNICATIONModernimage-makingtechniquestendtobelargelymechanicalordigital,andsodrawingisnowcommonlyseenasanartisticpractice.Drawingcanbeart,forsure,butitneedn’tberestrictedtoartisticuses.Thinkofdrawingasalanguage.

sure,butitneedn’tberestrictedtoartisticuses.Thinkofdrawingasalanguage.Languagecanbeusedindifferentways:towritepoetry,academicpapers,washingmachineinstructionsandroadsigns.Drawingisasimilarlyversatilevisuallanguagewithitsownvocabularyofmarksthatcanbeusedformanyapplications.Whetheryouaredrawingamaptogivesomebodydirections,sketchingadiagramtoexplainhowtoplacefurnitureinaroomorstoryboardingananimationinvisualsnapshots,someideasarejustmoreefficientlyrepresentedbydrawing.

DRAWINGASATHINKINGTOOLAlmosteveryman-madethingthatweseearoundusstartedasadrawing:frombuildingstofurniture,toposters,tostationary.Asanaidtothinking,sketchingsomethingvisualonpaperallowsustoexploreideasinaholisticwayratherthanpinningthemdowntofixedlinguisticconcepts,anddrawingsmadeinversatilemediumslikepencilcaneasilybeadaptedastheideaevolves.Justlikeanylanguage,drawingcanbeusedplayfully,providinganoutletforcreativethoughtandemotionalexpression,channelledthroughthetactileprocessofmark-making.

LEARNINGTOSEEObservationaldrawingisameansofexercisingourvisualfaculty,anditallowsustopractiselooking.Itcanalsobeapowerfultoolforfocussingourattention:itteachesustoselectasubject’smostimportantqualitiesandmakevisualdiscoveries,encouragingcuriosityandimprovedunderstanding.

Weareconstantlybombardedwithvisualimagery;becomingmorevisuallyliterateallowsustobediscerningabouthowwelookandhowweareaffectedbytheimageswecomeintocontactwith.Aswegetolder,wealsolooklesscloselyatfamiliarthings;drawingcanopenoureyestoafreshandchildlikewonderinthemundane.

HOWDOIDRAWMOREOFTEN?

Todrawbetter,you’llneedtofindthetimetodrawmoreoften.Drawingrequiressomeattentionandfocus,andthisbookisintendedtohelpyou.Treatitlikeakindbutfirmfriend,politelyremindingyouthattogetbetteryou’llneedtoputsomeworkin–andthisishowtodoit.Firstly,youwanttoremovethebarriersthatstopyoufromdrawing,makingiteasytofindtimeandmotivationtodraw.

TIMEDon’thavetimetodraw?Makethetime.Startwithafewmanageablegoalsandusetheexercisesinthisbooktostructurethem.Attempt3–4exercisesaweek,orfindawaytoworkdrawingintoanotherregularactivity;sketchfellowpassengersonthemorningcommute,forexample,ordrawinthekitchenwhilewaitingforthekettletoboil.Usethetimeinbetweenotheractivitiestoprovide

afoundationofregularpractice,thenputasideanhourortwoontopofthattositdownanddrawinearnestathomeoratanartclass.Theexampledrawingregimesyou’llfindattheendofthisbookwillhelpyoutostructureyourtime.

CONFIDENCEWorriedyou’renotverygoodatdrawing?That’swhyyou’relearning!Rememberthateverybodyneedstostartsomewhere.Yourfirstdrawingsmightbeclumsyandmisproportioned,buttheyarepartofanongoingprocessandyou’llonlyimprovebyengagingwiththatprocess.Ifyou’reself-consciousaboutbeingseendrawing,startoffdrawinginprivateandslowlybuilduptomorepubliclocations,orgooutdrawingwithafriend.Whenyou’relearning,youneedtomakemany,manybaddrawingsbeforeyoumakeanygoodones,sobegentlewithyourselfandstickwithit!

SUBJECTNothingtodraw?Therearethingstodraweverywhere;thetrickisfindingsubjectsthatinterestyou.LearntoseebeautyinthemundaneandusethepracticaladviceinChapter3tohelpyou.Workoutwhereyourinterestslie;doyouenjoydrawingnaturalforms?Figures?Buildings?Startlookingforpotentialsubjectseverywhereyougo,seekoutinspirationbyengagingwiththeworldaroundyou,anddon’tjustwaittobestruckbyit.

EQUIPMENTNothingtodrawwith?Makesureyou’realwayspreparedtodraw,andifyou’renotprepared,becreativewithwhatyouhavetohand.Keepyourdrawingmaterialssomewhereaccessibleandmaketwodrawingkits:afullbells-and-whistleskitforusingathomeortakingtoartclasses,andapick-up-and-gokittotakewithyoueverywhere.

MAINDRAWINGKITMakeupamaindrawingkitwithallofyourfavouritedrawingmaterials;haveplentyofyourfavouritepaperinafolderoranarttube,withadrawingboardifnecessary,andasketchbookforquicksketchesandnotes.Includeafewitemsyou’veneverusedbeforeforvariety,alongwithextrasofeverythingthatyouuseregularlyincaseanythinggetslostorbroken.Getadedicatedcarryingcaseforyourmaterials,suchasatoolboxorarobustbag.

foryourmaterials,suchasatoolboxorarobustbag.

SMALLDRAWINGKITGetusedtoalwayscarryingasmall,hardbacksketchbookandasmallpencilcasecontainingafewpensorpencilswithaccompanyingsharpenersanderasers.Keepitaccessiblesothatyoucanwhipitoutforafewminutes’drawingatamoment’snotice,andmakesureyoutakeiteverywhere:whenyougotowork,whenyougooutforameal,whenyoutakethedogforawalk…

IMPROVISEDDRAWINGKITIfyoudon’thaveyourdrawingkitwithyou,improvise.Makeapencilsketchonthebackofareceipt,oradrawingonanapkinwithaborrowedpen;drawwithastickinthesandifyouhaveto!Allyouneedisasurfacetodrawonandsomethingtomakeamarkwith.

WHATDOIDRAWWITH?

Therangeofavailabledrawingmaterialsisvastandconstantlyexpanding.Asastartingpoint,herearesomeconventionaldrawingmaterialsthatI’veusedinthebook.

GRAPHITEGraphitemakesasmoothgreymarkwithaslightlyshinysurface;graphitemediumstendtomakeconsistentlinearmarks.Graphitepencilsareveryadaptable,canberubbedoutcleanly,andgiveacontrolledline.Pencilshavedifferentgrades,measuredonascaleof9H–9B.Bpencilsaresofterandmakemarkswithagreatertonalrange,whereasHpencilsareharderandgivemoresubtletyoftone.

Graphitesticksaresimilartopencils,butaremadeofsolidgraphiteandcanvaryinsize;theyoftensuitboldermark-makingandrequirelesssharpening.Powderedgraphitecanbeappliedwithafinger,abrushorrolledpapertocreateamassoftonequickly.

Graphitepencil

Graphitestick

CHARCOALCharcoalmakesamattblackmark.Ithasatendencytomakeexpressivelinesofvaryingweightandcanbeusedforquicklyblockingintone.Willowcharcoalcomesinsticksthatresembletwigs;itisbrittleandmakesadark,densemarkwhenfirstapplied,butcanbeeasilyrubbedoffasurface,leavingalightertonebehind.

Vinecharcoalisusuallycutintolong,thinregularblocks,isoftenharderthanwillowandcomesindifferentgradesthatcanbebuiltuptomakesubtletonalgradients.

Compressedcharcoalisgroundcharcoalboundintoastickorthecoreofapencilusingawaxorgumbinder.Compressedcharcoalgenerallymakesaharder,densermarkthanregularcharcoalandismoredifficulttoerase.

Willowcharcoal

Vinecharcoal

Compressedcharcoal

SHARPENINGDifferentmediumsandpersonalpreferencesrequiredifferentapproachestosharpening.Pencilscanbesharpenedwithapencilsharpenerorknife,althoughcharcoalpencilhasatendencytoshatterandshouldbetreatedcarefully.Snappingwillowcharcoalwillgiveyouasharpedge;sandpapercanbeusedforsharpeningcharcoalandgraphite.Somecharcoalpencilshaveapapercasingandcanbeunwrappedratherthansharpened.

Papercasing

Graphitepencil

Knife

Pencilsharpener

ERASINGCharcoalisbesterasedwithaputtyeraser.Thesecomeinvariouskneads:soft,mediumandhard.Themalleableeraserliftsthecharcoaloffthepageandit

mediumandhard.Themalleableeraserliftsthecharcoaloffthepageanditoftenendsupblack,butisstilluseable.Plasticerasersareidealforerasinggraphiteandcanbeusedformoreprecisework;trycuttingplasticeraserstosizewithacraftknife.Thinkoftheeraserasadrawingtoolthatcandrawlightbackintodark,notjustasameansofgettingridofmistakes.

Puttyeraser

Plasticeraser

SMUDGINGAtitsworst,smudgingamarkcanbealazyandimprecisewayofcreatingtone;atitsbestitcanbeawayofmakingnewmarksandchangingthenatureofexistingmarks.Tortillions(tightlyrolledpapersticks),cloth,erasersandfingerscanallbeusedtosmudgeamark.

FIXINGSpray-onfixativeisusefulforfixingyourdrawingstoallowyoutoaddmorelayerstoyourdrawingortoavoidsmudgingintransit,particularlyinsketchbookswheredrawingsmadewithasoftmediumcanimprintontheoppositepage.Graphitedoesn’tusuallyneedtobefixedwhilecharcoalalmostinvariablydoes.Anartist-qualityfixativeisideal,althoughhairspraycanbeacheap(andfragrant)alternative.

PENSPensareinherentlylinearandusuallygiveapermanentmarkthatcan’tbeerased.Birosorballpointpenscangiveasurprisingvarietyoflineweight,fibre-tippeddrawingpensgiveaconsistentmarkandgood-qualityfelt-tippedpensmakeboldmarksandcomeindifferenttonesandcolours.Fountainpenscanbedrawnwithbutaren’talwaysaswellsuitedastheircheapercounterparts.Experimentwithpensthatarerunningoutofink;thebrokenlinecanmakeforinterestingeffects.

Biro/ballpoint

Fibre-tip

DIPPENSDippenscomprisedofnibandholdercancreateenergeticandvariedlines,and,despiteneedingtobedippedintoinkperiodically,theyareremarkably

despiteneedingtobedippedintoinkperiodically,theyareremarkablyconsistent.Findanibbestsuitedtoyourpurpose;calligraphicnibsaren’tsuitedtomostdrawingstyles,andmappingnibscanbetoofineforsketching.Alwayscleanthenibproperlyafteruse.Othermaterialscanbecut,dippedintoink,anddrawnwith:bamboo,straws,sticks,feathersandbrushes.Experimentwiththemalltofindnewwaysofmakingmarks.

Dip/fountainpen

Penscanbeagreatmediumforpractisingyourmark-making.Thisstudy,madewithadippenandink,usesbothavarietyofdirectionalmarksandareasofsolidinktoconveythetextureofabird’swing.

PAPER&SKETCHBOOKS

PAPERTYPEDon’toverlooktheimportanceofpaper;itcanmakeasmuchdifferencetotheoutcomeofyourdrawingasthematerialyoudrawwith.Agood-qualitydrawingpaper(cartridgepaper)ofanappropriatemediumtoheavyweight(65–145lb.,or100–200gsm)issuitableformostmaterials.Regularofficepaper,notebookpaperandfoundpaperscanbeusefulforimpromptusketching,butwillgenerallybetoolightandmaynotlast.Sugarpaperandnewsprintarecheap,butbecomebrittleanddiscolourquickly.Experimentwithdifferentpapertofindthesurfaceyoumostliketodrawon:draftsmenwhoprefertodrawonasmoothsurfacemaylikeBristolboard,whilethosepreferringaheavytexturemightprefertexturedwatercolourpaper.Ifyouwantyourdrawingstolast,useacid-freepapertoavoidthepaperdiscolouringovertime.

WEIGHTWeightofpaperismeasuredinpoundsperream(poundageorlb.)oringramspersquaremetre(gsm).Papersbetween65–145lb.(100–200gsm)aregoodfordrawingon.Theweightofthepaperwillaffectthefeelofthemarkonthepage–althoughweightdoesn’talwaysrelatetoquality.Differentpaperswillsuitdifferentpreferencesandmediums;beforeyoubuy,doalittleresearchintotheidealpaperforyourpreferreddrawingmaterial.

COLOUR&TONEBleachedwhitepaperismostcommon,butyoumightwishtotryanoff-white,ivoryorbuffpaper,asthesewillshowoffdrawnmarksmoresympatheticallyandcanbehighlightedwithwhite.Youcanusecolouredpapers,butifyoudo,firsttesthowthemediumlooksonthepaper.

SKETCHBOOKSSketchbooksarepracticalandpersonal;theyprotectyourpaper,keepyourworkinorderandsmallsketchbooksareeasytocarryaround.Ring-boundbookscanbefoldedback,givingaflatplaneofpaper,butthebindingscanbreakiftreatedroughly.Hardbacksketchbooksarenaturallysupported;softbackbookscanbecheap,butbendeasily.Alwaysthinkaboutthetypeofpaperinyoursketchbook,andfindasizeanddimensionthatsuitsyourpurposes.Loosepapercanalwaysbeboundintoasketchbooklater.

Left:Ring-bound;Right:Hardback

DRAWINGBOARDSYou’llneedaflatsurfacetorestyourpaperon,ideallysomethingyoucanholdatanangleandtakearoundwithyouwhilesketching.Arigid,lightweightpieceofboardslightlylargerthanyourpaperisideal;pegs,clipsormaskingtapewillsecureyourpaperinplace.

HOWDOIUSETHISBOOK?

Thisbookisacompanionalongtheroadoflearningtodraw.Justlikeanygoodtravellingcompanion,itisheretolendyousupportwhenyou’reonanuphillstruggleandtospuryouontomakedrawingswhenyouhaveadipinconfidenceorenthusiasm,givingyoustraightforward,practicalexercisestofollowsothattheonlyexcusenottodraweverydayisthatyoucan’tfindyourpencils(andifyoucantfindyourpencils,rereadpages12–13!).

Thereareendlessvariationsondrawingexercisesandasmanysubjectstodrawasthereareobjectsintheworldandideasinyourhead.Thisbookisaspringboardtocatapultyouheadfirstintodrawing,adoorwayintoadifferentwayofseeingandasignpostthatpointsyouonaclearroutesothatyoufeelconfidenttobeginthejourney.

Asyoubecomemoreconfidentandmoreinterestedinthedrawingprocess,youmightwanttotakealookatChapter4,whichexploresthenatureofdrawinginalittlemoredepthandcanprepareyoufortakingyourdrawingpracticefurther.Thenextpageswillhelpyouworkoutwhereyouarewithyourdrawingandguideyouaroundthebook.

IFYOU’REACOMPLETEBEGINNER,ORYOUJUSTWANTTOSTARTATTHEBEGINNING…Whetheryou’recompletelynewtodrawingoryoujustwanttogooverthebasicsbeforedivingin,startatChapter2.Evenifyoudon’tthinkyoucandrawatall,Chapter2isawarm-upchapter,intendedtogiveyouconfidenceandafewfundamentalskillstobuildon.Onceyou’veworkedyourwaythroughFirstMarks,moveontoChapter3,readtheintroductiontothechapter,findanexercisesuitableforyourlocationandinterests,andgiveitago!

Chapter2:FirstMarks

IFYOUARECOMFORTABLEDRAWINGANDWANTTOGETSTARTED…Ifyoufeelconfidentenoughtogetstuckinrightaway,startatChapter3.Readtheintroductionandthenlaunchinandmakesomedrawings.Thischaptercontainslotsofpracticalexercisesandisbrokendownintolocations,soallyouneedtodoisfindthelocationthatbestrepresentswhereyouare,findanexercisethatappealstoyou,readthroughandstartdrawing.Youcanadapttheexercisestoothersituationsasyouneedto.Chapter4willprovidesomeinterestingelementstothinkaboutwhenyou’rereadytogofurther,butisonly

reallyusefulonceyou’vehadplentyofdrawingexperience.

Chapter3:MakingDrawings

IFYOU’RECONFIDENTINYOURDRAWINGANDWANTTOGOINTOMOREDEPTH…Thisisthepointtostartfocussingyourstudy.YoumightwanttoreadthroughsomeofthedrawingtheoryinChapter4,oryoumightwishtolaunchrightintodrawingwithChapter3.WorkoutwhatitisthatyouwanttoimproveonandfindandadaptanexerciseinChapter3thatsuitsyourintentions.Seetheexercisesasastartingpoint,andfindwaystoadapttheexercisesthatarerelevanttoyouinanylocation.The‘ToImprove...’sectionsattheendofeachexercisewillalsopointyoutoarelevantpartofChapter4tohelpyourelatethetheorytoyourdrawingpractice.

Themoreyoudraw,themorecuriousyouwillbecomeaboutwhatreallygoesintotheprocessoflookingandmark-making.Usethefinalchapterofthisbooktogodeeperintodrawingwithalookintothefundamentalskillsandconceptsthatliebehindtheprocess.

conceptsthatliebehindtheprocess.

Chapter4:DrawingSkills

2FIRSTMARKS

Ifyou’veneverdrawnbefore,orifyoujustwanttostartatthebeginning,thenstarthere.Theaimofthischapteristogiveyouconfidenceandgetyouoffontherightfootwithyourdrawing.Theexercisesinthischaptereachtakenomorethan15minutes,soallthreecanbedoneinunderanhour,usingbasicmaterials.Asyouprogress,bearinmindthefollowingadvice:

•Thereisnorightorwrongwaytodraw,justbetterandworsewaysofachievingcertainkindsofdrawings.Findandpractiseapproachesthatworkforyou.

