Drawing Instruction

January 31st, 2010 by No comments »

Basic Drawing Instruction.

The basics of drawing instruction and improving your skill level can be considerably easier than you imagine. Whether you want to learn to draw just as a fun pastime or you’re an art student, teaching yourself how to draw and communicating those images onto paper can be a reality. With a little patience and practice you can accomplish just that.

Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned artist, it is important to have good materials, such as several 2B drawing pencils, stumps and a quality eraser. For most, drawing instruction is best taught and learned step by step so you can follow along as your pictures are created. This will build up your confidence level and you won’t get overwhelmed or frustrated, eventually leading you to give it up altogether. When you start learning to draw it is common to concentrate on your technique, and you will tend to be very judgmental on yourself. Don’t worry if it is not perfect. If you are overly critical of your efforts the pleasure will disappear for you, which is the reason people start learning to draw in the first place.

First of all, think about what you are doing when you draw. If you are trying to copy someone else’s work, are your eyes constantly looking at the picture? Or do you remember what you’ve seen and simply recall the image? If you’re eyes are mainly focused on your subject, only looking at your paper to make sure your lines are correct, you will find that your drawing is markedly better. This is because your concentration is on the subject rather than the actual drawing. Instead, train yourself to hold the image in your head and draw only from your memory. Before long you will develop your own natural rhythm allowing you to draw “blind”. This hand and eye technique will be invaluable as you progress and become more engrossed in your subject. This is extremely effective if you teach yourself this habit in the beginning stages. Don’t continually look at your paper and keep erasing and restarting, but rather keep going. This will make you an infinitely more intuitive artist if you keep your eyes focused on the subject. You will be tempted to look down to check your progress, but constantly correcting your work will only waste time. Your picture will actually have more depth if you leave it as is. It will be more vital, alive and ever changing.

Drawing is an imaginative process between the eye and hand. You will learn how to take the measure of your subject, light and shadows, depth, texture, placement, overlapping, and design patterns. New art students often become confused but don’t give up on your talent. Don’t beat yourself up and become impatient with yourself trying out different techniques. Study and learn every genre you possibly can. Half of the fun is learning to be more creative, and in the process step up your art abilities. New art students often become confused with drawing instruction, but don’t give up on your talent.

The Art of Body Drawing

February 1st, 2010 by No comments »

The Art of Body Drawing

When you first start the art of body drawing, it is much easier to use charcoal as your medium. The charcoal will glide across newsprint effortlessly and is easily erased and manipulated, making it very forgiving. There are several types of charcoal; I recommend going with a combination of vine and compressed sticks at first. Just make sure you have a few different levels of intensity. You will also need a Chamois cloth, which is a special cloth used for blending and erasing. Kneaded erasers are good, but try not to use one too much as the newsprint is thin and can tear easily. Next, purchase some newsprint, not drawing paper; it’s relatively inexpensive, which is good, because you may go through quite a bit of it. You can also purchase a can of spray fixative if you plan on preserving your drawings.

If you are ready to begin drawing, take a moment to focus on seeing the form in front of you; try not to use your predetermined ideas of what a body drawing is supposed to look like. If it helps, pretend as if you are looking at a body for the first time. Using a soft piece of charcoal vine, lightly sketch each part of the figure; when you are finished, your body drawing should be composed of softly rendered shapes and tender lines. This is called sketching, and it is the most important part of the drawing process.

Once you have sketched what you consider to be the most accurate rendition possible of the proportions of the model, you may start to add more detail. Using a slightly higher intensity charcoal stick, start defining each part of your drawing a little more. Remember, use a light touch when drawing. Don’t make each line so dark that you can’t erase it if you need to. The male form will have more defined lines for the muscles, whereas the female form will have more gently curving lines.

Lastly, it’s time for shading. You should have your Chamois cloth for blending and erasing. Never use your fingers! They have naturally occurring oil on them and it will botch your drawing! If you have done a good job on your sketch so far, this part will be a cinch. Focus on the figure again, this time paying close attention to the shadows and their varying intensities. Gently begin to blend the lines of your drawing with the Chamois cloth to encompass the shadows and to make it look more realistic. You may use more charcoal for shading if needed. Once you have finished the drawing, spray it with a fixative so it won’t smudge. If you follow all these steps, you should be on your way to being an expert at body drawing in no time!

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