Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • Drawing LAB For Mixed Media Artists

    Uploaded by

    Artes Visuais
    100 views145 pages

    Original Title

    Drawing LAB for Mixed Media Artists

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Report this Document

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    100 views145 pages

    Drawing LAB For Mixed Media Artists

    Uploaded by

    Artes Visuais

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 145
    FOR MIXED-MEDIA ARTISTS | Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists 1© 2010 by Quarry Books All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduce in any form saithout writ ten permission ofthe copyright owners. all mages in this book have been reproduced ‘with the knowledge and prior consent af the artists concerned, and no responsibility 'saccepted by the producer, publisher, or printer for any Infringement of copyright or ‘otherwise arising from the contents of this publication Every effort has been made to ‘ensure that credits accurately comply with information supplied. We apologize for any inaccuracies that may have occurred and will esalve inaccurate or missing informa- tion in a subsequent reprinting ofthe Book, First published in the United States of America by (Quarry Books.amember of ‘Quayside Publishing Group 100 Cummings Center site 406-1 Beverly, Massachusetts 01915-6101 ‘Telephone: (978) 282-9580 Fa (978) 283-2742 www. quarrybooks.com ‘Visit wun Craftsde.Typepad.com for abehind-the-scenes peek at our crafty work Library of Congress Cataloging in-Publication Data Sonheim, Carla Drawing lab for mixed-media artists 52 eretive exercises to make drawing fun / Carla Sonheim, em. Inches index ISBN-13,978-1-59253-613-9, ISBN-10;1-59253-613-1 1, Handicraft 2. Drawing-Technigue. {Tite ‘rrisz.sn242010 Hs 5--de22 2mio000277 cap ISBN-13:978-1-59255-613-9 ISBN-10:1-59253-615-1 19987654321 Cover Design: bradhamdesign.com ook Layout: tabula rasa graphic design Series Design: John Hall Design Group, wan ohnhalldesign.com Photography Steve Sonheim Photo, page 5, Getty Images Printed in China Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists :: 52 Creative Exercises to Make Drawing Fun Carla Sonheim Contents Introduction 6 UNIT UNIT Inspired by Animals 14 Lab Lab Draw Cats in Bed 16 Blind Contour Giraffes. 18. My Pet Project 20 ‘A Day at the Zoo: Part | 22 ‘ADay at the Zoo: Part Il 24 Index Card Multiples 26 + Monkey Business 28 Imaginary Creatures 30 Featured Artist: Katherine Dunn 32 Inspired by People 34 Lab 41 Lab 42: Lab 43: \Wrong-Handed Portraits 36 ‘Atthe Cotfee Shop 38 Cheater Blinds 40 For Your Eyes Only 42 Eyedropper Faces 44 Life Drawing: Short Poses 46 Life Drawing: Long Poses 48 100 Faces Project 50 UNIT. Inspired by Famous Artists 52 La 17: Tracing Leonardo. 54 One-Liners 56 Picasso Dogs 58 Miré Abstract 60 Klee Transfer Paintings 62 Modigliani Parent Portraits 64 : Your ner Dr. Seuss 66 Inspired by Children and Childhood 68 Lab 24: Scribbly Drawings 70 Lab 28: Contouring Toys 72 tab 26: One-Eyed Monsters 74 Drawing Clay Creations 76 Collaborate with a Child: Drawings 78 La» 29: Collaborate with a Child: Words 80 Lab 20: Paper Dolls 82 Featured Artist: Gustavo Aimar 84 UNIT Inspired by Imagination 86 Lab 34: Serle Drawings 88 Lab 22: Doodling on Steroids 92 Lab a: Numbers Game 94 Lab 28: Drawing + Collage 96 Lab 26: Machines and Inventions 98 Lab 27: Random Pick Drawings 100 Lab 20: Sidewalk Crack Drawings 102 Featured Artist: Liesel Lund 104 Inspired by Nature 106 Lab 29: Flower Tutorial 108, Lab 40: Bug Me! 110 Lab 41: Nature Walkabout 112 Lab 42: Abstracted Minutia 114 Lab 49: Plein-Air It 116 Lab 44: Birds, Birds, Birds! 118 ‘ab a8: Drawing Out Your Passions 120 Featured Artist: Geninne Zlatkis 122 E 4 5 Inspired by Books and Culture 124 Lab 40: Gat a Stack of Books 126 Lab 47: The Office 128 tab 48:Traveloguing 130 Lab 49: lluminated Pages 192 Lab so: Design a Poster 134 Lab 5 Exploring Story: Fairy Tales 136 ‘Lab 52: Exploring Story: Your Own 138 ‘Artist Feature: Jenny Kosteckl-Shaw 140 Contributors 142 Resources 143 ‘Acknowledgments 144 About the Author 144 Lab 27: Drawing (Cay Ceatons (evo page 76) Introduction DRAWING IS FUN! If you don't think so, then you probably haven't drawn lately! DRAWING IS SCARY. Okay, know Its scary, to0. You feel comfortable ‘with collage or acrylic paint, but not with a pen or pencil. You might have tried. to learn to draw from traditional drawing books or classes and felt frustrated, or worse, bored. Perhaps you've tried learning to draw on your own, but are critical of your