•Mostproblemsinobservationaldrawingcomefromproblemsinlooking:lookfirst,andthendraw.

•Everymarkyoumakeshouldbetheresultofaclearobservationorintention,learntomakeyourmarkswithconfidence.

•Learningtodrawislikelearninganewlanguage:atfirstyourdrawingswillbeclumsy,andyou’llstumbleoverlinesasyoumightstumbleoveraforeignphrase.Intimeyou’lllearntobecomemorefluentandarticulateinyourdrawing.

•Asyoudrawyoumightbehamperedbyself-criticism.Replaceyourinternalcriticwithaninternaltutorbyturningunhelpfulself-criticismintousefulquestions(seehere).

•Youlearntodrawonlybydrawing.Readabittohelpyou,thendraw,drawanddrawsomemore.

•Failureisanintegralpartoflearning;you’llmakelotsofbaddrawingswhileyou’relearningtodraw.Each‘bad’drawingwillbeasteptowardsbetterdrawings.

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Penorpencil•Paperorsketchpad

Setup:Sitdownatatableandmakesureyou’recomfortable.Ifyoulike,putonsomemusictorelaxyourself,andmakesurenothingisgoingtodistractyouforalittlewhile.Youdon’tneedanyspecialequipmentfortheseexercises;simplyapenorpencilandapieceofpaper.

penorpencilandapieceofpaper.

MAKEMARKS

Inordertodrawbetteryou’llwanttodevelopapersonalvocabularyofmarksthatyoucanusetomakeyourdrawings,andlinesarethemostfundamentalelementofyourvocabulary.You’llwanttofeelconfidentindrawingaline,andbecomefluentwithyourmark-making:beginnersoftenstartwithahesitant,featherylinethatisindistinctandslowtodraw.

Beforedrawingafixedsubject,fillafewpiecesofpaperwithabstractmarks,linesandscribbles;getcomfortablewithyourdrawingmaterialsandenjoythetactilesensationofmakingmarks.

METHODStartwithasimpleline.Maketwodotsonyourpaperand,withouthesitation,jointhosedotswithasinglesmoothstraightline.Repeattheline,makingyourmarksswiftlyandconfidently.Varytheweightofyourmark,pressingharderforadarkline,ormakingagentle,palemark.

Experimentwithlinesanddifferentmarks.Trypressingheavilyatthestartofalineandgraduallyeasingoffthepressuretocreatealinewithdirection.Makethelinecurvebetweenpoints.

Drawsomesimpleshapestopractiseyourmark-making–usedotsandlinestoconstructasimplesquare,addingdiagonalstoturnitintoacube.

Experimentwithholdingyourpencilwithdifferentgrips–holditwithawritinggrip,orfartherbacklikeapaintermightholdapaintbrush.Explorethevarietyoflinesthatdifferentgripsfacilitate.

DRAWYOURSELF

Tomakebetterobservationaldrawings,you’llneedtoestablishastrongconnectionbetweenyoureyeandyourhand.Whenyoubeginanobservationaldrawing,itcanhelptolookforedgesandshapesfirst.Lookforanedgetodraw,tracethatlinewithyoureyeandthenmakethatlinesmoothlyandconfidentlyonyourpaperwithyourpencilorpen.Onelineinisolationmightlookstrangeandabstract,butasyougatherseverallinestogetheryou’llstarttoseeyoursubjectemergingonthepage.

Thisexerciseisallabouttheprocessoflooking;theoutcomeisn’timportant.First,tryitwithyourfeetasthesubject,thenrepeattheprocess,nowwithyourhandasthesubject.

METHODPropyourfeetupsothatyoucanseethematthesametimeasthepaper,makingiteasytoflickyoureyesbetweenthetwo.Lookforedgesinyourshoe;tracethatedgewithyoureye,holdtheimageofitinyourheadforamomentandthenturnitintoalineonyourpage.Makesmooth,confidentlinesandspendmoretimelookingatyourfeetthanatyourdrawing.Keepthedrawinglinearanddon’ttrytodraweverything:beselective.

Forgetwhatitisthatyouaredrawingandsimplyseeedgesandshapes–don’tthinkoftheshoeasashoe,butasapuzzleofabstractshapesthatfittogethertomakeavisualjigsaw.

Ifalinegoesinadirectionyoudon’tintend,re-drawitratherthaneraseit,leavingyourmisplacedlineonthepage.Thiswillstopyouspendinghalfthedrawingerasingwhatyouhavealreadydrawn.

AFIGURE

Whenwedrawfamiliarthings,wetendtobringallofourpreconceptionsaboutthatthingtoourdrawing.Wedon’talwaysdrawwhatwesee,butinsteaddrawwhatweexpecttosee.Learntodrawjustfromobservation,lookingandmakingmarksinresponsetowhatyou’veobserved,trustingyoureye.Copytheupside-downdrawingasyouseeithere,workingfromthetopcornerandsimplycopyingonelineatatime.Don’tthinkaboutwhatyoursubjectisanddon’tturnyourpaperorsketchbookarounduntilyouarefinished.

METHODCopy(don’ttrace!)thedrawingwithoutturningthebookaround.Startwiththeoutlinefirst.

Startinginthetopleftcorner,workyourwaydownandtotheright,lookingforshapesandlinesanddrawingtheminwithouttryingtointerpretthem.Whenyouarefinishedyoucanturnthedrawingaroundandassessyourwork.

3MAKINGDRAWINGS

STARTASYOUMEANTOGOONTakenatfacevalue,eachoftheexercisesinthischapterisaquickandaccessiblewaytofitdrawingintoyourday,whereveryouareandwhateveryouwanttodraw.Therewilloftenbeobstaclesthatstandinthewayofyourdrawing;lackofequipment,confidence,timeorsubjectsarethemostcommon.Removetheseobstaclesandyou’llfindregulardrawingbecomesmucheasier.

OVERCOMINGOBSTACLES•Don’thavetherightequipment?Useheretohelpyouselectyourkit,and

makesureyoualwayshavesomethingtodrawwithclosetohand.

•Notsurewhattodraw?Tryoutdifferentexercisesinthischaptertofindoutwhatyouenjoydrawing,thenlookforthatsubjecteverywhere;ifyoulikedrawingpeople,findthepeople-drawingexerciseineachsection;ifyouenjoydrawinglandscapesorinteriors,lookfortheexercisesthatrelatetothosesubjectsinstead.

•Worriedthatyou’llmakebaddrawings?Youdefinitelywill.Andsomegooddrawingstoo.Youneverknowhowadrawingwillcomeoutuntilyou’vemadeit,andyouwon’tmakebetterdrawingswithoutpractise.Engagewiththeprocessratherthanworryingabouttheoutcome.

•Havetroublefindingtimetodraw?Aslongasyoucanidentifywhatyouwanttodrawandyouhavethematerialstohandyoushouldbeabletostartdrawingalmostimmediatelyinanylocation.Makethemostofyourtime:anygapoffiveminutesspentstandingaroundwaitingcouldbefiveminutesspentlookinganddrawing.

Eachexerciseisastartingpoint;alternativesaresuggestedattheendofeachsectionalongwithsuggestionsofwhatyoushouldpractisetoimprove.Useyour

sectionalongwithsuggestionsofwhatyoushouldpractisetoimprove.Useyourinitiativeandadaptthetechniquestosuityourownintentions.Ifyoufindanexerciseyouenjoy,tryusingitinadifferentlocation,ortryusingalternativemediums.

STYLEGiventhesamesubjecttodraw,everybodywillmakedifferentdrawings.Don’tworryaboutestablishingyourown‘style’ofdrawing.Styleisanebulousconceptcomprisingelementsofthematerialsyoudrawwith,howyouperceiveyoursubjectsandyourphysicalapplicationofmarks.Byallmeanslearnfromotherartists,butdon’ttrytobethem;learntoborrowelementsfromtheirdrawingstoassimilateintoyourownpractice.Learningtodrawisajourneyofself-discovery,experimentationandinnovation,andittakesalongtimetolearntodrawlikeyourself.

TECHNIQUES&ATTITUDES

TECHNIQUESTechniquesarestructuredprocesses,developedtohelpyouarriveatparticularoutcomes.Adrawingtechniqueislikearecipeand,justlikecookingupanewdish,youcanmakeaparticularkindofdrawingbyfollowingtheappropriatetechniquetoachievethedesiredoutcome.Aswithcooking,sometimesitwillwork,sometimesitwon’t,andpractisewillhelpyoutoimprove.Anytechniquethatyoulearnshouldbeseasonedtoyourtastetomakeityourown.Overtime,youwilldevelopyourowntechniquesthatincorporatethevarietyofapproachesyou’velearntinthepasttocreateoutcomesthatareuniquetoyou.

ATTITUDESMoreimportantthanthetechniquesyouemployistheattitudeyoutaketoyourdrawing.Sometimesyouarehappywithadrawing,sometimesyouarenot;ratherthandefiningyoursuccessbyyouroutcomes,aimtomaintainintegrityinyourprocess.Makedrawingsthatareauthenticallyyourown,drivenbycuriosityandintention,andyouwillgainsomethingfromtheprocessirrespectiveoftheoutcome.Adrawingyouarehappywithgivesyousatisfactionandadrawingyouarenothappywithgivesyoualearningopportunity;bothresultsareimportantandvaluable.

VARYINGYOURMATERIALSForeachofthefollowingexercisesIhaverecommendedadrawingmediumthatisappropriatetothelocationandtask;iftheexerciserequirestonaldrawing,forexample,thenIhavesuggestedusingcharcoalratherthan,say,aballpointpen,whichmightbettersuitalineardrawingexercise.Allexercisescouldbeattemptedinothermediasodon’tfeelyouarerestrictedjusttothematerialssuggested,simplythinkabouthowchangingyourdrawingmaterialmightcreateadifferentkindofoutcomeornecessitateanalteredprocess.Experiment,exploreandenjoyusingyourmaterials!

ATHOME

Sketchingathomewillgiveyoulotsofcontroloveryoursurroundings:you’llbeabletosetyourselfupcomfortably,withdrawingmaterialstohand,andyou’llbeabletokeepthisbookatyoursidetoguideyouthroughtheexercises.Bewarethough;itiseasytobewaylaidbytheresponsibilitiesofdomesticlife,sosetasidededicatedtimetodrawanddoyourbestnottogetdistracted!

ACCESSIBLEKITFirst,makesureyourdrawingmaterialsareeasytofind.Storeyourmaindrawingkitsomewhereaccessiblesothatyoudon’twastetimesearchingforthedisparatecontentsofyourartbox.Maintainastockofyourfavouritedrawing

materialsalongsideyourprimarykitsothatyoudon’trunout:ifyoulikedrawingwithballpointpensthendon’tjustbuyonebuthaveseveralpacksdottedaround.Ifyoulikeworkinginpencil,buyawholeloadoferasersandsharpeners,andhavethembothwithyourkitandneartoanywhereyoumightbedrawing.Keepasmallsketchbookandsomedrawingmaterialsinakitchendrawersothatyoucandrawwhilethekettleboils,oronacoffeetableformakingswiftstudiesofyourfamilyonthesofa.

PORTRAITS

Weareinexorablydrawntootherpeople’sfaces;manyofusstartdrawinginthehopethatonedaywecanaccuratelyandempatheticallyrenderthefaceofanotherpersononpaper.Wehaveevolvedtorecognisethesubtleplaysofexpressiononanotherperson’sfaceandtorecognisetheminuteproportionaldifferencesthatdifferentiateusfromoneanother.Itisthisveryfacultyofrecognitionthatbothallowsustomakeempathicportraitsofoneanotherwhilealsomakinguscriticalofthedrawingswemightcreate.Thehumanfaceisthemostchallengingsubjectavailabletoyou;ifyoucanlearntodrawafaceyoucanlearntodrawanything.

Sittingdownwithsomebodytodrawthemcanbeawonderfulopportunitytolookattheminawayyoumayneverhavelookedatthembefore.Makesureyoursitterhasrealisticexpectationsoftheoutcome,behonestwiththemaboutyourlevelofexperienceandallowyourselftimetomakemorethanonedrawing.Atimelimitof15–20minutesperdrawingisidealformostpeopletositbeforetheystartfidgeting.Askyourmodeltogetcomfortableandtosettheireyesonafixedpoint.Don’tbeafraidtoguidethemintoasuitableposeandtoaskthemtoreturntoitiftheymove;they’llthankyoulaterforanythingthathelpsyoumakeabetterdrawing!

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Drawingboardandpaper

Time:Allowanhourforthesitting,withposesof15–20minutes.

Setup:Thinkabouthowthelightwillfallonyourmodel’sfaceandyourpaper.Letthemgetcomfortableandplaceyourselfsothatyouhavetheheadangleyouprefer.Aprofilewillgiveyouacleanlinetoworkwith,ahead-onviewwillprovidesymmetryanddirectness,athree-quarterviewcanbechallengingbutdynamic.

AIMS&ATTITUDESYoushouldapproachthisportraitasanexerciseinlooking.Drawtheoverallmassoftheheadaswellasthefaceitself.Representtheshapesofanyshadowsyousee,ratherthanworryingabouthowyouthinkafaceshouldlook.Yourideaofhowafaceshouldlookoftenstopsyoumakingclearobservationsofwhatyouseeinfrontofyou;thepurposeofthisexerciseistosimplydrawwhatyousee.

METHODStartwiththemassoftheheadandimaginetheshapeoftheskullunderneath.

Looselysketchtheovalofthecranium,thejawandtheaveragelineofthefrontoftheface,followedbythemassoftheneck.

Sketchintheshapeoftheeyebrow,workdowntothedarkshapeoftheeyelashandiris,theundersideofthenose,thecentrelineofthemouth,andtheoverallshapeoftheear.

Elaborateonthelinesoftheface,usingthemarkerpointsoffeaturestoguideyou.Findtheoverallshapeofthehairontheheadandblockintoneusingmarksthatfollowthedirectionofthehair.

ALSOTRY…Makingstudiesfromdifferentanglestounderstandtheshapeofthewholehead.Trydrawingpeopleinprofilewhilethey’reinfrontoftheTVorcomputer.

TOIMPROVE…•Spendmoretimedrawingheads(see1and2).•Learnabouttheanatomyoftheskull.•Learnmoreabouttheedgesoftheprofile.•Learnmoreaboutrelationshipsbetweenfeatures.

DRAWINGROOMS

Ifyoufindyourselfsittinginthecornerofaroomathome,pencilandsketchbookout,wrackingyourbrainforwhattodraw,thendon’tdespair:thesolutionisallaroundyou!Thisisagreatexercisetotryinyourhome,butitcaneasilybeappliedanywhere.Youcanapplythesameapproachtodrawinginanyenclosedspace:waitingrooms,airports,officesoranywhereyoufindyourselfwithafewminutestospare.Itcanbeagreatwayofrecordingtheplacesyouhavevisitedandroomsyou’vestayedin,orofrecordingasinglespacechangingovertime.

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Ballpointpen•Sketchbook

Time:25minutes

Setup:Sitcomfortably,withagoodviewofthewholeroom.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisexerciseisallabouttakingyoureyeonajourneyaroundtheroomandrecordingthatjourneyonpaper.Don’tbeconcernedaboutthestricturesofproportionorperspective;simplyaimtodrawshapesintheappropriate

relationshipstooneanother.

METHODDecideonanareaofdetailsomewhereintheroomwhereyouwillbeginyourdrawing.Takeyoureyearoundtheoutlinesoftheobjectsyouaredrawinganduseasimplecontinuouslinetorecordtheshapesthatyousee.Keepthedrawinglinear,leavingouttone.Byworkingoutfromalittlepoolofdetailonthepage,youmakeiteasytoreturntothedrawingifyougetcalledaway.

Workoutwards,followingkeylinesaroundtheroom.Don’ttrytobetooaccurate,butdrawfromwhatyousee.Liftyourpenfromthepaperwhenyouneedto;ifalinegoesinaplaceyoudon’twantitto,leaveitwhereitisandredrawitelsewhere.

Workthedrawingrightouttotheedgesofthepage;youareboundtohavefallenoutofproportionatsomepoint,butdon’tworry.Seethisasanexerciseinlookingratherthanasanexerciseinmakinganaccuratepicture.

ALSOTRY…Asavariationonthisexercise,trymakingthedrawingwithoutlookingbackatyourpaper.Seemoreinstructionsonthiskindof‘blind’drawing.

TOIMPROVE…•Learntouseyourpentojudge

proportionsandangles.•Developyourunderstandingof

edges.•Developyourunderstandingof

shape.

DrawingLight&Shadow

Inanimateobjectsmakethemostreliableandconsistentsubjects.Youcanposethemasyoulikeanddrawthemwithouttheirneedingtostretch,orwanderingawaywhentheyneedsomethingtoeat.Theproblemwithdrawingstill-lifeobjectsisfindingasubjectthatholdsyourattention.Itisalwaysimportantthatyoursubjectengagesyou;youshouldonlydrawthingsyoureallywanttodraw,otherwiseyou’llboreyourselfandyourdrawingwillloseitssenseofpurpose.Itisaskillinitselftolearnhowtofindsomethinginterestinginanysubject.

