[image_with_animation image_url=”9488″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] This is the third part of a multi day series, sharing work by my beginning figure drawing classes. Many of these students have never taken a drawing class before, nearly all of them are new to figure drawing.
Rather than learning one style, we study a different approach every session. We’ve done straight line measures, site sizing, envelopes, kites, mass shapes, shadows, gestures, contours, volume, cross-hatching, and more. Today I’m posting a few of the silly ones. These are blind contour line drawings. The point with these is not to learn accurate proportions. Instead, blind contour line drawings teach us how to focus, and notice details. The line work gets more interesting because the artist is exercising intensely active curiosity in their subject for the duration of the drawing.
A drawing is a record of our focus.
Also, these drawings are silly, and silly is good.
The leaves of this chrysanthemum were an excuse for me to play with deep dark velvety burrs and light clean lines, the delights of drypoint. I have covered every table, easel, and palette-stand with my paintings and prints for this show. 12 tables, all covered with colorful paints, images of flowers, fabrics, drypoint plates, ink, …
I’ve been talking about the the idea that shapes in a composition can be activated to hold each other in place. In this way, there is no background and no object, there is only the interaction of shapes on the surface of the canvas. Everything in the picture holds everything else in place. Intervals I’d …
While we reach for the hand sanitizer and hold our breaths, our Thursday drawing/painting class has been thinking about a different kind of Corona. We’ve been studying the effects of light, especially glow. I was interested in exploring why some images seem to glow. Take the image above as an example. Why, if an all-white …
Happy New Year, and welcome to the first day of our 30 day challenge! For this first project, we’ll have you warm up and introduce yourself with a delightfully odd looking portrait. Blind contour drawing is an exercise in which an artist draws the contours of a subject without looking at the paper. The technique was introduced by Kimon Nicolaïdes in The …
Beginner’s Drawings That’ll Knock Your Socks Off (Part 3)
[image_with_animation image_url=”9488″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] This is the third part of a multi day series, sharing work by my beginning figure drawing classes. Many of these students have never taken a drawing class before, nearly all of them are new to figure drawing.
Rather than learning one style, we study a different approach every session. We’ve done straight line measures, site sizing, envelopes, kites, mass shapes, shadows, gestures, contours, volume, cross-hatching, and more. Today I’m posting a few of the silly ones. These are blind contour line drawings. The point with these is not to learn accurate proportions. Instead, blind contour line drawings teach us how to focus, and notice details. The line work gets more interesting because the artist is exercising intensely active curiosity in their subject for the duration of the drawing.
A drawing is a record of our focus.
Also, these drawings are silly, and silly is good.
Enjoy.
Related Posts
Some Pretty Paintings: Two Chrysanthemums
The leaves of this chrysanthemum were an excuse for me to play with deep dark velvety burrs and light clean lines, the delights of drypoint. I have covered every table, easel, and palette-stand with my paintings and prints for this show. 12 tables, all covered with colorful paints, images of flowers, fabrics, drypoint plates, ink, …
Sargy Mann: finding your way blind from point to point
I’ve been talking about the the idea that shapes in a composition can be activated to hold each other in place. In this way, there is no background and no object, there is only the interaction of shapes on the surface of the canvas. Everything in the picture holds everything else in place. Intervals I’d …
Effects of Light (Part 1)
While we reach for the hand sanitizer and hold our breaths, our Thursday drawing/painting class has been thinking about a different kind of Corona. We’ve been studying the effects of light, especially glow. I was interested in exploring why some images seem to glow. Take the image above as an example. Why, if an all-white …
30SAL Challenge: Blind Contour Self Portrait
Happy New Year, and welcome to the first day of our 30 day challenge! For this first project, we’ll have you warm up and introduce yourself with a delightfully odd looking portrait. Blind contour drawing is an exercise in which an artist draws the contours of a subject without looking at the paper. The technique was introduced by Kimon Nicolaïdes in The …