efforts. (Note: this is not fun.) And yet... something inside is. telling you to try putting more of your own hand into your work. Let's put fun back into drawing! I'm hoping to help you begin to see drawing asa pleasurable activity rather than as an opportunity to beat yourself up. Honestly, ‘mark-making is one of our first pleasures as children, We aren't so different now, as adults. One workshop student recently said, “(Being in your class is] like being a child again, but you get to do it as an adult.” That is how I hope you will feel as you experience this drawing book. Left and opposite: Drawing isan integral part ofthe author's mie-meda work, Pages from Junk Mal Book I, gesso, watercolor, Sharpe, and charcoal on junk mail Why Draw? First the serious stuff: Havinga foundation of basic drawing skills wll help you inal of our creative work. In the same way that running cross-country can give you skills in perseverance, discipline, and focus, which ct of your life, the same is true with drawing, The skills you learn by draw learning to “see” and focus, developing your “hand.” and so on—will be trans- ferred to and influence your paintings, collage, or other artwork. affect all areas Simply, by beingable to draw like this: can, with more confide -, draw such things as this: and this: and even this: DRAWING LAB FOR MINED MEDIA ARTISTS Getting Over the Hump Steven Pressfield writes in his wonderful book, The War of Art: “There is no such thingasa fearless warrior ora dread-free artist.” He isso right. Even though love drawing and have completed hundreds of drawings and paintings, each day Ihave. little mini war with myself when I face that blank page. ‘One way I've found to get over this block is to have an arsenal of starter exer- cises (or “assignments") on hand to help me get going: Rules, restrictions, or challenges to work within, And react against, And create in spite of, Limitations keep me from taking me or my art too seriously. They also relieve the pressure ‘of what fo draw and just get me moving. Consider these words by creative people throughout our history: “The more constraints one imposes, the more one frees oneself ofthe chains that shackle the spivit” —Igor Stravinsky “Limit gives form tothe limitless.” —Pythagoras “The fewer limitations the artist imposes on his work, the less chance he has for artiste success.” —Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn “The problem about art isnot finding more freedom, its about finding obstacles —Richard Rogers “Without fie limits there is no play.” —Rem Koolhaas Wsa paradox: when you have complete freedom, you often “freeze up" and do. nothing, This book isa compilation of assignments that I have given myself over the years to get myself moving, Others were developed for elementary school- age students, When I started teaching adults, I found these same exercises to be the most effective. (We're all just kids inside stil, right?) What This Book Is... and Isn't Here are three rules like to follow myself: 1. Draw things you like. 2. Draw with materials you like working with, 3. Draw using styles, methods, or processes that you like, ‘This book includes many traditional drawing exercises—contour drawings, blind contours, and gesture drawings, for example—but I've intentionally left out some of the things you might find in traditional drawing books. This book is designed to get you started drawing again, and excited about it With renewed inspiration, you might like to take your drawing even further. I highly recom- mend checking out the many excellent drawing books that are available (my favorites are listed in the resources section), and/or takinga class from your local university. See Lab &: Imaginary Creatures ‘The author’ fst show, Faces Ive ‘Seen, featured one thousand 3sneh (7.6 cm) watercolor paintings of pean she fad ‘seen in her subconscious. Materials You'll Need ‘Making art s not about the materials you have, itis about just doing it. Ifa no. 2 pencil « stacks of white card stock © 140 pound (64 kg) Fabriano hot-press watercolor paper ‘+ mechenical pencil ‘vine charcoal sof) «* soft charooal pencl ‘fed Conté crayon ‘*Polken watercolors (Got of 24 ransparent colors) ‘white FW acrylic ink * bottles of ink (various colors ‘and brands) ‘nib pons, #12 round bush ‘smal fat rush Irerbash the only art tool you own, then start there! Here's a quick list of the materials [ike to have on han‘ #01 (0.25 mm) biack Pigmra Micron pen * Feveaced rubbar erasor * oolored permanent markers (such as Sharpies) a selection of very light-colored opi markers * colored pencils * water-solibie crayons * afew sot pastels (red, orange, green) * glue stick * scissors * spral-bound sketchbook vith heavier paper Find materials you love and can afford, and enjoy them! use cheap pencils but good paper, good-quality brushes but midgrade paint. The point is that you are the artist. Pick an item from yourart stash and start with that. Then add from there, adding only mediums that you really like working with. ‘Most of the materials listed in the book are easily found. However, Ifyou find, yourself unable to find a particular medium, improvise! ‘Alawar in ts book by Cara Sante unless othense cect Opposite page: Wstercalx, gesso, penci,charoosl, and ink on wood [DRAWING LAG FOR MMED.MEOIA ARTISTS SO Albout Sketchbooks Inspired by Anima ANIMALS ENRICH US in so many ways... the facial expression ofan irritated house cat or the sheer bulk ofa hippo inspires and nurtures our souls. For me, creating my own menagerie of animals hasa similar soul-healing effect. In this unit you will draw from life, from photo references, and from your imag- ination. Drawing from life isalways preferable, but many people do not have ‘easy access to alion ora bear. Start collecting pages of animals that interest ‘you, torn from magazines or newspapers. I's best to find imagery that Is fairly ‘generie—you just want to get information about the appearance of the animals at this point, rather than picking photos for their compositional values. ‘The more you draw from life or photos, the richer and more authentic your Imaginary animals will be. Opposite page: Ths mivec-media Rabb Tue is crested with gesso, watercot, ccolage, and, of course, tne, ‘+ several sheets of white card stock * cobred exte-fne-point pormanent marker “Ata very young age, | got in the habit of making things up. I have to fee! that I've had my dose of invention for the day.” —John Irving DRAW ABOUT THIRTY CATS from your magination while siting or ving fn bed. you are Unsure where to start, go ahead and copy some of the cats on these pages. Or, better, spend some time just looking at areal cat before you do this exercise, “a ot aaa The soft suface ofthe pllow or mattress wil fore a looser ne quay Instructions 1. Gather your materials and get nto bed ... you can ether sit up with your paper propped on a plow, or fe on your stomach with the paper on the mattress. 2. Think about what cat looks ke: eas, face shape, body shape, tel and just spend the neat ten minutes or 80 crawing as many cats in as mary postions as you can think ot 8. Try to keep your nes simple and expressive. you find that you ae feeling tense, switch fo your nondominant hand, Toking It Further Fick one or two of your favorite drawings and render them again in several nays, Example 1: Paint your cat on wood or canvas using acryic, os, oF ‘a mived-media combination such as gesso and watercolor (shown, 4, Dont fet if you don't ke many of your cals takes mary, rmariy drawings to get tat ‘one that you love, Example 2: Redraw your cats using cored pencis (lt) or ink and, colored pencis (right) © By Example 3: Scan your cat into the computer and add a solid color {o the inside of you cat, offset sight, fe). Or use the side only of a Ynch (1.3 cm) piece of vine charcoal, ight. INSPAED BY ANAL | BLIND CONTOUR DRAWING is a classic rawing exercise hal emphasizes carehul observation rather than a frished product. Its used by many atsts as a way to improve hand-eye communication land, sometimes, as a nonttreatening ‘way to just get the pen moving) bnthis exercise, you wil draw a sates of gaffes without looking at your paper ‘photo references of gratfes *5-10 sheets of vite card stock ‘black entre-fne-pont permanent marker “God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant and the cat. He has no real style, He just goes on trying other things.” —Pablo Picasso By using photo references, you wil be remind of postions that you might not rave thought of ‘on your own, 1. Find some references of gates, either onne or atthe brary 2. Pick one and fx your eyes on the outine ofthe grate, and stat ‘ing. Do not lok at your paper. Lock at the giatfe 100 percent of the tre. 3, Tita mich the movement of your pen fo thal of your eyes! un ring along the edge ofthe gate. Draw every cue and bum. 4. Bind contours are usualy done quile siony and ina sngle, ‘continuous line; think about your speed and consciously adit Ifyou think you are going too fast 6. IF you gat stuck er would Ike to move your pen to start an inter nal feature, i's fine to glance down at you paper to reset your pen to the right area, tut don't move the pen wile looking at Your paper think of tas “drawing