Forthisexercise,pickanobjectthathasmeaningtoyouasyourmainsubject.Findasecondobjectofmeaningwithacontrastingnature–somethingwithdifferenttexturesorofadifferentsize–andimagineasimplenarrativethattiestheobjectstogether.Placethetwoobjectsneartooneanothertomakeavisuallysatisfyingcomposition.Finally,placeathirdobjecttosettheothertwooff.Giveyourselfareasontomakethedrawing;makeitinteresting.

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:

Whatyouneed:•Charcoalstick•Charcoalpencil•Clothorkitchenroll•Eraser•Paperandboard•Threeobjects•Adesklamporwindow

Time:45minutes.

Setup:Setyourselfupcomfortablyinfrontofyoursubject.Arrangetheobjectsasyou’dlikethem,butdon’toverthinktheircomposition.Setthemupnearawindoworlampsothatthedirectionallightcreatesclearshapesofshadow.

AIMS&ATTITUDESYouraimistoselectinterestingobjectsandcreateacompositionoutofthem.Lookfortheshapesofshadowsinthearrangement,andexplorehowyoucancreatetheillusionofthreedimensionsthroughsimpleblocksoftone,usingtheeraserasadrawingtoolandusingthecharcoalpenciltoaddclaritytoshapes.

METHODScrubagroundofcharcoalontothepapertoestablishapalegreymid-tone.Usingthestickofcharcoal,drawtheoutlineofshadowandobjectshapes.Lookforbigshapesfirst.

Usetheerasertodrawlightintotheimage,andasnappedcharcoalsticktodrawinblocksofdark.Builduptonalcontrasts.

Usetheerasertoerasebacktothewhiteofthepaperforthelightestlights,andusethecharcoalpenciltobuildupthedarkestdarks,addingtexturalmarkstothedrawing.

ALSOTRY…Exploringthestilllifefromunusualangles.Makequickstudiesofitfromtheoppositeside,fromthetoporfromthefloor.Notehowtheshapeschangeandthefeelofthepictureshiftswhendrawnfromdifferentviewpoints.

TOIMPROVE…•Learnaboutnegativespace.•Learntoseetonemoreclearly.•Learnmoreaboutcomposition.

DRAWINGANIMALS

Petshaveasmuchcharacterastheirhumancounterpartsandmakeengagingsubjectstodraw.However,theinevitablelanguagebarriermeansthatitisunlikelythey’llunderstandyouaskingthemtoposeforalongdrawing.Youcandrawasurprisingamountinthemomentsthattheyarestill,makingforenergetic,albeitincomplete,drawings.Thinkofthiskindofdynamicdrawingasarecordofyourinteractionwiththeanimal,andformaximumdrawingtime,trytocatchthematmomentswhentheyarestill.Drawyourdogwhileitiseating,oryourcatwhilesleeping;afishinatankmightrepeatamovement,givingyouanopportunitytofinishpartiallycompletedrawings.Drawingfromphotographswillallowyoutocapturethelookofyouranimalbutitwon’tallowyoutocapturethefeeloftheirmovement;enjoytheexperienceofdrawingamovingtarget!

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Dippen•Ink•Paper•Apettodraw

Time:25minutes.

Setup:Useaportablesketchbookorboardsothatyoucanfollowyoursubject,takingeveryopportunitytomakequicksketches.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisisasmuchaphilosophicalexerciseasapracticalone.Duetothehit-and-missnatureofthetask,youwillhavesomesuccessfuldrawingsandmanythatdon’tworkatall.Youalmostcertainlywon’tfinishanyofthem;seethedrawingsasrecordinganexperience,notjustmakingagoodpicture.

METHODWatchyoursubjectforawhileandworkoutwhentheyaremostlikelytobestill.

Sketchtheoverallformoftheanimal,lookingforsimplegeometricshapesbeneaththefur.Lookforrepeatedshapeswhenyouranimalmoves;you’llfindtheyoftenreturntoposes,allowingyoutocontinuethedrawingsyou’vestarted.

Furandmarkingscanbelayeredoverthestructureofapose,andcanbeascertainedfromavarietyofdifferentposes.Practisedifferentkindsofmark-makingtorendertextures.

ALSOTRY…Takingyoursketchbooktoazoo,afarmoranaquarium.Ifyouwantanimalsthatwillreliablystaystill,youcantrysketchingatamuseumofnaturalhistory.

TOIMPROVE…•Improveyourvisualmemoryby

sketchingpeoplemoving(see1and2).

•Practiseintuitivegesturaldrawing.•Learntoseeedgesmoreclearly

andtodrawconfidentlines.

OUT&ABOUT

Evenwhenyoudon’thaveapenciltodrawwith,youcanpractiselookingaroundyouwiththeeyesofadraftsman.Becuriousandlookforline,shapeandtoneintheworldaroundyou.Trytohavematerialswithyouatalltimessothatwhenopportunitiestosketchyourobservationspresentthemselvesyoucanthemakethemostofthem.Carryasketchbookanddrawingmaterialseverywhere,andimproviseifnecessary,drawingonscrapsofpaperthatcanbestuckintoyoursketchbooklater,forexample.Don’tworryaboutpassersbywatchingyouwhileyoudraw;talktopeopleaboutyourdrawings,or,ifyou’reshy,godrawingwithafriendandmakeasocialoccasionofit.Drawingcanbeanexcellentwaytorecordnewexperiencesandtofindnewwonderineverydaythings.

IDEALKITWhenyou’resketchingawayfromhome,you’llneedaneasilyportabledrawingkitwithsomebasicequipment.Asmallhardbacksketchbookwillbeidealtodrawinandwillensureyourpaperisproperlysupported.Ifyoulikedrawingwithpens,alwayscarryseveralincasetheyrunoutofink;andifyouusepencils,alsobringseveralerasersandsharpenersincaseanygetlost.Youknowthatdrawinghasbecomeahabitwhenyouregularlymistakeajanglingpocketofpencilsharpenersforapocketofchange!Referbacktohereforadviceonyourmaterials,andpractisesupportingyoursketchbookonyourkneewhenyousetupforsomeimpromptusketching.

SKETCHINGONPUBLICTRANSPORT

Whenyoucandraw,youneverhaveanexcusetobebored.Ifyou’retravellingonabusortrainyou’llbesurroundedbyawealthofdrawingsubjects,fromfellowtravellerstoviewsoutthewindow,totheinteriorofthevehicleitself.Drawingonpublictransportisasmuchanexerciseinsketchingstrategyasanopportunitytopractisedrawingtechniques.Workingwiththejoltsthatjogyou,findingsurreptitiouswaystodrawotherpassengersanddealingwiththeinevitablemovementofyoursubjectsareallpartoftheexercise.

EXERCISE:PASSENGERPORTRAITS

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Ballpointpen•Sketchbook

Time:Aslongasyourjourney!

Setup:Ideallyyou’llhaveyoursmalldrawingkittohand,butifyouonlyhaveareceiptandabiro,thatwilldo!

AIMS&ATTITUDESYou’renotaimingtomakefinisheddrawingsbutrathertocreateacollageofbriefglimpsesthatrecordyourjourney.Keepyourmarksquickandconfident,andtrytosimplifyyoursubjectintoasfewlinesaspossible.

confident,andtrytosimplifyyoursubjectintoasfewlinesaspossible.

METHODPickapersonwhoisstayingrelativelystilland(ideally)notlookingtowardsyou.Usingquick,simplemarks,sketchoutthedarklinesthatmakeupyourimpressionoftheirface.

Workoutwardsonthepageusingsimplelinestosuggestthebasicformsofyoursubject’sclothingandsurroundings.Inthisexerciseyourpenwillberecordingthejourneythatyoureyeistakingoveryoursubject.

thejourneythatyoureyeistakingoveryoursubject.

Whenyoursubjectmoves,trysketchingthisnewangle,ormoveontosomebodyelse.Fillthepagewithlittlevisualnotesonthejourney,snatchesofconversationandanythingthatinterestsyou.

ALSOTRY…Fillingapagewiththingsyouseeoutsidethewindow,makingitintoa

TOIMPROVE…•Practisedrawingfaces.

outsidethewindow,makingitintoadynamiccompositionofsigns,textures,buildingsandbrieflyglimpsedviews.

•Practiselineardrawingandinteriors.

•Tryblindcontourdrawing(seehere).

URBANSKETCHING

Theurbanenvironmentistheresultofthousandsofdrawings;townplanners,architectsanddesignersconspiretocreatethejigsawpuzzleofbuildingsandpublicspacesthatmakeupacity.Eachcityhasitsowncharacter,itsowncombinationsofbuildingshapes,coloursandtextures.Itsinhabitantsshapeitevenmore,fillingthestreetswithstories.Whenyoumakedrawingsofurbanspaces,you’renotjustsketchingbricksandmortar;you’remakingaportraitofacity.Thisexerciseisallaboutcapturingcornersofthetownorcityaroundyou.Bringlittlefiguresintothesceneusingtheexerciseinhere,andmakewrittennoteswhereveryouneedto.

EXERCISE:ANURBANPORTRAIT

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:

•Ballpointpen•Greyfelt-tip•Sketchbook

Time:20–45minutes.

Setup:Findsomewhereyoucancomfortablysketchforaslongasyouneed.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisapproachisanalternativetotheDrawingRoomsexercise.Ratherthanworkingfromsmallshapesandexpanding,youwillestablishlargeshapesfirstandthendrawthesmallerareasofdetailwithinthem,allowingyoutomaintaincontroloverthecomposition.Aswellascapturinghowthecitylooks,youshouldaimtocapturesomethingofitsatmosphere,lookingforcharacterfuldetailstoaccentuate.

METHODEstablishtheoverallcompositionofthescene,thinkingaboutwhereyouwillplacebuildings.Startwithalightlinetoestablishshapesanddrawoverwithamoreconfidentlinewhenyouhavedecidedwheretheemphasiswilllie.

Drawintothecompositionanyinterestingdetailsandelementsthatcatchyoureye.Again,worklightlyandconfidently,drawingbolderlinesoveryourinitialmarksonceyouareconfidentoftheirposition.

Usethegreyfelt-tiptoaddsimpleblocksoftone,addingdepthandfocustothescene.Beselectivewithwhereyouplacethetone,thinkingaboutthedesignofyourdrawing.

ALSOTRY…Addingcolourtoyourdrawingusingcolouredfelt-tip,orwatercolourwashesinplaceofthegreypen.

TOIMPROVE…•Improveyourunderstandingof

howtocomposeascene(seehere).

•Learnmoreaboutseeingedges.•Learnmoreaboutusingtone.

RURALLANDSCAPES

Landscapedrawingshouldn’tjustbeaboutsketchingpicturesquescenery;itshouldbearecordoftheexperienceofdrawinginthelandscape.Theurgencyofyourmarkswillinherentlyreflectyourrelationshiptotheenvironmentaroundyou.Drawingonawindydaycreatesfranticdrawingsasyouscrabbletokeepthepaperundercontrol;alazysummerafternoononthegrasstendstoproducemoreleisurelystrokes.You’llbeusingdrawnmarkstorepresentthevisualphenomenaofthelandscape,whilebeinginevitablyaffectedbytheelementalforcesaroundyou.Asyoudrawdifferentpartsofthelandscape,explorehowyoucanuseavarietyofmarkstoimplytextureordirection,andthinkabouthowyoucandrawattentiontoelementsofthelandscapethatinterestyou.Getoutandabout;makedrawinganadventure,anddon’tjustrelyonyourphotographs.

EXERCISE:SKETCHINGINTHELANDSCAPE

SETTINGUP

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencils•Eraser•Sharpener•Sketchbook

Time:Drawuntilyou’retoohot,coldortoouncomfortabletodrawanymore!

Setup:Findsomewherecomfortabletoperchwithyoursketchbookordrawingboard.Youmighthavetheluxuryofdrawingfromawindow,althoughthere’snothingbetterthanbeingrightinthemiddleofthescenery.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisexerciseisintendedtohelpyoulookatthelandscapearoundyouandtoexperienceitthroughdrawing.It’salsoagreatopportunitytopractiseyourcompositionandtoexplorevariedmark-making.

METHODPickyourviewcarefullyandestablishthemajorlinesandshapesofthecompositionthatyouseeinfrontofyou.Thinkintermsoftonalmassesasyoudecideyourcomposition.

Blockinthemassesoftoneinthescene,breakingitdownintoforeground,midgroundandbackground.Unfocussingyoureyesalittlewillhelpyoutojudgerelativetones;notehowthebackgroundoftenappearstonallylighterthantheforeground.

Workmoredetailintoyoursceneusingtexturalmark-makingtocreatevisualvarietyinthesceneandfocustheattentionoftheviewer.Focusmoreonforegrounddetails,lettingthebackgroundremainvaguetocreatetheillusionofdepth.

ALSOTRY…Splittingapageintoboxesandtryingoutsometinysimplifiedthumbnailstudiestoprovideyouwithalternativeviews,oravisualnarrativeofawalk.

TOIMPROVE…•Learnmoreaboutcomposingyour

image.•Developyourunderstandingof

tone.•Learnmoreaboutusingshapesof

toneinyourdrawing.

DRAWINGTREES

Fromsprightlysaplingstobowedgrandfathersoftheforest,thereisananthropomorphicqualitytotreesthatmakesthemanengagingsubjectfordrawing.Aswithafigure,youcanattempttocapturethecompleteposeofatree,makingdrawingsthatgeneralisedetailstocaptureshapeandform,oryoucouldchoosetostudydiscreteparts,makingsmalldrawingsofbranches,leavesandfruits.Thisexerciseisaboutcapturingthefeelofatreeenergeticallyandefficiently;someofthefigure-drawingexercisesinherecouldalsobeappliedtodrawingtrees.

EXERCISE:FORESTDRAWING

SETTINGUP

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•HBPencil•Dippen•Ink•Sketchbook

Time:Anhourormore.

Setup:Youneedasturdysketchbookforworkingoutdoors.Atinorplasticboxwillbeusefulforkeepingyourinkandpenin.Sitorstandtosketch,asyoufindmostcomfortable.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisaimofthisexerciseistocapturetreesincontextwiththeirenvironment,designingthedrawingtomakeasatisfyingcomposition.Usethepenciltoestablishbigshapes,andthenusethedippentoinjectmovementintothescene,buildingupmarkstocreatetheimpressionoftoneandtexture.

METHODEstablishtheformofthetreesinpencil.Don’tgetcaughtupindetail,butrecordtheiroverallshape.

Drawinmoredetails,workingfrombigshapestosmallershapes,anddrawingthenegativespacesbetweenthebranches.

Drawoverthepencilwithenergetictexturalmarksinink;don’tdrawwhatyouimagineatreeshouldlooklike,butdrawtheshapesofthebranches,barkandleavesthatyouseeinfrontofyou.

ALSOTRY…Makingsimilarstudiesofplantsandflowers.Takealookatexamplesofbotanicaldrawingandgooutinsearchofbeautifulbloomstodraw!

TOIMPROVE…•Learnmoreaboutnegativespace.•Learntojudgerelativetones.•Learntomakebalanced

compositions.

LITTLEFIGURES

Thehumanformcanseemlikeacomplexsubjecttotackle,butitneedn’tbeintimidating.Thefiguresthatpopulatethecitiesandrurallandscapesthatwemightdrawcanbeseenastinycollectionsofsimpleshapesthatgivethesuggestionofhumanity.Bydrawingthefigureassimpleblocksoftone,leavingoutanydetail,youcantapintotheshapesofclothingandgestures.Thisexerciseisintendedforquicklysketchingstaticormovingpeopleatadistance,andcanbecombinedwithpreviousexercisestoaddfigurestoyoururbanandrurallandscapedrawings.

EXERCISE:DRAWINGPEOPLE

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencils•Sketchbook

Time:1–3minutesperfigure.

Setup:Youcandothisexercisejustaboutanywhere–tryitwhenyou’restandinginlinesometimetopractiseyourguerrilladrawingtechnique,orgetcomfyandsettleintoseehowmanypeopleyoucancaptureinanhour.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisexerciseismostlyaboutsimplifyingsomethingyouknowtobecomplicatedintothesimpleshapesthatyouactuallyseeinfrontofyou.Drawsmallandtrytoperceivethefigureasawholeshapemadeupofsmallershapesofclothing.Asyouobservethem,holdtheshapesofmovementsinyourheadlikeframesofafilm.Thiswillhelpdevelopyourvisualmemory.

METHODDrawthefiguresnobiggerthanyourlittlefinger.Workfromtheinsideout,usingshortmarkstosketchinthemassoftonethatmakesupthetorsoandhead,treatingthemassimpleblocks.

Usesimpledirectionaltonalmark-makingtoblockintheshapesofarms,legsandclothing,arrivingatabasicsilhouetteofthefigure.

Usedarkertonalmark-makingtocreatefocus,drawingthedarkershadowsthat

youseeandavoidingdrawinganythingyoucan’tclearlysee.Youcanuseanerasertocleanuptheedgesofthetonalshapes.

ALSOTRY…Puttingtogetherfiguresyou’vesketchedoutandaboutand

TOIMPROVE…•Workonyourvisualmemory.

sketchedoutandaboutandenvironmentsyou’vedrawntocomposeimaginaryscenes.Thiswillhelpyoutodevelopyourimaginativedrawingskillsatthesametimeasborrowingusefullyfromyourobservations.

•Developyourtonalmark-making.•Learntojudgeshapesbetter.•Practisegesturalfiguredrawing.

ATmuseums&GALLERIES

Museumsareincredibleresources,repositoriesofhistorythatgiveusinsightintotheworldaroundus.Asasketchinglocation,eventhelowliestmuseumwillhousesufficientcuriositiestokeepyouscribblingforhours;nationalmuseumscanbeasourceofwonderforalifetime.Bydrawingwithfriendsandfamilyyoucanengagewithexhibitsinanewway,lookingharderthanyoumighthaveeverlookedinthepast.

Walkingaroundartgallerieswithadraftsman’seyewillgiveyouanewwayofrelatingtotheworkyousee.Theabilitytoseecriticallyisahard-wonskill,andsomeartworkrequirestimetobeproperlyunderstoodandappreciated;youdon’thavetoliketheworkyouseetolearnfromit.Drawingfromartworkwillhelpyougaininsightintotheprocessesoftheartistwhocreatedit.

Mostmuseumsandgallerieswelcomesketchers;someevenprovidefold-upchairstocarryaroundwithyou.Ifyou’revisitingamuseumorgallerywithnon-drawers,thenpreparetobeleftbehindeachtimeyougetcaughtupinasketch.

IDEALKITYou’llneedeasilyportabledrawingmaterialsthatwon’tmakeamess,soavoidcharcoalsticksandpotsofink.Keeptopensandpencils,andusesharpenerswithanattachedcontainerforcatchingshavings.Acompactsketchbookwillbeidealtodrawin,oryoucouldbringadrawingboardandpaperinafolder.

CASTDRAWING

Manygalleriescontainbusts,head-and-shoulderportraitsculpturesusuallycarvedinstoneorcastinmetal.Light-colouredstoneorplasterbustswillprovideyouwithagreatopportunitytostudysurfacetoneswithoutthecomplicationofvariedskincolour.Castdrawingisoftenassociatedwiththesight-sizedstudies(wherethedrawingismadethesamesizeasthesubjectappearsfromwherevertheartistisstanding)popularincontemporarydrawingateliers;incontrast,thisversionoftheactivityisapracticalguerilla-drawingexercisethatwillyieldlooselydefinedsketchesofyoursubject.Drawingbustsallowsyoutosketchaconsideredportraitfromaperfectlystillandconsistentlylitmodel.Ifyou’relookingforportrait-drawingpractice,thiswillbesuperiortocopyingfromphotographsasitwillincorporateallthechallengesoftranslatingathree-dimensionalheadintoatwo-dimensionaldrawingwithouttheperformanceanxietyofworkingwithalivemodel.

EXERCISE:DRAWINGFROMABUST

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Sketchbook

Time:20minutes.

Setup:Sittingdowncanhelpyoukeepyourposition,butconsidertheangleyouwillbedrawing.Beforeyoustartsketching,movearoundtofindthecompositionyoulikethebest.

AIMS&ATTITUDESAsyousetuptodraw,thinkcarefullyabouttheangleandlightingofthehead–althoughyoucan’tmovethebust,youcancontrolyourownposition.Theoutcomeofyourdrawingwillbeledbyyourinitialdecisionsasmuchasbyyourdrawnmarks.Takingadifferentattitudetothebustwillcreatedifferentdrawings:drawingthebustwhileimaginingittobearealpersonwillallowyoutoimbuethedrawingwiththevitalityofalivingsitter.Incontrast,drawingthebustasastill-lifeobjectwillencouragemoreaccurateandobjectivedrawing.

METHODChooseyourposition:thinkabouttheheadangle,thelightingandhowthedrawingwillbecomposedonyourpage.Startwithalooselysketchedoutline,jottinginthetop,bottom,leftandrightlimitsoftheheadwithshort,sharpmarks.

Don’tbecomefixatedonfeatures,butinsteaddrawtheedgesofshapesofshadow.Theresultingjigsawoftonalshapesshouldresolveitselfintotheillusionofaface.

Addtonetotheshapesofshadow.Keepyourmark-makingsimpleandconsistentandreducecomplicatedgradientsofshadowintosimpleblocksofmid-tone.Don’tgotoodarktooquicklybutreserveyourdarkestmarksforthedeepestedgesofshadow.

ALSOTRY…Drawingfromgardenstatues.Ifyoudon’thavereadyaccesstoagallerywithbusts,trysketchingingardencentresandpublicparks,orbuyyourselfaplastercastorstonegardenornamenttodrawfrom.

TOIMPROVE…•Practisealternativeapproachesto

drawingheads(see1and2).•Learnmoreaboutshapeandtone

(see1and2).•Developpracticalmeasuring

techniques(seehere).

FOCUSSEDTRANSCRIPTIONS

Wecanallintuitivelyappreciatepaintings,printsanddrawingsonavisualandemotionallevel,andaccompanyingtext,gallerystaffandaudiotoursmightprovidedetailsofthehistoricalandculturalcontextofanartwork,orthemotivationsbehinditscreation.Asamakerofdrawings,youmightalsowanttogaingreaterinsightintoanartworkbymakingfocussedstudiesthatinterrogatetscompositionandexecution,learninglessonsfromtheworkthatyoucanapplytoyourown.InthistranscriptionI’vedrawnfromacompositionalsketchofanudebyEdgarDegas.

Inordertogainthemostfromyourtranscriptionsyou’llneedtodrawwithclearintentionandavoidsimplyredrawingimageryinyourownstyle.Copydrawingsinordertolearnsomethingabouttheartist’smark-making;asyoudraw,don’tsimplyreplicatethedrawnmarks,butaskyourselfquestionsabouthowtheartistmadethem.Whatmediumhavetheyused?Howdidtheyholdthatmedium?Howfarweretheyfromthepaperastheydrew?Weretheirmarksmadeslowlyorquickly?Aretheylooselydrawnortightlycontrolled?

Paintingsanddrawingscanbereducedtotheirfundamentalcompositionsbyanunderstandingoftheirarmaturesanduseoftone.Ifyouaretryingtocopypaintingsandnon-drawnartworkbydrawingthem,youwon’tlearnnearlyasmuchasyoumightbymakingfocussedtranscriptions.

EXERCISE:TRANSCRIPTION

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Sketchbook

Time:Spendplentyoftimelookingatthework,andthenspend15minutesmakingeachtranscription.

Setup:Thislargelydependsontheworkyou’vechosen.It’sbestnottopickthemostpopularpieceinthegalleryatabusytime!Ifyoucansitdown,makesureyoucanseeyourchosenartworkclearly,andbepreparedforinterruptionswhenotherpeoplecometohavealookatyoursubject.

AIMS&ATTITUDESMaketranscriptionsfromartworksinordertounderstandthembetter.Youcanmakedifferenttranscriptionstolearndifferentlessonsfromawork:trydevelopingyourownapproachestotranscription.

METHODFirst,takealookatforguidanceoncomposition.Forthisexerciseyou’llwanttolookforthebasiccompositionaldevicesthatunderpintheimage,andtoappreciatehowthedimensionsofthepictureplaneaffectitsappearance.

Todevelopyourunderstandingofacomposition,youcantranscribefortonebysimplifyingthepictureintoblocksoflightanddark.Takealookatheretogainsomefurtherinsightintotonaldrawing.

Makeacopyofasectionofanotherartist’sdrawing,thinkaboutwhatelementsoftheirsubjecttheyhavechosentorepresentandtrytoemulatetheirmarkstolearnhowtheymadethem.

TOIMPROVE…•Learnmoreaboutcomposition.•Learnmoreaboutshapeandtone(see1and2).•Exploremark-making.•Regularlyvisitartexhibitions;don’tjustlookatimagesofartworkonline.

STEALLIKEANARTIST

Thisexercisewillinvolveusingtranscriptionsfromtheexerciseinhereasameansofgatheringinformationthatcanthenbeappliedtoyourownoriginaldrawings.Thecompositionsandmarksthatyouchoosetoborrowneedn’tjustbeappliedtothesubjectrepresentedintheoriginaldrawing.Forexampleyoucouldtakeacompositionfromalandscapepaintingandapplyittoastill-lifedrawing,orapplythemarksfromanartist’sdrawingofatreetoyourownstudyofafigure.

EXERCISE:BORROWEDMARKS

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Sketchbook

Time:Variable.

Setup:Workdirectlyinfrontofthepiecethatinspiredyou,orwhereveryoufeelmostcomfortable.

AIMS&ATTITUDESBearinmindthatyouaredrawinginordertolearn.Byemulatingagreatartistwhoseworkyouadmire,youshouldbelearningfromtheirapproachandapplyingthoselessonstoyourownwork;youmightcometodiscardsomeapproachesovertime,whileassimilatingothersintoyourregularpractice.

METHODInthisexampleIhavetakenthecompositionofalandscapepaintingandappliedittoastill-lifedrawing,usingavariationoftheexerciseinhere.

Here,I’vetakenthetonaldistributionandcompositionfromastilllifeandusedittodevelopagroupscene,takingfiguresfrommysketchbook,borrowedfrom

theexerciseinhere.

Inthedrawingbeneath,IhaveborrowedthemarksIobservedinafigurestudyandappliedthemtoadrawingofatreefromtheexerciseinhere.

TOIMPROVE…•Makemoretranscriptionstodevelopyourartisticvocabulary.•Trymakingdrawingsinthestyleofartistsyouadmireinordertolearn

moreabouttheirtechniques.•Applythelessonslearnedfromtranscriptionstodifferentexercisesinthis

book.

SKETCHBOOKOFCURIOSITIES

Asyouwanderaroundamuseumtherewillalwaysbelittleartefacts,trinketsandephemerathatcatchyoureye.Takingthepieceshomeyourselfisbroadlyfrownedupon,sotrycollectingtheminyoursketchbookbymakinglittledrawingsofthemall.Makeyoursketchbookintoyourownpersonalcollectionofcuriosities,composingthemtogetheronthepageandaddingyourownannotationsandreflections.

EXERCISE:SKETCHBOOKCOLLECTION

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencils•Sharpener•Eraser•Sketchbook

Time:Asingledrawingmighttake5–20minutes.

Setup:Grabyourportablesketchbookandcurator’smindset,andtakeaslongasyouneedtocapturewhatyoucanofyoursubject.

AIMS&ATTITUDESBecomeacollectoroflittlepicturesofthings.Theitemsyouchoosetodrawwillsaysomethingaboutwhereyouare,whoyouareandwhatinterestsyou.Fillingapagemightbeafullday’swork,andfillingasketchbookmighttakeamonth,ayearoralifetime.Eachsmalldrawingisacontributiontoagreaterwhole.

METHODSetascaleforyoursketches;youmightwanttodrawtheitemsincorrectproportiontooneanother,ortoplayaroundwithscale.Eachtimeyouaddanitem,thinkaboutwhereyouwillplaceitonthepage.

Makesimplesketches,drawingtheshapesofobjects,dwellingontheelementsofthesubjectthatinterestyouandmakinganynotesyoufeeladdtothedrawing.

Fillthepagewithobjects,composingthemasacollectormightlineupitemsinadisplaycase.Dateyourdrawingsforposterity.

ALSOTRY…Makingsketchesofothercollectionsofitemsthatinterestyou,fromdiscardeditemsinthestreettoobjectsfromyourhouse.Setitemsnexttooneanotherininterestingways,makingthemundaneintriguing.

TOIMPROVE…•Thinkabouthowyoucomposethe

itemsonthepage.•Developyourcoredrawingskills.•Practiseobservationaldrawing

exercisestohelpyouimproveyourlooking.

ATWORK

Drawingisavisuallanguage,atoolforcommunication.Whenwedrawforartisticpurposes,weusethislanguagepoetically,employingmarksthatdescribeoursubjectwitheloquenceandgrace.Likeanylanguage,drawingcanalsobeusedtorecordideas,todescribeconceptsandsolveproblems.Ifyouwanttodrawmore,thendon’tconfinedrawingtoyourleisuretime;startusingvisuallanguageinyourwork.Thischaptercontainspracticalapplicationsfordrawingintheworkplace,withexercisesthatyoucantryoutsideofworkinordertodevelopyourskills.

IDEALKITPractical,communicativedrawingsrequirematerialsthatmakeclear,efficientmarks.Pens,pencilsandgood-qualityfelt-tippensaregoodmaterialstostartwith.Ifyouneedtodrawonawhiteboardorflipchart,thinkabouthowyou’llstandinordertominimisethedistortioninyourdrawing.Allthedrawingsinthischapterutilisethesamesetofmaterials:

•Felt-tippens•Ballpointpens•Fineliners•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Paper

APPLICATIONSOFDRAWING•Drawtocommunicate.Drawingbreaksdownlanguagebarriersandisthebest

waytodescribecomplexvisualorspatialsubjects.Youmightdrawamapratherthangivespokendirections,forexample.

•Drawyourideas.Drawingcanbeawayofexploringnewideasandarticulatingthingsthatyoudon’tquitehavewordsfor.Mostman-madeobjectsstarttheirlifeasadrawndesign.

•Drawtoremember.Adrawingcanactasahelpfulmnemonic;anillustratedstoryismorememorablethanapurelyverbalone.Imagescanconjureinstantassociations,thisiswhycompaniesoftenhaveapictureasalogo.

•Drawtogetanewperspectiveonaproblem.Theprocessofdrawingallowsyoutolookattheworldinafreshway,bydrawingsomethingyouoftenlearntounderstanditbetter.

PRACTICALADVICE•Don’tletperformanceanxietyholdyouback.Practiseyourdrawingathome

andbringtheskillsyoulearntowork.

•Starttothinkofdrawingaspartofyourarsenalofeverydaycommunicativetools.Whenyouneedtodescribesomething,think,‘CouldIdrawthatinstead?’

•Useyourbreaksforpractising.Trysomeoftheotherdrawingexercisesinthisbookduringlunch(trytheexercisesfrom1,2and3).

•Recognisehowyoumightalreadybedrawing,anddevelopyourskillstoenableyoutodoitbetter.Diagrams,doodlesandmapsallemploydrawnmarks.

•Findcolleaguesthatwanttolearntodraw.Sketchatworktogether,startasketchcrawlorgotoalife-drawingclassafterwork.

•Bringinexpertise.Ifyouthinkyourcolleagueswouldbenefitfrombetter

visualcommunicationskills,considerinvitingadrawingtutorintorunaworkshop.

SEQUENTIALNARRATIVE

Imagesarrangedinanordercreatealinearvisualstory.Thesesequentialimagesareoftenusedforinstructionsastheycanbeeasilyimitated.Signageisthesimplestkindofinstructionalimagery;thelittlepersonrunningtowardsthedooronafireexitsignimmediatelyconveyswhattodointheeventofafire.Instructionmanualsoftencontainsimpleannotatedlinedrawingstodemonstratehowtoassembleamodelplane,orhowtouseyouroven.Amulti-panelinstructionaldrawingneedstobeunambiguouslydrawn,usingsimple,efficientmarks,illustratingthekeystagesoftheactivityitdescribes.Fortheexerciseonthenextpageyouwillmakeasimpleinstructionaldrawingforfun,illustratingaday-to-daytask.Theaimistobeefficientanduseasfewpanelsaspossible,whileillustratingeachseparateactionrequiredforthetaskandstrippingoutallunnecessarydetail.Enacttheactivityyourself,takingphotographstodrawfrom,ordrawingfromyourimagination.Useotherpagesinthisbooktohelpyouimproveyourdrawingsofspecificactivitiesorlocations.

EXERCISE:INSTRUCTIONALDRAWING

APPLICATIONS•Leavinginstructionsforfamilyorfriendsathome.•Leavinginstructionsatwork.•Signage,assimplifiedinstructions.

METHODPickatasktoillustrate,breakitdownintofourorfivesimpleactionsand,usingapencil,looselyplanoutpanelsthatillustrateeachstageinthesimplestway.As

apencil,looselyplanoutpanelsthatillustrateeachstageinthesimplestway.Asyouplanthetask,youmightwanttodescribeitverballytohelpyoubreakdownthestages.

Takeaphotographofeachstageofthetaskandmakeasimplepencillinedrawingbasedoneachone.Ifitinvolveshands,youmightwanttorefertohere;figures,orfaces.

Gooverthepencillinesinpen,clarifyingtheshapes.Youmightwantaddsimpletoneorcolourtothedrawingusingfelt-tippens.

ALSOTRY…Usingthesequentialstyletocreateasimplestoryboard.Thestoryboardisastandarddeviceusedtotellalinearnarrativeinkeyframesofaction.

TOIMPROVE…•Practisesimplelinedrawings(see

1and2).•Practisesimplefigures.

narrativeinkeyframesofaction.Animatorsandfilmmakersmightusestoryboardstoplanoutscenes.

Makingsimplesignsthatconveysomethingyoudoordonotwantpeopletodo,usingtheskillsyou’velearntfromthisexercisetogetthemessageacrossinthemostdirectway.

•Practisesketchingthesubjectsofyourinstructionaldrawingfromobservation.

DRAWINGFORDESIGN

Verballanguagetendstofixideastoexistingconcepts,butwhenyou’redesigningsomethingnewyoumightwantyourideastoremainpliableasyoudevelopthem.Drawingallowsyoutoexploreavisualideawithoutpinningitdownsothatyoucantrialalternativesanddevelopyourthoughts.Presentingyourideasasdrawingsmakesiteasyforotherpeopletoengagewithanewideaandtoseetheprocessyoufollowedtoarriveatyourfinaloutcome.Ifyou’redesigningsomethingnew,youmightfirstwanttouseobservationaldrawingtoexploreotherapproachestothesamesubject,aswellasdrawingshapesandobjectsthatinspireyourowndesigns.Thisexercisewillhelpyoutryouttheapproachbydesigninganimaginarynewchair,breakingtheprocessdownintoidea-gathering,triallingnewideasandrefiningyourfavoureddesign.Thisisabasicapproachtodesign;professionalproductdesigners,conceptartists,architectsandsoonwillallhavetheirowndesignprocesses,andintimeyouwilldoubtlessdevelopyourown.