freeze tag 6. Continue drawing diferent grates fr about ten minutes or 60 7. While doing this exeriso, you wll bam soveal things about gtaifes: that you might never have noticed before (Such 2s thet hak hams ‘are hairy and they have a large bump on ther forehead), Toking It Further * Of couse you can pick any ‘subject matter you wish cats, eopharis, bids, nares, dogs ats. + Irarimate objects such 2 ches and cars make interesting bind contours. «Ty layering thee o fou bln drawings ontop of one another on cone paper, rot wonyng at tis stage where he craving is oon, Now see if you can pull the drawing together into @ cohesive piece by adding lines and color (fram your imagination). fx ates, but that fs part of the fun! #510 sheels of white card stook, oF your sketchbook * charooal penci (sot) “All of the animals except for man know that the principle business of life Is to enjoy it” —Samuel Butler DRAWING YOUR PET when itis awake and moving is dafritey a challenge, and neerly impossible i you are aiming fora tight, realistic drawing, Instead, you wil embrace the fe arch energy of your active pet wth a seres of gesture drawings —quick sketches meant to recor mevement action, Details not alowed! Tne authar’ pet rat moved at ghthing sce0d the fact that these drawings evan look tke a rat surprised the artist more than anyone else its amazing what your ain and hard can accom psh i you wit only get aut ofthe wey! 1. Your pets aweke and moving, ether pleying witha ball, ging Isai bath, or runing around its cage, Just watch your dog (or Cat or chinchil] for several minutes before you begin to craw. 2. \th your charooal pencl held loosely in your hand, ry to cap: ture the form of your pet with ane or two quick Ines as it moves through space. 3.1 very kay these frst recarcings dont say vary much at all keep watching your animal, and try again to ‘shape" the ines into recognizable form with anther quick ine, 4. These drawings should only take a few seconds ach! Think of ther as prysical ecorcings of what your brain has aready seen end fled 5. Pease do not worry about how these ckawings look... hey are ‘meant as a process exercise only: Especial nthe beginning, this might seem ke a sorewhat poiess exercise, Tus the process, though! Your success rale will go up the more you practice 6. Spend about ten minutes doing gesture drawings of your pet Taking It Further ‘Tya gesture drawing of your pets toy, endeavoring to capture the “ecsence’ ‘or “spit ofthe animate object (rather than movernent, ‘Sleeping pots make sweet modes and give you a ie Bt more time to gather the infomation you need to creas a recognizabie caning. Stick to quick, gestural studies, though... no more than ‘one minute each! stack of white card stock and a cloboard ‘s mechenical pencil "Someone told me it’s all happening at the zoo.” —Paul Simon PACK YOUR SKETCHACOK AND PENCIL; we'e going to the 200! Drawing from ites always, preferable to using photos, and the challenge of moving arimals wl sharpen your observation sks and hone your hand-eye coordination. In the next four pages, ast Sneria York fors tips and suggestions on sketching ive animals atthe 200. Don't get caught up in erasing ‘mistakes. Start over, restate, or caw a big X trough the drawing, but don't ‘stop moving your pencl [DRAWING LAG FOR MMED.MEOIA ARTISTS 11. Flead "Sheri Zoo Tips’ and prepare yourself for your field ti, 2. Once there, pick your ft exhibit and watch your subject fora While bofore setting into draw. Gat a sonse of how active your subject is and how vise. 3, Gesture drawings are the key, especialy in the beginning. (A gesture drawng is basicaly ary drawing that emohaszes move- ment... aquick sketch of what your bran hes aeady seen) ‘Sometimes all you can get is the curve ofa spine or ti of an ear, but thats okey, 4. Look for the underying geometry of the subject: ovals, tangs, trapezoids. Block these in ightly and reline the shapes as you have more tine, 5. Don't erase, stat another Erasing will ony break your focus) IF youve spent a few minutes on 2 drawing and the anal ‘moves, dent despair, Start another crewing on the same page, Chances are your subject wil go back to the same pose, or ne sirilar enough that you can cary on 6. When you start to tre, take a break and retum to sketching after stetching your logs or getting something to eat Artist Sherie Yorks stack of sketchbooks contains ‘undreas of antral “sketches fram frequent 200 vss over the past fiteen years Sherrie’s Zoo Tips + Be comfortable, Not al zo0s have convenient places for siting in ront of eis, Tke a smal, ighiveight, potable camp sool along if youre