APPLICATIONS•Designingnewobjectsyou’dliketomake:cupboards,candlesticks,etc.•Workingoutthebestwaytodoapracticaltasksuchasputtingupashelf–

planningitspositiononthewall,thebracketsyouwilluse,whattoputonit,etc.

•Planningthelookofsomething,forexample,anoutfit,partydecorations,etc.

METHODGatherideas.Makeobservationaldrawingsofchairsandanyobjectthatmightprovidefurtherinspiration.Explorethepracticalpurposeofthechairandextractshapesandtexturesfrominspirationalmaterial.

Sketchavarietyofalternativechairdesignsfromyourimagination,givingyourselfseveraloptionstoworkfrom.Whatwouldyouliketoseeinachair?

Pickyourfavouriteideaanddevelopit,drawingthedesignfromdifferentanglesandimaginingitinuse.

ALSOTRY…Costumedesign.Usethestickmanexercisetocreateastandardfigurefromthefrontandsideandtryoutdifferentcostumedesigns.Fashiondesignusesastylised,attenuated

TOIMPROVE…•Makemoresketchesfrom

observation.•Learntoextrapolatelinesand

texturesfromyoursubjectsthatyoucouldapplytootherdesigns

figure;characterdesignmightrequireagreatervarietyoffigureshapes.

(seeEdges).•Developyourstickpeople.

MAPS&DIRECTIONS

Mostpeoplewillhappilydrawamaptogivedirections;verballycomplexdirectionscanbeeasilysimplifiedintoabasicvisualform.Somemapsaremorecomplexthanothers;workingoutwhatinformationneedstobeincludedisasmuchapartoftheskillofdrawingthemapasthephysicaldraftsmanship.Ahastilysketchedroadmapwilllookverydifferenttothecreativecartographythatmightgointoamapofpicturesquewalksaroundavillage,butbothfulfiltheirpurpose.Forthisexercise,drawyourroutefromhometowork.Imaginetheroutefromabove,sketchingouttheroadsyoutaketoscaleandnotinglandmarksontheway.Toembellishamapyoucouldincludeenlargedlandmarks,sketchedusingapproachesfromhereanddrawnasifyouwerelookingatthemhead-on.

EXERCISE:MAPPINGAROUTE

APPLICATIONS•Aroadmaptodirectafriendorcolleague.•Amapofthefloorplanofabuilding.

•Adecorativemap.

METHODIllustrateyourroutetowork.Roughlysketchoutamapoftheroutefromaboveinpencilandnotedownanymajorlandmarksalongtheway.

Clarifytheroutebydrawingoverthepencilinpenandlightlyerasingtheearliermarkswhentheinkisdry.

Drawinthemajorlandmarksfromobservation,photographsormemory.Addcolourandtoneifneeded.

ALSOTRY…Layingoutaroom.Ifyou’rethinkingaboutdifferentarrangementsoffurnitureinaroom,trymappingthemonpaperandtriallingalternatives.

TOIMPROVE…•Practisesketchingkeyfeaturesin

thelandscape(seehere).•Practisedrawinginteriorstogaina

bettersenseofspaceindrawings.•Practisemakingclear,boldlines

(seehere).

THEULTIMATESTICKMAN

Thestickmanisasimplifiedhumanfigure.Atitsworstthestickmancancometosymbolisetheinsecuritiesmanypeoplehavewiththeirdrawings;peopleoftendefensivelystate,‘AllIcandrawisstickpeople.’Justlikeallotheraspectsofyourdrawing,yourstickmencanalwaysbeimproved.Ifyouhaveashorthandforthefigureyoucanuseitforanythingfromstoryboardingandinstructionaldrawingtoplanningcompositionsforpaintingsandsketchingfigurativescenes.Yourbasicfiguremightleantowardsthecartoonlike,oritmightbemorerepresentational;itisuptoyou.Thestickpeopleinthisexercisedemonstrateanevolvinganatomythatbecomesmorecomplexastheyneedtocommunicatemorecomplexideas.Thefirstrepresentsthepresenceofapersonandnothingmore.Thefinalstickmanisfullyarticulatedandcouldadoptaplethoraofposes.Whenusingthemincontext,pickthelevelofdetailthatissuitableforwhatyouwanttocommunicate.

EXERCISE:EVOLVINGSTICKMEN

APPLICATIONS•Fordrawingafigureinrelationtoanydesignedobjects,fromchairsto

buildings.•Stickmencanbeusedinstoryboardsorinstructionaldrawing.•Thebasicfigurecanunderpincharactersincomicstrips,simplecharacter

designandinpicturesdrawnforfun.

Allofthesestickpeopleareusefulforsomething;eventhemostbasiconecansignifycomplexattitudesandideas.

METHODHerearesomedifferentstickfiguresforyoutopractiseandadapt–playaroundwiththemonthepage,doodlethemperformingdifferentactions,interactingortellingavisualstory.Thesimpleststickfigurecanbeausefulwaytoquicklyandplainlysymboliseaperson–sometimesitwillbethebestfigureforthejob!

Fillingoutthebodyofastickfigureandgivingthemtaperinglimbswillbroadenthegesturestheycanperformandmakethemfeelallthemorehuman,whilstretainingtheirsimplicity.

Morecomplexfigurescanbedevelopedfromasimplearmaturebasedonskeletalstructure–anyknowledgeofanatomyyoumighthavedevelopedfromlifedrawingexerciseswillcontributehugelytomorelifelikepeople.

ALSOTRY… TOIMPROVE…

ALSOTRY…Usingphotosoffiguresinaction,orpausedfilmfootage,asabasisfordrawingactionposes.Varybodyshapesandvaryscaletosuggestdistance.

TOIMPROVE…•Drawmorefiguresfromlife(see

1,2and3).•Practisedrawingyourstickfigures

inavarietyofposes.•Learnmoreabouttheanatomyof

thehumanbody(see1and2).

INALIFECLASS

Lifedrawingisthepracticeofmakinganobservationaldrawingdirectlyfromamodel,typicallyunclothed.Althoughmanyartistsemploylifemodelsforone-to-onesittings,mostlifedrawingtakesplaceingroupsessionswithseveralpeopledrawingfromamodel.Lifedrawingisn’tjustaboutmakingpicturesofunclothedfigures,itisagreatwaytoexercisecoredrawingskills.Fundamentallyitisanexerciseinobservation,trainingyoutolookproperlyatyoursubject,usingselectivedrawnmarkstomakeefficientsketcheswithinthetimeconstraintsofposes.Atitsbestalife-drawingclasscanbetheheartofanartisticcommunity,encouragingskillsharingandprovidinganenvironmentinwhichtomeetotherswhoarekeenondrawing.

MODEL&POSETIMINGSRememberthatthemodelsittingfortheclassisaperson,notjustasubjectforthedrawing.Respectthelifemodelandbeconsiderateinyourlanguagetowardsthem;theyareprovidingthesourceofinspirationforyourwork!Ifyou’reusedtodrawingfromphotographs,stilllifeorlandscapes,thengettingusedtothespeedofshorterposeswillbeyourfirstchallenge.Thetimeconstraintsofalifeclasswillrequireacompromise;makeaconsciousdecisionabouthowyouwilldirectyourtimeinadrawinganddon’ttrytodraweverythingallatonce.Theexercisesinthischapterwillhelpyoutogetstarted.

ABILITY&EXPERIENCELife-drawingclassesareoftenpitchedatdifferentlevelsofexperiencewithtutoredclassesforbeginnersorimproversanduntutoreddrop-insopentoallabilities.Picktheclassthatyoufeelbestreflectsyourconfidencelevel,butbebrave–youshouldn’tbeputoffattendingbyinexperience.Dosomeresearchtofindoutwhetheryouneedtobringyourownmaterials,andifyoudo,usetheadviceonthenextpagetoguideyou.

EquipmentIfyouhaven’tbeenaskedtotakespecificmaterialstoaclass,hereissomesuggestedequipment.Don’toverwhelmyourselfwithtoomanyoptionsatyourfirstclass,butgoprepared.Theboardandpapercouldbeanysizeyouprefer;ifthelifeclasshaseaselsyoucanworkreallybig!

AVARIEDKIT•Inkanddippen•Watercolourbrushes•Charcoalsticks•Charcoal

pencils•Graphitepencils•Eraser

•Knife•Pencils•Sharpener•Drawingboard•Paper•Folder

ASIMPLEKIT•Sketchbook•Pencils•Eraser

•Sharpener•Ballpointpens

SETUPForthedrawingsinthischapter,you’llusuallybesetupataneaselorwithadrawingboardonyourlap.Thinkaboutyourpositionintheroom,asitwillaffecttheposesyousee,andmakesureyourpaperiswelllit.

WARM-UPS

Itisworthspendingalittletimewarmingupbeforecommittingyourselftoalongerdrawing.Ialwaysthinkofthesefirstsketchesassacrificialdrawingsintendedtoestablishaconnectionbetweenyoureyeandhandandgetyoumakingmarks.Youcanusethisexercisetohelpyoudrawquickposes,oruseitatthebeginningofalongerposebeforestartingamoreearnestdrawing.Ifyou’veneverdrawnbefore,thiscanbeagoodexercisetostartwith.Becausetheexerciseinvolvesnotlookingatthepaperyouhaveanexcusetomakestrangeandmisproportioneddrawings!

EXERCISE:BLINDCONTOURDRAWING

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Ballpointpenorpencil•Sketchbook

Idealposelength:1–3minutesperpose.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisisacommonlyusedexercisetohelpyoumakeclearobservations,unrestrictedbytheworryofhowthedrawinglooks.Itwillalsohelpyoutoidentifyedges,makedecisionsaboutwheretodrawalineanditwillencourageconfidentlinearmark-making.

METHODSecureyourpaperandsitlookingatthemodel;don’tlookatthepaperatallthroughoutthisdrawing.Touchyourpenorpenciltothepaper,nearthetop,andfocusyoureyesonthetopofyourmodel’shead.Slowlyletyoureyetracealinearoundyoursubject.Asyoureye‘draws’itswayaroundthesubject,letyourpencilfollowthesamemovementsonthepaper.

Drawacontinuouslinearoundyoursubject’soutline,movinginwardswhennecessarytofollowlinesinthebody.Ifyouloseyourplace,youcanlookdownatyourdrawingbriefly,repositionyourpencilandcontinuetheprocess,keepingyoureyeonthesubjectasyoudraw.

Whenthetimeisup,liftyourpenciloffthepaperandtakealookatwhatyou’vedrawn.Expectthedrawingtobebizarreandinaccurate;afterall,youweren’tlookingatit!Repeatthisexerciseregularlytohelpyougetusedtolookinganddrawing.

ALSOTRY… TOIMPROVE…

ALSOTRY…Makingblindcontourdrawingsofpeopleoutsideofthelifedrawingclass,drawingwithoutlookingbackatthepapertoimproveyourobservationalskills.

TOIMPROVE…•Learnmoreaboutdrawingedges.•Exploredifferentwaysofmaking

lines.•Readmoreaboutobservation.

GESTURALDRAWINGS

Agesturaldrawingcapturestheenergyandfeelofapose.Inposeslastingjustafewminutesamodelwillbeabletoholdamoredynamicpostureandthisenergycanbecapturedinaswiftgesturalstudy.Althoughthedrawingisstillrootedinobservation,you’llbedrawinghowtheposefeelsasmuchashowitlooks.Thetimeconstraintsofaquickposemeanyouhavetosacrificesomeaccuracytomaintaintherightfeelinginthedrawing,andagoodwaytodothisistosetyourselfsomeboundariestostopyourselfgettingcaughtupindetailasyoudraw.Forthisexercise,you’llonlyhavethreelineswithwhichtocaptureyoursubject.

EXERCISE:THREE-LINEDRAWING

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Charcoalpencil•Lotsofpaper

Idealposelength:10seconds–5minutesperpose.

AIMS&ATTITUDESGesturaldrawingsshouldbemadewithenergy,buttheyshouldn’tbemadeinapanic.Lookfirst,thendraw.Somedrawingswillworkbetterthanothersandyoumayfindyoucanmakeseveralsketchesduringonepose.Thisisanexerciseinselection;youmustlearntomakequick,instinctivedecisionsaboutwheretodrawaline,andtoputthoselinesdownconfidently.

METHODTakeamomenttolook.Drawthefirstlinefromthetopoftheposetothefloor,capturingenergyintheposeusingaflowingandintuitivemark.You’llhavenotimefordetail.Don’tletthelinehesitate.Ifyoudon’tlikewhereithasgone,startagainnexttothefirstline.

Thenextlineshouldbalancethefirstline.Keepitconfident,keeplookingatthemodel.Therewillbelotsofthingsyouaren’tabletocapture;thatisfine.Thisexerciseisallaboutbeingselective.

Thefinallinecancreateafocusandinterestinthedrawing.Ifyouhavetime,trythesameposeagain,andtrytoimproveonthedrawing.Somedrawingswillcomeoutwell,somewillnot.

ALSOTRY…Drawingtheposeinfivelines,givingyoutheopportunityforalittlemoreexpression.

TOIMPROVE…•Learntobemoreselectiveinyour

drawing.•Drawsubjectsthatdon’tstaystill

(see1and2).

NEGATIVESPACE

Ourobservationsofthefigureareinevitablyaffectedbyhowweexpectabodytolook.Webringfewerpreconceptionstotheabstractshapesofspacesthatsurroundthefigure,andwecanusethosespacestohelpusseethefiguremoreobjectively;bydrawingthesenegativespacesaroundafigure,youcanarriveatthesilhouetteofthebody.

EXERCISE:DRAWINGINNEGATIVE

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Sharpener•Eraser•Paper

Idealposelength:3–10minutesperpose.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisexercisetrainsyoutoseenegativespaces;doyourbestnottobecomedistractedbythedetailsofthebody.Bearinmindthatwhenyoudrawalinearoundtheboundaryofthefigureyouaresimultaneouslydrawingtheboundaryofthenegativespace.

METHODStartwithaclear,simpleshape,ideallyasmallshapeenclosedbythebody.Drawthespaceasaccuratelyasyourtimeallows.

Drawthenextnearestshape,judgingtherelationshipbetweenthespaces.Don’t

Drawthenextnearestshape,judgingtherelationshipbetweenthespaces.Don’tdrawthebodyinbetween,butmaintainanawarenessthatthespacesarecreatingthesilhouetteofafigure.

Drawthenegativespacearoundthefigure.Youmightalsowanttodrawintheshapesofthefurniturethatthemodelisposedoninasimilarway.Ifyouwantto,youcandarkenthenegativespacestomakethefigurestandout.

Usingaviewfindercanhelpyoutoidentifythenegativespacesaroundthebody.

ALSOTRY…Usingaviewfindertocreateanartificialboundaryaroundthebody.Aviewfindercaneasilybecutoutofcardorthebackingofyoursketchpad.

TOIMPROVE…•Practisedrawingchairsandstools

innegative.•Learntorecogniseabstractshapes

moreeasily.•Learntojudgetherelationships

betweenshapes.•Learntoidentifytheboundary

aroundafiguremoreeasily(seehere).

TONALDRAWING

Weseetheworldaroundusbyperceivingtoneandcolour.Tone,alsocalledvalue,referstohowdarkorlightweperceivesomethingtobe.Whenyouaredrawingthefigureyouarepresentedwithacomplexmapoftonesthatyouneedtoselectivelytranslateintodrawnmarks.Judginghowlightordarkarelativetoneiswilltakepractice.Itcanbehelpfultoseparatetonesintobroadcategories,lookingforthelightestlights,mid-tonesanddarkestdarks.Thisexerciseinvolvesaddingamid-tonetothepaperfirst,erasingawaytorepresentlightandaddingdarkermarkstoachieveshadows.

EXERCISE:SUBTRACTIVETONE

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Charcoalsticks•Softcloth

•Plasticeraser•Whitepaper

Idealposelength:5–20minutesperpose.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisexercisewillhelpyousimplifythefigureintoblocksoftone.Youneedn’tdrawalltheshadowsyousee;beselectiveandmakedecisionsaboutwhattoputintoyourdrawingandwhattoleaveout.Learntoseeshadowsasajigsawofblocksoflightordarkanddevelopavocabularyoftonalmarksfordescribingtheseshapes.

METHODPrepareyourpaperbylightlyscrubbingastickofcharcoaloverthepaperandthenrubbingoverthesurfacewithacloth.Aimtocoverthesurfacewithanevenmid-toneofgrey.

Takeagoodplasticeraser,cuttoapoint,andstartdrawinginshapesoflight.Startfromabigclearshapeofhighlightanderaseareasoflightasyouseethem,maintaininganawarenessoftherelationshipsbetweenshapes.Keepthedrawingsimpleanddrawtheshapesofhighlights,leavingthemid-toneshadowsbehind.

Onceyouhavedrawninsimpleblocksoflight,useyourcharcoalsticktodrawindarkershadowshapes,drawinginthesharpedgesofshadowstoaddclarityto

yourdrawing.

Finally,balancethebackgroundagainstthefigure,creatingcontraststhathelpdrawattentiontotheshapeoflightonthebody.Useyourerasertolightenlargeareasoryourcharcoaltodarkenthem

ALSOTRY…Drawingonamid-tonepaper.

TOIMPROVE…

Drawingonamid-tonepaper.Chooseapaperthatisn’ttoodarkanddrawtheshapesofshadowsonincharcoal,allowingthepapertostandinforthemid-tones.Usewhitechalkorgouachetocreatetheshapesofhighlights.

•Learntorecognisetonesmoreeasily.

•Exploredifferentwaysofdrawingtonalshapes.

CONSTRUCTEDAPPROACH

Whenamodeladoptsapose,weseetheunderlyingstructureofbones,musclesandfatexpressedonthesurfaceoftheskin.Figuredrawingscanhaveasimilarunderlyingstructureofsimplelinesandshapes,adrawnanatomythatrelatestothephysicalanatomyofthehumanbody.Byunderstandingthestructureofthebodybetter,youcanlearntomakemorefocussedandselectivelifedrawings.Thistutorialdemonstrateshowyoumightuseobservationsofanatomytodevelopasimpledrawnanatomy,takingtheneckandshouldersasanexample.

EXERCISE:ACONSTRUCTEDDRAWING

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencils•Eraser•Sharpener

Idealposelength:10–30minutesperpose.

AIMS&ATTITUDESBydevelopingabasicknowledgeofwhatisunderneaththesurfaceoftheskinyoucanlearntomakeclearerobservationsofthefigure.Bydevelopingsimplestructurestosketchdownunderneathyourfigures,you’llcreateascaffoldofmarksonwhichtohangyourobservationsofthebody.Ifyouliketheapproach,developyourknowledgeofthefigurebystudyinganatomyalongsidemakingfocussedobservationalstudies.Everybodydrawsdifferently,sothisapproachwon’tsuiteverybody.

METHODResearchtheanatomicalstructureofthepartofthebodyyouwishtostudy,makingsketchesfromanatomicaltextbooks,anddevelopaworkingunderstandingofthatpartofthefigure,payingattentiontomusclesandbonestructuresyouseedemonstratedonthesurfaceoftheskin.

Fromyourobservationsofthefigureandfromyourresearch,developsomesimpleshapesthatunderpinwhatyouseeinthatpartofthebody.Instructionaldrawingbooksthatfocusonthefiguremightalsosuggestaframeworkofconstructiveshapes.

Whenyouobserveyourareaofstudyinalife-drawingclass,makequicksketches,layingdowntheunderlyingshapesyouhavedeveloped,andelaboratingonthosestructuresbasedonwhatyouareobserving.

ALSOTRY…Moveontostudyingotherpartsofthebodyanddevelopacompletefigureconstruction.Usethistopractisedrawingsimplefigureposesfromyourimagination.

TOIMPROVE…•Improveyourjudgmentof

relationshipsbetweenmajorlandmarksonthefigure.

•Studyhumananatomy.•Learnmoreaboutothersuggested

structuresfromfigure-drawing

books.

ATTHEDRAWINGBOARD

Thischapterisanextensionofthesectionondrawingathome,intendedfordayswhenyoucancarveoutalittlemoretimetodraw.Ifyouareluckyenoughtohaveadedicatedstudiospacethenperhapsthisisdrawingtobedonethere.Ifnot,doitatthekitchentable,inyourbedroomoranywhereyoucanfocusfullyonyourwork.Hereissomeadvicetohelpyougetthemostfromyourtime.

PRACTICALADVICE•Firstyou’llwanttocutoutalldistractions.Removeanythingfromyour

immediatevicinitythatwillpullyouawayfromdrawing.

•Puttechnologyaside.Evenifyou’redrawingfromascreen,steerclearoftheinternetforafewhours,andsetyourphonetosilent.

•Don’tletotherpeopledistractyou.Perhapsyourfirstdrawingcouldbeanattractive‘DoNotDisturb’signforyourdoor.

•Setaminimumtime.Allowyourselfenoughtimetorelaxintodrawinganddon’tforgettomakeafewwarm-upsketchesbeforeyoustartinearnest.

•Don’tplaythestarvingartist.Havesomethingtoeat!Haveasnackandaglassofwatertohandsothatnothingwillpullyouawayfromthetaskahead.

•Don’tfeelunderpressure.Thisistimetolearn,playandexperiment.Itisasmuchabouttheprocessastheoutcome.

•Ifyoulikemusic,putonsomemusic.

WARM-UPSBeforestartinganyseriousdrawing,setasideafewminutesformakingsomesacrificialwarm-upsketches.Thiswillhelpyoucoordinateyoureyeandhandandloosenupyourwristalittle.Thepaper-to-paperexerciseinthissectionisagoodwarmup,butyoumightalsowanttostartwithanyoftheexercisesfromChapter2,adrawingoftheroom,thealternativeexerciseinhere,ortheblindcontourdrawingsfromhereappliedtoobjectsratherthanamodel.

IDEALKITGetyourdrawingkitout,butdon’toverwhelmyourselfwithtoomuchvariety.Pickingyourmaterialsisasmuchapartofthedrawingprocessasisputtingpenciltopaper.Thisisyourtimetotrynewtools,ortobecomemorecompetentwiththematerialsyouenjoy;exploretherangeofpotentialthatdrawinghastooffer.Nobodyislookingoveryourshoulderorjudgingyourwork;youhave

offer.Nobodyislookingoveryourshoulderorjudgingyourwork;youhavepermissiontomakemistakes,totakerisksandtofail.Organiseyourdrawingspace,makesureyouhaveagoodsurfacetorestyourpaperonandensurethekityouintendtouseisaccessible.

PAPERTOPAPER

Itisoftenusefultodevelopafewbasicdrawingexercisesthathelpyourelaxintotheprocessoflookingandmakingmarks.Ideallytheseexercisesshouldrequireminimalequipmentandareadilyaccessiblesubject–andwhatcouldbemoreaccessibleatyourdrawingboardthanaballofpaper!

Thisisagreatexerciseintonaldrawingandshaperecognition,anditcanbeawonderfullymeditativewaytogetlostindrawingsomethingrelativelysimple.Itischeapandeasytosetup,andwasfirstsuggestedtomebytheartistDaphneSandham.Daphneadvocateseatingasquareofchocolateatthesametimetohelpyoumaintainconcentration,anddrawingforthelengthofasong;soputona3–5minutesonganddrawuntilitfinishes.

EXERCISE:TONALPLANES

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Eraser•Sharpener•Paper•Adesklamp

Time:Thelengthofasong.

Setup:Crumpleupaballofpaperandsititonthetableinfrontofyouwithadesklampprovidingdirectionallight.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisisacommonlyusedexercisetohelpyoumakeclearobservations,unrestrictedbytheworryofhowthedrawinglooks.Itwillalsohelpyoutoidentifyedges,makedecisionsaboutwheretodrawalineandencourageconfidentlinearmark-making.

METHODStartyourdrawingwithashapeinthemiddleoftheballofpaper;don’tbeginwiththeoutlineoftheball.Drawtheabstractplanesthatyousee,drawingoneshapenexttoanother.

shapenexttoanother.

Startrenderingtoneusingquick,simplediagonalmarks.Judgehowlightordarkeachshapeshouldberelativetotheshapesaroundtoit.Saveyourdarkestmark-makingfortheshadowsinthecreasesofthepaper.

Workouttowardstheedgeofthepaper,butdon’tfeelthatyouneedtodrawthewholeball;stopwhenthesongends.

ALSOTRY…Takingthesameapproachwithotherobjectsthataremadeupofmanysmallshapesnexttooneanother,abunchofflowersforexample.

TOIMPROVE…•Learntogrouptonesintodarks,

mid-tonesandlights(seehere).•Learntoseeabstractshapesmore

clearly.•Becomebetteratjudging

relationshipsbetweenpoints.

DRAWINGHANDS

Weuseourhandsforreachingoutandinteractingwiththeworld;theyarealsoexpressivetoolsforcommunication.Leavingyourmodel’shandsoutofadrawingistoneglectanimportantpartoftheiridentity,butifyou’redrawingafullfigureyoumightonlyhaveafewmomentstocapturethegestureofthehand.Spendingsometimemakingfocussedstudiesofyourownhandswillallowyoutoconcentrateonthevariedshapestheycancreate.

Simplifyinghandsintomanageablestructureswillhelpyoubreakdownwhatyousee,creatingaframeworkonwhichyoucanhangyourobservations.Thisexerciseusesapencilfortheunderdrawing,andablackpenforlaterlines.Alternatively,youcoulddotheunderdrawinginwillowcharcoal,rubitbackwithyourhandandover-drawincompressedcharcoalpencil,ormakethedrawinginpencil,erasingbetweenstages.

EXERCISE:HANDSTUDIES

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Blackballpointpen•Paper

Time:10minutesperstudy.

Setup:Secureyourpaperandposeonehandonthetablesothatyoucandrawitwithyourotherhand.Youmightwanttopropamirrorupinfrontofyousothatyoucandrawyourhandatarangeofdifferentangles.

AIMS&ATTITUDES

AIMS&ATTITUDESThepencilinthisexercisehelpsyouseparatetheprocessesofestablishingandconstructingthehandfromelaboratingontheform,allowingyoutolaydownconfidentblacklinestoclarifyyourdrawingonceyouhaveworkedthroughtheproportionalproblems.Usetheexercisetohelpyouthinkaboutdrawinginlayers,dealingwithoneproblematatime,givingconsiderationtothekindsofmarksyouuseateachstage.

METHODPlaceyourhandinaposeandspend10secondsreallylookingatitbeforeyoubegindrawing.Usingyourpencil,startbyestablishingthepositionofthewrist,themassofthehandandthe‘mitten’ofthefingers.Thedistancebetweenthewristandtheknuckleisaboutthesameasbetweentheknuckleandthefingertip.

Drawtheshapeofthethumb,anddividetheestablishingmittenshapeintofingers,asifyouwereasculptorcarvingmoredetailintothedrawing.Lookforlinesofshadowortrianglesofnegativespacebetweendigits.

Usetheblackballpointpentoelaborateontheoutlineofthehandandfingers.Usethestructureoftheunderdrawingtoguideyou,anddrawthelinesandshapesoftheshadowsyousee,keepingyourmarkssimple,selective,andflowing,andexperimentwiththeweightofmarkasyoudraw.

ALSOTRY…Makingstudiesofotherpeople’shandsinaction,holdingcupsincafés,typingonkeyboards,ordrawinginartclasses.Trytocapturetheshapesquicklyastheymove,

TOIMPROVE…•Learntoseeedgesandshapes

moreclearly(see1and2).•Developyourobservationof

negativespaces.

theshapesquicklyastheymove,fillingapagewithswift,incompletesketches.

FOLDS&FABRICS

Drawingfabriccanbeagreatopportunityforexploringmark-making,usingdifferentmarksfortonalshapes,surfacepatternandcontourlines.Makingdraperystudieswillhelpyoudrawclothedfiguresasyoubecomebetteratsimplifyingthecomplexshapesoffabricintoefficientmarks.You’llhavetroublere-posingthefabricinexactlythesameposition,soyou’llneedtocompleteastudyinonesitting,orbeabletoleaveitinthesameplaceuntilyouarereadytocontinuethedrawing.Startoffusingaplainclothforyourfirststudy,thenmoveontosomethingpatterned;Ihaveusedateatowelasthesubjectforthisdrawing.

AIMS&ATTITUDESThisisanexerciseinsimplificationandlookingforkeylinesoftensioninaflowingsubject.Youcanalsoseeitasanopportunitytolearnhowfabricbehavessothatyoucanapplythattootherdrawingsofclothedfigures,curtainsorevenasawayofunderstandingotherflowingsubjectslikehair.

EXERCISE:DRAWINGDRAPERY

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Pencil•Dippen•Ink•Fabric•Paper

Time:30minutes.

Setup:Pinyourfabricupsothatithangsfromapointandbroadensintoatriangle,drapingoveratableorachair.Makesureyouhaveaclear,directionallightsourcethatwillremainconstantasyouaremakingyourdrawing.

METHODEstablishtheshapeofthefabricwithapencil,lookingforitsoveralloutlineand

payingattentiontothenegativespacearoundit.

Inpencil,drawtheedgesofmajorfoldsrunningthroughthefabric,usingavariedspeedandweightoflinetoconveytension.Ignoresmallerfoldsandpatterns.

Usingthedippen,elaborateonthesurfaceofthefabric.Usemarksthatflowwiththefabrictocreatetheimpressionoftone,experimentingwithdirectionofyourmark-makingtoconveythecontouringofthesurfaceofthefabric.Addtexturalmarksforsurfacepatterns,drawingtheshapesyouactuallyseeratherthanthepatternyouknowtobeonthefabric.

ALSOTRY…Makingstudiesofclotheshangingup,observinghowdifferenttheylookwhenfilledwithfigures.

TOIMPROVE…•Learntoseeshapesmoreclearly.•Makesketchesoffiguresin

clothing,lookingfortheshapestheclothesmake(see1and2).

•Learntorendertonebetter.

FROMSCREENTOPAPER

Drawingfromamagazine,aprintedphotographorascreeninvolvestranslatingatwo-dimensionalimageintoatwo-dimensionaldrawing.Thisexercisesdifferentskillsthandrawingasubjectfromlife,whichinvolvestakingathree-dimensionalsubjectandconvertingitintoatwo-dimensionaldrawing.Aphotographwillstaystillindefinitely,butitwillalsorevealnomoreaboutitssubjectthanispresentinthesnapshot.Thisexerciseteachesyoutousephotographsintelligentlyasastartingpointforyourdrawings.Aimtodomorewithyourdrawingthantojustreplicatethephotograph.Makeanoriginaldrawingbasedonthephotographthroughintelligentselection,leavingoutsuperfluouselementsandintroducingdraftsmanlymark-making.

EXERCISE:APHOTOGRAPHICPORTRAIT

SETTINGUP

Whatyouneed:•Agoodportraitphotograph•Pencils•Paper•Sharpener•Eraser

Time:45minutes.

Setup:Setyourselfupsothatyoucanclearlyseeyourpaperandtheimageyouareworkingfrom.Workonanangledsurface,ratherthanflatonatable.

AIMS&ATTITUDESTheaimofthisexerciseistobringtheattitudesofdrawingfromlifetoaphotograph,makingselectivedecisionsasyoudraw.Italsoprovidesanalternativetechniquetotheearlierportraitstudiessuggestedinhere.

METHODThisapproachinvolvesdrawingfromthefeaturesoutwards.Startbyestablishingsomesimpleproportions.Jotinthepositionoftheeyebrow,eye,bottomofthenose,centreofthemouthandbottomofthechin.

Asyoudraw,imaginethepersoninthephotographisinfrontofyou.Drawasif

whatyouareseeingisthree-dimensional,anddrawtheshapesoftheshadowsthatyouseedefiningthefeatures;don’ttrytodrawthefeaturesasyouimaginetheyshouldlook.Leaveoutlesssignificantshapes.

Asyoureachthechin,drawupfromthejawlineandaroundtheeartotheshapeofthehairandforehead.

Simplifyandstylisethelineasyoudraw,emphasisingcharacterfulshapesintheface.Decidehowyouwillusethebackgroundtoservethedrawingbest;youdon’thavetocopyeverythingyouseeinthephotograph.

ALSOTRY…Collagingphotostogetherandinventingyourowncompositionstodrawfrom.

TOIMPROVE…•Practisedrawingfacesfromlife

(see1and2).•Practisedrawingedgesandlines

selectively.•Thinkabouthowyourmemory

andimaginationaffectyourdrawings.

4DRAWINGSKILLS

AVISUALLANGUAGEDrawingisavisuallanguage,ameansofdescribingtheobservedorimaginedworldinavocabularyofmeaningfulmarks.Justassomeoccupationscarrywiththemtheirownverballanguage–themedicallanguageusedbydoctors,lawyersusinglegalterminology,etc.–sodifferentkindsofdrawingrequiredifferentvisualvocabularies.Whenyouaredecidingwhatkindofmarkstouseinadrawing,thinkabouttheelementsofthesubjectyou’dliketodescribetotheviewer.Doyouwanttodrawattentiontothewaylightfallsacrossalandscape?Perhapsatonalvocabularyofmarkswouldbebest.Doyouwanttorecordthecomplexpatternonapieceoffabric?Amorelinearvocabularymightsuitthisdrawing.

Weusedrawingtocommunicateideasandobservations.Thecommunicativeintentionofsomedrawingsisclear:anarchitect’sdrawingsofahousemighthelpaclientenvisagetheirfuturehome,orinformthebuilderinhowtoconstructit.Theintentionofaportraitmightbetorecordthelikenessofthesitterforposterityandforartisticsatisfaction.Somedrawingswillbemadeforyoualone,asarecordofamomentoranaidtomemoryandsomemightbemadeinordertopractisetheprocessoflookingandmark-making.Whateverthepurposeofthedrawing,thinkaboutwhatyouaretryingtosayinit,thinkaboutthelaterviewer,andselectavocabularyofmarksthatwillbestcommunicateyourintentions.

Thissketchwasmadeonlocationwithagraphitestickoncartridgepaper.Itwascreatedtorecordtheimpressionofatree,withmarksmadequicklytocapturetheshapeandflowofthebranches.Precisionhas

beensacrificedforgesturalenergy.

Thisdrawingoffabricwasmadetocapturetheflowofthematerialsandalsotopractiseanewapproachtomark-makingwithadippenonsmooth,heavycartridgepaper.Itssuccessasanexperimentcontributes

toitsoverallsuccessasadrawing.

ABOUTDRAWING

WHATMAKESAGOODDRAWING?Judgingthesuccessofadrawingcanbeverysubjective.Youcouldjudgeadrawingbyhoweffectivelyitfulfilsitspurpose,evenifyouarenotawareofthepurposeofthedrawingasyoumakeit.Don’tmakedrawingsfornoreason.Byallmeansdrawtopractise,orsketchspontaneousresponsestowhatyouseearoundyou,andalwaysbepreparedtotakerisks–but,whateveryoudo,makeeachdrawingpurposeful.