not convorable standing with you sketcioook * Dont take too much gear. One sketchbook, one pene and ‘one sharpener are enough for a day at the zoo. (if you take a mechanical pencil you dort even need he sharpener) Colored ancl ae rice ta have, to, but nat necessary. Take notes! + Find out when the busy times ae, and avoid them. + Bac! wetner days can be eat o daw a the 200, Crowds ae sale, and anes a offen inindoor exhibits whore you can see ther beter. + People wily to tk to you as you werk his is dstacting, ty wearing headphones. (They don't actually have to be on, but they can be a good detertent to castal crater) '* Binder clips can help hold pages in place outside in the wind. + Even though youie atthe 200, yous ten crawing outst. (On a good weather day remember a hal and sunscreen, And you il probably be more comfortable wth ofl-whte paper in your sketchbook, rather than bright white sheets. Have tn! + sketchbook «sot of arist pancs + kneaded rubber eraser + penal sharpener Note: A day atthe 200 is @ great ‘lave fo expire the radon pponci. Take this opportunity to lea not only about arimats but aso the ferent panci weights available to you. “The idea is to get the peneil moving quickly: —Bernard Malamud INAZOOENVRONMENT, animals! movements are confined toa particular area and they offen repeat actions. You can start several drawhngs on the same page, one for each stopping Point, and then come back fo each drawing as the subjact engages fn that behavior again. by} ‘Sherrie York says, “Tyotcaly 4 conte anyhig stern h yi 228 poncin my sketchbooks these dys. ke a arker onc, but they smudge easly Ina book thats opened and osad feaventy. [DRAWING LAG FOR MMED.MEOIA ARTISTS Toking It Further When home, go back nto your sketches and add coker th colored ancl, markers, watercolor, past, r your prefered medium. 1. Pencil gymnastics: What can your pencil do? Spend some time lust geting to know the way a pencii makes merks, Press har. Drag Itlighty across the pags. Use the tp. Use the side. Try diferent weights of pencl. Try to smudge ft. Try to erase ft Dont bo afraid I's just a pencil 2, Pencil weight: Not confusing if you remember H = Hard and B= Black. A hard lead wil make a ighte,fner tne than a soft ‘one. More H's = hard ead, lighter ine. More B'S = sot lead blacker ine. 83, Softer pencle: A sot pencil wllose its point faster than a hard one. Use this fo your advantage! | ike to do the deals of my drawing with afatly sharp point, but once the pencl lead gots ‘Wier, that's the te to do some shading and then sharpen again. 4. Vary your Ine qualty: Vary the femmes of your strokes; press hard, and lighten up in the sar line. 5, Avoid erasing: Don't be afraid to estate Ines without erasing the nes that are already there. The energy of a moving animals reflected inthe overacl changos. ff Index Card! Multiples sjouayoyy “I like to employ a form of repetition, in which the , ote same elements recur but in different and unexpected 4 ways.” —Graham Nelson \s / Instructions Toking It Further m the task at hard S|OUSIO\\) “Color is a dangerous thing. Allittle goes a long way.” —Mark English 1. Gather your references and select the morkey face you Would ke toca, With your targer marker, draw the cutine and mab fe: {ures ofthe face. Bo sure to bok at your reference mexe often that youook at your paper. Work fay sly in a contour tka fashion. (Soe Lab 25 for mote on contour drawings) 2. Add shading detais with your smaller markers, refering to your reference to gather information. Use cross-hatching or ser bling. (you have trouble seeing the darker areas in the photo, squint your eyes) 8. Add pastel, etter directly on the drawing fo a bolder ook, oF rubbing ion with your fnge for a softer look 4, Look at your crawing and see if here is anything ese you would Ike to add... afew entra hairs, maybe? A fea more Ines ‘round the eyes? (At this last stage you can eoandon the reer- Nee and look al the drawing only to see fit works fr you.) Spray with featve, ‘These four mages show the progression ofthis partcular crewing, To make it more fun, create several preselocted packets of color combinations and place in erwelopes. Then, when you ave ready fo.ataw, pick one cut randomly and commit fo any using what you pick, however incongruous the cols might seem. A\Note about Color ‘When choosing colo, remember that complementary colors— cols opposite each other on the colar wheel—alvays look good {ogether: ted and green, blue and orange, puple and yelow. you nd you ave stuck or unsure ‘about which colo 0 use next ‘might hep to tak to yoursett “Okay, Ihave alot of bes {and greens