Whenyouarejudgingwhetheradrawinghasbeensuccessfulornot,thinkaboutitspurposeandtheboundariesthatlimiteditscreation.Youcanfindsomethingvaluableineverydrawing;whereadrawinghaselementsthathaven’tworkedyoucanlearnfromthoseweakerparts,andwhenpartsofthedrawinghaveworkedwell,thesecanbebuiltuponinfuturework.Boundariesandconstraintsareimportantforcreatingdrawingswithfocus;timelimits,limitedmaterials,anddifficultsubjectsallintroducechallengesthatwilltrainyoubothtobeabetterdraftsmanandtocreatepurposefulsketches.Adrawingalwayscontainscompromises:proportionalaccuracymightbepartiallysacrificedinfavourofgesturalenergy;tonalrenderingmightbesimplifiedintoafewlinearmarksinordertosavetime.

This45-minutecharcoallifedrawingwasmadetostudytheformofthebody,withmarksmadeinthedirectionofthesurfaceofskinandfabric.

ATTITUDES&TECHNIQUESAttitudesarewaysofthinkingaboutandapproachingdrawing;theattitudeyoutaketodrawingpracticeisasimportantasthetechniquesyouusetomakeindividualpictures.Techniques,suchastheonesinthisbook,giveyouastartingpointandaprocesstoworkthroughwhentranslatingyourobservationsoftheworldontopaper.Takealltechniqueswithapinchofsalt;thereisnorightorwrongwaytodraw,justbetterandworsewaysofachievingacertainoutcome,ordevelopingaparticularwayofseeing.

Sometechniqueshelpyoustructureyourtime,thewayyouthinkaboutyoursubjectandthewayyoumakeyourdrawing;othersprovideclevertrickstomakeyourdrawingmorestriking.Useandadaptalldrawingtechniquesyoulearnabout;combinethemwithotherthingsyou’vereadorbeenshownbyfellowartists,discardanyapproachesthatdon’tsuityouandbringinyourownunderstandingsofthevisualworld.Giventimeyoucanbesureofdevelopinganapproachtodrawingthatisrobust,authenticandunique.

Thisdrawingofahedgerow,drawnfromlifeingreypen,wasastudyoftextures.Someplantswereleftouttoimprovethecompositionandotherswerebroughtclosertogether.

SOURCESOFIMAGERY

Thisbookfocussesondrawingfromobservation.Whenwemakeobservationaldrawingswearegatheringvisualinformation;weselectimportantelementsofwhatweseeandsimplifythoseelementsintomarks.Whenwelookfromoursubjectbacktothedrawingwebrieflyholdamemoryofthesubjectinourheadsbeforewejotitdown,soobservationaldrawingpartiallyreliesonmemory.Everythingweobserveandbrieflymemorisecontributestowardstheschemasthatmakeupourunderstandingoftheworld,creatingstockimagesofobjectsinourheadsthatinturninformourimaginativedrawings.

Forexample,everychairwehaveeverseencontributestowardsourideaofwhatachairlookslike,andthisiswhatweareimaginingwhenwedrawachairfromourheads.Ourknowledgeofthevisualworldandourimaginativecapacityfeedbackintoourobservationaldrawing,helpingselectinterestingandrelevantelementsofoursubjecttodraw.Makinganydrawingwillalwaysinvolveutilisingobservation,memoryandimaginationatonce.

OBSERVATIONImprovingyourobservationmeansspendingmoretimelookingatyoursubjectandlesstimelookingatyourpaper,strengtheningtheconnectionbetweenyoureyeandhand,andlearningtobeselectiveaboutwhatyoudraw.Reducethedistanceyoureyehastotravelbetweenyoursubjectanddrawingtomakeiteasytomakedirectcomparisons.

MEMORYYoucanonlyrememberwhatyouhavefirstobserved.Ifyoumakeadrawingfrommemoryyou’llseethegapswhereyoudidn’tobserveyoursubjectproperly.Trylookingatanobjectforafewminutes,thendrawitfrommemory.Youoftenholdaparticularline,pointorshapeinyourheadasyoutransferit

Youoftenholdaparticularline,pointorshapeinyourheadasyoutransferitontopaper.Improvethatprocess:lookatyoursubject,selectaline,pointorshape,holditinyourmind,thenlookatyourpaperanddrawit,thengobackandfindthenextline.

IMAGINATIONWhenyoufirsttakeupdrawing,yourimaginationcanhamperyou;youthinkyouknowwhattheworldlookslike,soyoudon’tobserveitproperlyanddrawwhatyouthinkisthere.First,learntodrawobjectively,then,asyoudevelopabetterknowledgeofyoursubjectbylooking,useyourknowledgeandimaginationtohelpyoumakebetterselectionsinyourdrawings.

CORESKILLS

Drawingisacompositeskillmadeupofskillsofperception,temperedbyelementsofimaginativedesignandbroughtintobeingthroughtactilemark-making.Theperceptualskillsidentifiedinthischapterareinextricablylinkedandareallrequiredwhenmakinganydrawing.Sometypesofdrawingareweightedtowardsparticularskillsandtheycanbepractisedinordertoimprovethoseskills.

ASKBETTERQUESTIONSSometimesdrawingcanbeaflowing,intuitiveprocess,butoftenitwillinvolvealotofmistakemakingandproblemsolving.Makingbetterdrawingsisaboutidentifyingproblemsinordertosolvetheminyourdrawings.Especiallywhenyou’rejuststartingout,yourprogresscansometimesbehamperedbyanigglinginternalmonologuesayingthingslike:•‘Ican’tdrawfaces.’•‘Thatarmcan’tpossiblylooklikethat.’•‘Thisdrawingisn’tgoingverywell.’

Thisisyourinternalcriticspeaking,anditcanbemorerestrictingtoyourprogressthananylackofability.Inordertodevelop,youneedtimetodrawwithoutnegativeinternalcriticism,soinsteadnurtureaninternaltutor.Turnyourself-criticismsintoconstructivequestionsthatyoucanthentrytoanswerinyourdrawings:•‘WhereshouldIstartthisdrawingofaface?’•‘Isthatarmforeshortened?HowcanImakesenseofitsshape?’•‘Whataretheproblemsinthisdrawingthatmakeitlookunlikethe

subject?HowcanIimproveonit?’

Allowyourselftimetostepbackfromyourdrawingtoaskthesequestions,andwhenyouaredrawing,allowyourselftobecomeabsorbedintheprocessoflookingandmark-makingwithoutcriticism.Ittakestimetolearnhowto

critiqueyourowndrawingsconstructively,butit’llcomewithpractice.

ATOOLBOXOFSKILLSAsyoumakeadrawingyou’llencounterperceptualproblemsanddrawingproblemsthatyou’llneedtosolve.Differentproblemsmightrequiredifferentwaysofseeingandmark-making.Overtimeyoudevelopatoolboxofperceptualskills,andtypesofmark-makingthatwillhelpyousolvecertainproblems.Getusedtodippingintothattoolboxtofindtherightwayofseeingtosolvetheproblem.Drawingtechniquesarejusttoolsthathelpyousolvespecificproblemsinaparticularway.Tobecomeaversatiledraftsman,you’llneedtodevelopascomprehensiveatoolboxofskillsaspossible.

EDGES

Mostdrawingsstartwithaline.Linesrepresentthejourneyyoureyetakesaroundasubject,oftenmovingaroundtheboundarybetweenanobjectanditssurroundingenvironment,oraroundashapeorshadow.Lookingforedgesthatyoumightrepresentwithlinesisafundamentalskillofperception.

EDGESOFOBJECTSTheedgearoundanobjectislikeahorizonline,yoursubject’sformcontinues,butoutofyoursight.Theoutlineyoudrawrepresentsthishorizon;weareabletoseetheboundaryastheresultofcontrastsbetweenanareaoflightandanareaofdark.

EDGESINSIDEOBJECTSWhenyoureyemovesinsidetheshapeofyoursubject’soutlineyou’llstartseeingfurthershapes,continuingtheedgesofthesubjectwithintheboundaryofitsoutline.

TONALEDGESWhensimplifyingtone,youmightwanttodrawtheoutlinestotheshapesofshadowsyouseeonyoursubject.Thiswillmeanmakingdecisionsaboutwherealinecouldgoalongagradientoflightanddark.

PRACTICALBIT:OUTLINE,INTERIORMakesomelineardrawingsfollowingtheprocessoflookingfortheedgesofanoutline,thenshapesinsidetheoutline,thentheedgesofshadows.

RELATIONSHIPS

Judgingrelationshipsbetweenelementsofyoursubjectandgettingtogripswithspatialrelationshipsbetweenobjectsonapageiskeytoachievingharmoniouscompositionsandaccurateproportions.Itisoftenhelpfultostartbyjudgingbigrelationships,honingyourobservationdowntopoint-to-pointrelationshipslater.Learntojudgerelationshipsbyeyeandonlybringinmeasuringtoolswhenyouneedthem.

RELATIONSHIPSBETWEENLANDMARKSTherelationshipsbetweenobjectsonapagemakeupthebroadcomposition.Thoseobjectswillbemadeupofbasicshapesthatsitinrelationshipstooneanother.

RELATIONSHIPSBETWEENPOINTSAlinedescribestherelationshipbetweentwopointsthatsitlikeco-ordinatesonamap;todrawanaccuratelineyouwantanideaofwherethekeymarkerssitalongit.Lookforpointsinyourdrawingthatyoucanrelatetootherpoints:junctionsbetweenlinesorstartingandstoppingpointsoflines.

PRACTICALBIT:MEASURINGWhenyoucan’tjudgearelationshipbyeye,usedrawingtoolstohelpyou.Youcanuseyourpencillikearulertocheckanglesbetweenpointsormeasurecomparativedistances.Closeoneeyetoflattenwhatyouseeandholdyourpenciloutatarm’slengthforaconsistentmeasurement.You’lllooksuperartydoingthis.Ifyouarelookingforaccuracyinyourdrawing,herearesomeusefulquestionstoaskyourselfasyoucheckyourdrawing:

Whatishorizontallyinlinewiththispartofmysubject?Isthatthesameinmydrawing?(Ifitisn’t,changeyourdrawingsothatitis.Dothesameforverticalrelationships.)

IstheangleofthatlineinmydrawingthesameasIseeinmysubject?(Lineupthediagonalwithyourpenciland,keepingyourarmstraight,transferitacrosstoyourdrawing.Iftheangleisn’tthesame,changeitinyourdrawing.)

Howmuchofonepartofthedrawingwouldfitintoanotherpart?(Youdon’tneedtomakeyourdrawingthesamescaleasyouseethesubject,butyoucanstillmakecomparisonsbetweenonelengthandanotherinyoursubjectandyourdrawingtocheckrelativeproportions.)

SHAPES

Whenyouaredrawing,ithelpstolookforlargeshapestobeginplottingoutyourdrawinginaverygeneralway,andthentoworkintothedrawingfindingincreasinglysmallershapesthatfittogetherlikeajigsawpuzzlemakingupyourimpressionofyoursubject.

SIMPLIFIEDSHAPESAtfirstlookforbigshapes,lookingforgeneralrelationshipsinthecomposition.Practisesimplifyingcomplexobjectsintobasicforms.

NEGATIVESPACESDon’tjustlookattheshapesyoursubjectmakes,butalsolookattheshapessurroundingit.Sometimesitiseasiertodrawyoursubjectinnegative,lookingforshapesarounditfirst.Thiscanalsobeausefulproblem-solvingexercise.

forshapesarounditfirst.Thiscanalsobeausefulproblem-solvingexercise.

TONALSHAPES

Lookatyoursubjectlikeajigsawpuzzleofshadowshapes,fittingtogethertocreatethewholepicture.

PRACTICALBIT:SCULPTURALAPPROACHThinklikeasculptor;youarestartingwithablockofgranite(theblankpage)andchippingawaybigshapesthensmallershapestofinallyarriveattheareasofdetails.

TONE

Weseetheworldasgraduationsoflightanddark.Atfirst,thecomplexityoftonecanbeoverwhelming.Themoretonaldrawingsyoumake,themoreclearlyyouwilllearntojudgedifferencesintonalvalues.Beginnersoftenmakecontraststooextreme;mostoftheworldisamid-tone,withthelightestlightsanddarkestdarksatthefarendsofatonalscale.Tryblurringyoureyesinordertoseetonemoregenerally.

TONALRANGEThetonalrangeofyourdrawingmaterialswilldictatethetonesyoucanrepresent.Testyourmaterialsouttogetascaleoflighttodark.Thewhiteofpaperwillgiveyouyourlightestlight,andusingdifferentgradesofpencilwillhelpyoutoextendyourtonalrange.

TONALMARK-MARKINGDifferentmarkscanbeusedtocreatemassesoftone;createaconsistenttonalvocabularyfordescribingshadowsinyourdrawing.Charcoalcanbesmudgedtocreatesmoothtonaltransitions,andpenlinescanbehatchedorpackedmoredenselytocreatedarkertones.

PRACTICALBIT:DARKS,MID-TONES&HIGHLIGHTS

Tohelpyouseetonesclearly,tryseparatingwhatyouseeintogroupsoftone.Developclearmark-makingtorepresentdifferenttones.Trynottogotooheavywithyourtoneuntilyouneedto,savingyourdarkestdarksforimpactfulshadows.Practisedrawingasimpleballlitfromasinglelightsource,breakingdownthegradientoftonethatyouseeintogroupsoftonalvalue.

PROBLEMSOLVING

Themosteffectivewaytoimproveyourdraftsmanshipistodeveloptheabilitytolookatyourdrawingsobjectively.Itisimportanttomaintainanawarenessofthewholeofyourdrawingasyoumakeit,andtocomparethattoyouroverallimpressionofyoursubject.Itiseasytogetcaughtupindetailasyoudraw,butratherthangoingintodetailearlyonandcontinuingtoworkindetail,you’llwanttozoominonanareatoseeitmoreclearly,thenzoombackouttoseehowitfitswiththewhole,makeanychangesneededandthenzoombackinonanotherareaofdetail,andsoon.

Adrawingtobe‘assessed.’

PRACTICALBIT:ASSESSINGTHEWHOLE

Inordertozoomouteffectivelyandcheckyourdrawing,you’llneedwaysofbeingobjectiveaboutwhatyousee.Itcanbehardtobeobjectiveaboutyourdrawingwhenyouhavebeenlookingatitintently,sobelowaresomewaysofseeingitwithfresheyes.Usethemwhenyouneedtocheckyourdrawingforproblems.

Ifyoufindyourselfconsistentlymakingthesamemistakes,youmightwanttoputinsomededicatedpracticetimejustfortacklingthatparticularissue.You’llusuallyfindthatproblemsarisefromnotseeingyoursubjectproperly–youseewhatyouexpectratherthanwhat’sthere–ornothavingtherighttoolstodealwithtrickydrawingmanoeuvres.Herearesomeofthemostcommonproblemsyou’relikelytocomeacrossasyoumakedrawings.Youcanusethisasahandychecklistforassessingyourwork.

Whenyou’relearninganewskillitcanbeeasytobecomefrustratedwithyourselfortheprocessbecauseyou’renotachievingtheresultsyouexpected.Fightthisfrustrationandrememberthateverytimeyouidentifyaproblem,youhaveatargettoimproveon.Youwillseeimprovement–keepdrawing!

COMMONPROBLEMS:•Selectivescales:Adetail/areaistoolargeorsmallforitssurroundingsorthe

objectsit’sconnectedto.•Dodgydistances:Eyestooclosetogether,bodytooshortforitslegs–youcan

getawaywithimprecisedistanceswithsomesubjects,liketrees,butwhendrawingpeople,architectureandscaledesigns,youneedtogetthisright.

•Perspectiveandforeshortening:Itcantakealotofpracticetomastertheseareas,becausewhatyoureyereallyseescanseemintuitivelywrongwhenyoucometodrawit.Ifyoulettheillusionfoolyou,though,yourfinisheddrawingwilllookallsortsofweird.

•Toomanylines:Acommonproblemforbeginnersbeforethey’vegainedtheconfidencetomakeonedistinctline.

•Toomuchdetail:Itcanbeeasytooverworkyourfavouriteareas.Usealevelofdetailthat’srightforthescaleandintentionofyourdrawing.

•Flatdrawings:Whenyou’reworkingwithtone,doyouhaveenoughvariety

fromthedarkestareastothelightest?

COMPOSITION

Asyoudraw,youmakeconsciousandunconsciousdecisionsabouthowelementsofyourdrawingarearrangedonthepaper.Inordertomakemoreeffectivedrawingsthatbettersuityourintentions,you’llneedtobecomemoreawareofthedesigndecisionsthatgointocomposingadrawing.Asyourdrawingsbecomemoreconsideredintheircompositionyouwillstrayintotherealmsofimage-makingandyoucanbegintoborrowcompositionalideasfromothervisualdisciplines.Aswellaslookingatartists’drawings,youcanstudyhowcompositionisusedinpainting,photographyandfilm,applyingexamplesofgoodcompositiontoyourownpractice(seehere).Differentkindsofdrawingrequiredifferentcompositionalapproaches.Whenyoustartdrawing,thinkaboutwhyyouaremakingthedrawingandhowyoucancomposeittobestsuititspurpose.

ASERIESOFSTUDIESIfyouaremakingadrawinginordertostudyasubjectortoexperiment,designorrecordobservations,youmightmakeseveralsmalldrawingsonasinglepage.Thinkabouthowthesesketchessitinrelationtooneanotherandhowyoucandrawattentiontothesubjectofyourstudy.Dotheybenefitfromtheconfinesofboxes,oraretheybetterdrawnopen?

ALINEARNARRATIVEIllustrations,signageandinstructionaldrawingsseektonarrateandexplain,sothey’llneedtobecomposedtoappearclearandpurposeful.Ifyouaredrawingalinearnarrativeofsequentialframes,considerhowyou’dreadtheimageslefttoright.

ASINGLEIMAGEPaintings,printsanddrawingsmadeforartisticpurposesaretypicallyself-containedimagesratherthanpartofalinearnarrative.Whetheryouaredrawingtoplanapaintingorprintordrawingjustasanendinitself,ifyouintendtotellastoryintheimage,thenaconsideredcompositionwillhelptoguidetheeye

astoryintheimage,thenaconsideredcompositionwillhelptoguidetheeyearoundit.

THEPICTUREPLANE

Thefirstlinestoconsiderwhencomposingadrawingarethefourlinesthatmakeuptheplaneonwhichthepictureisdrawn.Itiswithinthisspacethatthedynamicmassesofthedrawinginteract.Don’tletyourpapersizearbitrarilysetthedimensionsofyourdrawingforyou,buttakeownershipofthepictureplane.Decidethedimensionsofyourdrawingandworkwithinthatspace,orcropadrawingafteryouhavemadeit.Differentdimensionsofpictureplanewillcreateverydifferentimages;experimentwiththumbnailsketchestoworkouthowyou’dliketocropyourdrawing.

PRACTICALBIT:VIEWFINDERS

Takethreepiecesofcardofapproximately15×20cm(6˝×8˝)andcutadifferentsizeofapertureinthecenterofeachone:10x10cm(4˝×4˝),8×16cm(3.5˝×7˝)and10×15cm(4˝×6˝).Thiswillgiveyouthreeviewfindersthatyoucanusetovisuallyisolateyoursubjectandtestdifferentcompositionswithfivedifferentkindsofcrop.Drawthumbnailsonyourpaperofthesameratios(1:1,1:2,2:3)andtryoutdifferentcompositions;thesecanbescaledupformoredevelopeddrawings.

ARMATURES

Inthesamewayasaclayfiguremightbebuiltontoawirearmatureforstability,adrawingcanbeunderpinnedwithasimplecompositionalframework.Thinkofthearmatureasthesimplestlinearinterpretationoftheimage,providinglittleornohintastothesubjectmatter.Itisascaffoldonwhichtohangtheinteractingmassesofthedrawing’scomposition.Thearmaturemightrelatetolinesofperspective,directionalflowsandhalosoffocus;itisalsoimportanttothinkabouthowhorizontal,verticalanddiagonallinescuttingthroughadrawingrelatetotheouterlinesofthepictureplane.

Whenstudyinganotherartist’swork,lookfortheunderlyingarmatureofthecomposition.Thereisno‘right’waytointerpretthestructure;wewillallseeslightlydifferentkeylines.Printoutanimageofapieceofartwork,laytracingpaperoverthetopandintuitivelydrawinthesimplestkeylinesofthecomposition.IhavetakenaToulouse-Lautrecpaintingasanexampleforthecompositionalstudyhere.

Wheneveryouarepreparingtodrawsomething,considertheviewthatyouintendtosketchandjotdownthesimpleststructurallinesthatyoucansee.Thiswillhelpyoucomposethemassesofthedrawingonyourpictureplane,orencourageyoutoalteryourviewtoimprovethecomposition.

ARRANGINGMASSESWhenwefirstlookatanimageitistheoverallarrangementofcontrastingmassesinthepicturethatgovernwhereourattentionisdirected.Whenyouaredesigningacomposition,thinkabouthowyoucanarrangemassesoftoneorpatterntocreatebalanceanddirecttheeyearoundthepictureplane.Theeyeisnaturallydrawntowardsareasoflightertoneandstrongcontrasts.Darkmassescanbeusedtocreatevisualbarriersandtochanneltheeyetowardsareasoffocus.Anarrowtonalrangewillcreateamutedatmospherewhereasdynamicareasofhighcontrastwillcreatedramainapicture.

Tostudyhowartistsusemassesoftoneintheircompositions,laytracingpaperoveraprintedartworkandblockinthemajormassesoftone,averagingthemassesintodarkestdarks,darkmid-tones,mid-tonesandlightmid-tones(seehere).

Drawingisaselectiveprocess.Whenyouaredrawingfromobservationyouwillmakemanydecisionsabouthowyourepresentyoursubject.Onceyourpictureplaneissetandabasicarmatureestablished,squintorunfocusyoureyestobetterseeaveragemassesoftone.Blockinthosemassesassimpleshapes,workingingreaterdetailwhereyouwanttocreatefocus.

DIRECTINGTHEEYE

Therouteoureyestakethroughanimageispartiallydictatedbyitscomposition.Wearenaturallyattractedawayfromdarkmassesoftoneandlargeblankspacestowardsareasoflight,concentrationsofdetailandsubjectiveelementssuchasfigures,facesandhands.Thinkaboutwhatyourdrawingistryingtocommunicateandhowyoucanguideaviewer’seyearoundittobettertellitsstory.Aportraitmightsimplydirecttheviewer’seyetothefaceofthesitter,andastilllifemightsimplydrawattentiontotheplayoflightoveracollectionofobjects.Morecompleximagesmightleadtheviewerthroughascene,stilllifeorlandscape,drawingattentiontoseveralelementsinaplannedorder.

Usingtracingpaperandaprint-outofanartwork,tryplottingthemovementyoureyetakesaroundanimage.Itcanbetrickytoworkoutatfirst;don’toverthinkitbutjotitdownintuitively.

Considerhowyourowncompositiondirectstheeyeandmakechangestoaltertheeye’spaththroughadrawing.InthisimageIhaveaddedanadditionalelementtostoptheeyefallingoffthepageontheright.

WORKINGPROCESSThereismuchmoretogoodcompositionthanthatwhichhasbeenoutlinedonthepreviouspages,andhowyoucomposeadrawingwillbeledmostlybyyourownintuition.Althoughthereareconventionsparticulartodifferent

genresofdrawing,therearenofixedrules;experiment,learnfromtheworkofothersanddevelopyourownpreferences.Hereareafewthingstoconsider:

•Consciouslydecidethedimensionsofyourpictureplane.•Thinkabouthowyoucropyourdrawings–useaviewfinderifithelps.•Makethumbnaildrawingsofalternativecompositions.•Considerhowhorizontals,verticalsanddiagonalsinyourimagerelateto

theedgesofthepictureplane.•Arrangeyourcompositionintodistincttonalmasses.•Considerhowyoucandirecttheviewer’seyearoundanimage.

Youcan’tcontroleveryelementofyourpictureallofthetime,andneithershouldyou;drawingshouldn’tbeacontrived,intellectualexercise.However,inordertocomposeyourdrawingsbetter,you’llneedtocontrolsomeelements,someofthetime.Ifyou’renothappywiththecompositionofyoursubject,couldyoudoanyofthefollowingtoimproveyoursituation?

•Moveyoursubject–askyourmodeltomove,orrearrangeastilllife.•Changeyourposition–viewyoursubjectfromaslightlydifferentangle,or

getupandmovecompletely.•Changethelightingonyoursubject–blockormovealightsource,createa

newlightsourceordrawatadifferenttimeofday.•Makealterationstoyourdrawing,editingyourobservationstoimprovethe

composition.•Ifyou’renotsurehowtocomposeyourdrawing,tryborrowingthe

compositionsofotherartists(seehere)andthinkofwaystoapplythemtoyourownwork(seehere).

PERSPECTIVE

Theconventionsofperspectiveallowustoreplicateelementsofhowweperceivethevisualworld,andlearningtheseconventionswillhelpyoutocreatetheillusionofathree-dimensionalspaceonatwo-dimensionalsurface.Bydrawingonlyandexactlywhatyouseeinfrontofyou,youcancreatearepresentationalimagewithoutneedingtoknowanythingaboutperspective.However,knowledgeofperspectivewillhelpyoutostructureyourobservations,toanticipatevisualdistortionsandtoconvincinglyalterandinventdrawnenvironments.Equally,youcanchoosetodistortconventionalperspectiveforyourownartisticpurposes.

ATMOSPHERICPERSPECTIVEDuetotheinterferenceofatmosphericparticlesintheairscatteringlight,weseesignificantlydistantobjectsaspalerandlesstonallydistinct,andthecoloursindistantsubjectstendingtowardsblue.

ILLUSIONSOFPERSPECTIVEAdistantobjectwillappearsmallertoyouthananearbyobjectofthesamesizeandtheterm‘foreshortening’referstothisphenomenon.Inthedrawingbelow,

thenearerendofthecylinderappearslargerbecauseitiscloser;thecylinderappears‘foreshortened’.Whenyouaredrawingandyourealisethatsignificantdistortionsofscaleareoccurringinyoursubjectyoucanusemeasuringtechniquestoobjectivelycomparethelimitsofyoursubjectandnegativespacesaroundthesubjecttocheckitsoverallshape.

LINEARPERSPECTIVELinearperspectiveusestheconventionthatparallellinesinthephysicalworldappeartoconvergeonadistantpointonthehorizoninordertocreateillusionsofdepthinatwo-dimensionalimage.Thisisparticularlyusefultobearinmindwhendrawingbuildingsandstill-lifesubjects.Thereismuchmoretolinearperspectivethanwehaveroomtocoverhere.Herearesomeexamplesofhowtousesimplelinearperspective.

SINGLEPOINTWhenasubjecthasoneentiresideflattothepictureplane,asinglevanishingpointcanbeusedtodescribetheillusionofrecedingparallellinesdisappearingonthehorizon.Usefaintlydrawnlinesconvergingonyourvanishingpointtoestablishtheanglestheobject’slinesneedtofollow.Movingthehorizonlinewillcreatedifferentviewsofthesameobject.

TWOPOINTSWhenonlyoneedgeofthesubjectisflattothepictureplane,twovanishingpointsonthehorizoncanbeusedtostructuretheillusionofthetwosetsofrecedingparalleledgesofthesubject.Thevanishingpointsdon’tnecessarilyhavetobewithinthepictureplane.

RESOURCES

Thisbookisintendedasaspringboardtohelpyoumakedrawingapartofyourdailylife.Ifyou’dliketobuildontheskillsyouhavedeveloped,youcanusebookstohelpstructureyourlearning.Ifyou’reseriousaboutimproving,tryusingthedrawingregimessetout.

FIGUREDRAWINGAnatomyfortheArtistbySarahSimbletPortraitDrawingbyJohnT.FreemanTheNaturalWaytoDrawbyKimonNicolades

INSTRUCTIONALDRAWINGKeystoDrawingbyBertDodsonDrawingIdeasbyMarkBaskingerandWilliamBardelFashionDrawingbyMicheleWesenBryant

DRAWINGTHEORY&PRACTICEElementsofDrawingbyJohnRuskinBergeronDrawingbyJohnBergerDrawingProjectsbyJackSouthernandMickMaslen

INSPIRATIONTheArtofUrbanSketchingbyGabrielCampanarioTheDrawingBookbySarahSimblet

COLOUR&COMPOSITIONColourandLightbyJamesGurneyMasteringCompositionbyIanRoberts

OTHERBOOKSBYJAKESPICERDrawPeopleinFifteenMinutesDrawFacesinFifteenMinutesDrawDogsinFifteenMinutesDrawCatsinFifteenMinutesLifeDrawinginFifteenMinutes

DRAW:AFast,Fun&EffectiveWaytoLearn

YouWillBeAbletoDrawbytheEndofthisBookYouWillBeAbletoDrawFacesbytheEndofThisBook

DRAWINGCLASSESWITHJAKESPICERwww.draw-brighton.co.ukwww.thedrawingcircus.co.uk/www.jakespicerart.co.uk

SOCIALMEDIA@BrightonDrawing#jakespicer

DRAWINGCOURSESHowevermuchyouwanttodrawregularlyitcanbedifficulttoestablishthehabitofdailydrawinginyourroutines.Tokick-startyourlearninganddevelopment,setyourselfmanageablegoalsandkeepnotesonhowmuchdrawingyouaremanagingtodoeach.Hereissomegeneraladvicetohelpkeepyouontrack.

•Identifyyourgoals.Workoutwhatitisyou’retryingtoachievewithyourdrawingandaspiretowardit;evenifyouchangeyourmindasyoulearn,itwillhelpyoutofindmotivationanddirectyourpractise.

•Ensureyouarewellequipped.Ifyouplantodrawintheday,makesureyouhaveallthekityou’llneed.

•Establishanarrativeofprogression.Startasketchbookandcarryitaroundwithyoueverywhere;notesomeoftheexercisesinthisbookdowninthebackforreference.Lookbackthroughthebookeverymonthtogaugeyourimprovement.

•Dateyourdrawings.Keepyourdrawingsinordersothatyoucanlookbackthroughthemasyoumakemore,keepeverythingyoudrawatfirst,especiallythebaddrawings.

•Setyourselfadrawingregime.Ifyoulikestructure,writeyourselfaweeklyplanliketheexamplesoverthepageandsticktoit.

•Setamonthlycheckin.Setamonthlydatetocheckinwithafriendtoshowthemhowyou’vebeengettingon,orbookaregulartutorialwithadrawingtutor.Youcouldevenstartablogofimagesorsharethemonsocialmedia.

DRAWINGREGIMESHerearesomeexamplesofregimesyoumightsetforyourself,tailoredtowardsasubjectyouwishtofocuson.Tomakeconsistentprogressaimtomaketimefor15–45minutesofdrawing,fourdaysaweek,andasingle2–3hoursessionwithacoupleofdayswhereyoudon’thavetodrawunlessthemoodtakesyou.Thelongdrawingsessioncouldbeaclassthatyouattend,orworkonamoresubstantialdrawingproject.

Goodluck,andhappydrawing!

EXAMPLEFIGUREDRAWINGREGIME

Monday:15minutes—Sketchcommutersonthetrainhomeafterwork(seehere)Tuesday:15mins—Practisedrawingstickmeninyourlunchbreak(seehere)Wednesday:2hours—Attendaneveninglifedrawingclass(seehere)Thursday:Restday

Friday:45minutes—Transcribeaportraitdrawingathome(seehere)Saturday:45minutes—Drawaportraitofafriendovercoffee(seehere)Sunday:Restday—Lookoverwhatyou’vedonethisweek

EXAMPLELANDSCAPEDRAWINGREGIME

Monday:15minutes—Drawoutthewindowonpublictransport(seehere)Tuesday:15minutes—Sketchatreeinyourlunchbreak(seehere)Wednesday:15minutes—Visitagalleryandtranscribealandscapecomposition(seehere)Thursday:Restday

Friday:45minutes—Meetafriendforcoffeeandsketchthestreetoutsidetogether(seehere)Saturday:2hours—Goforawalkandmakealongdrawingofalandscape(seehere)Sunday:Restday—Lookoverwhatyou’vedonethisweek

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ThisbookisdedicatedtomyGranddad,BobBarnyard,whohasalwaysbeensupportiveofmycreativeendeavorsandkindlysatfortheportraits.

ThisbookwasmadepossiblebythesupportandinputoftheBrightondrawingcommunityandbytheongoingsupportofmyfamilywhohavealwaysencouragedmetokeepdrawing.ThankyoutoJohnFreeman,anartistandteacherofgreatintegrity,andtoSarahSimbletandEleanorCrookfortheirexemplarytuitionandgenerousadviceinthesummerof2014.

ThankyoualsotoShelleyMorrow,HesterBerry,MaryMartinandLauraBurgessatDrawfortheirongoingsupport;toTheresa,Marina,Emma,Milo,Poppy,Jenny,NicolaandalltheotherstudentsoftheDrawAtelierforbeingmyunwittingguineapigs;toTimPatrickforinspiringconversationandtoDuncanCromartyforhisever-valuableinput.Thankyouespeciallytoeverybodywhomodelledforthedrawingsinthisbook:Boris,Kiki,FrancescaCluney,RobPretorius,LauraNenonen,LauraKateO’Rouke,LanaMcDonaghandBethHodd.ThankyoutoScarlettforbeingawillingdrawingbuddy.

Finally,muchcreditmustgotoRachelSilverlightatIlexforhersaintlypatience,andtotherestoftheIlexteamfortheircontinuedhardworkandsupport,andtothedesignersandprinters,withoutwhomthebookwouldnotbepossible.

AnHachetteUKCompanywww.hachette.co.uk

FirstpublishedintheUnitedKingdomin2018byILEX,adivisionofOctopusPublishingGroupLtdOctopusPublishingGroupCarmeliteHouse

50VictoriaEmbankmentLondon,EC4Y0DZwww.octopusbooks.co.uk

Design,layoutandtextcopyright©OctopusPublishingGroup2018

JakeSpicerassertsthemoralrighttobeidentifiedastheauthorofthiswork.

MaterialinthisbookwaspreviouslypublishedinDRAW©2015.Thisedition,includingadditionalmaterial,©2018.

Publisher:RolyAllenEditorialDirector:HelenRochesterManagingEditor:FrankGallaugherSeniorEditor:RachelSilverlightArtDirector:JulieWeirDesign:JCLanawayPublishingAssistant:StephanieHetheringtonAssistantProductionManager:LucyCarterAllrightsreserved.Nopartofthisworkmaybereproducedorutilisedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopying,recordingorbyanyinformationstorageandretrievalsystem,withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofthepublisher.

eISBN9781781576175