inthis piece. ‘What should | ad next? (Oh, oranges and reds would work, Pink? reddish brown?” imosinoy (F@QtUreS S|OUSIO\\) “Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” —Albert Einstein Groen Horse KEG [200s tas For wio-veoe anise Noto: You can work on several ploces simutaneously,f desired 1. Using watered-down red watercolor, pant several random marks, (on your paper: Let dry 2. Using blue watercolor, paint several more random marks on your 6. With your ink pen, start ling inthe ines that form your creature. Femember to keep you nes fity loose and sketchy. (Not: Its not necessary to see the entre arimal at once. fyou just sae Let dy leat . : ‘ear or anose, start with that, Then you can compete your Ne ee) ‘animal by using your imagination, abandoning the painted ines) i a ‘6. Once your animal is complete, go back in with layers of water 4 Now tke time to realy ook atthe abstract far on your paper. ee eee ee Do you s6e a creature? A foot? A face? Ty turing your paper £0 degrees clockwise. Keep tuning you paper untl someting presents itso to you Geotures Gollery ‘The turte, octopus, and fog paintings are student samples by J Holmes, Brenda Shackstor, and Kay Hewit, respectively. Featured Artist Katherine Dunn Artist, mother to sheep, donkey dreomer, friend to weeds ond old dogs Horse Guiding Woman; acrylo/mived-medta on wood ALTHOUGH SHE NOW LIVES on Apifera Farm In Oregon, Katherine Dunn was raised in the city and traveled and studied in Europe. “Ilove textures, fabrics, books, the shapes of buildings and the form of a shoe ‘or face—T'm still inspired to paint those things—its just that in the middle of any given project, a donkey might be braying in the background, And I love that.” Katherine began her illustration career in 1996 when she was liv- ingin Minneapolis. Her work has evolved toa elegant” style—a combinaton of traditional drawings! pastels/inks/fabries, layered in a way that create textural, mystical pieces, but often whimsical ones, too. QandA Q What is your drawing routine or practice? \: [tend to have multiple projects going on at once. I work intensely and then switch to other mediums, or even work on sewing folk dolls, or do paintings Instead. I will sit with a pad, but generally its more of a note-taking session when I capture the essence of some. thing 'm feeling or seeing, and then I draw later. @ A: Oh sure, why not? Hove anything in a drawing that, shows the process or energy of the hand. 1am not a FEI [or einis Las Fon neo weora anrisTs perfectionist. I didn't stay inside the lines asa child. 1 think that not allowing myself to get attached to the out- come orto treat the art asa china doll, is important for me to keep itfluld. And you know, in commercial work, you can touch things up ina sean if they are really both- ersome to an art director. Q:From life or your imagination? A: Both, but really more from my imagination, and heart. I think my work is more about emotional storytelling, than drawing a proper perspective or event. (Many do that very well, and I really admire them! They are drafts- Tam nott) I think reality isa starting point for me, but then the idea flows from imagination and thoughts and a variety of experiences that entwine into my head and heart when [sit down to create. Q: How does drawing affect your mixed-media work? A: Itall intertwines. | try not to separate the two any- ‘more, I'm just telling a story, even if t'sa tiny short story about a bird I saw. Ido think traditional drawing—where yousit and look intently at something, and draw—isa wonderful focusing exercise, It teaches you to “look” more, and slow down, Not so much feel, but look, the \way a selentist would look ata cell under a magnifying, lass, Q: Why should anyone draw? AA: Drawing isa tool to help you see. Maybe it can be Jooked at as being comparable to yoga. Yoga strength- ens muscles, helps balance. Drawing Is “seeing” yoga. It strengthens the eye muscles and balances one’s insane mindless activities with focus, attention, calm. Goat in the Sun; mized medta/colage on paper QzAnything ese? A:I'm just glad I grew up in a home with an architect father \who had lots of books around, [learned to draw by mimick- ingartists liked. It helped me become what I am, and f'm «grateful for that Inspired by People AT THE AGE OF THIRTY, | CHANGED CAREERS and started ‘workingas an assistant graphie designer ina field I loved: publishing, My favorite part ofthe ob was working with the artists and illustrators. Bventually I got up the nerve to take a drawing class. My boss encouraged me to skip Beginning Drawing and take Figure Drawing instead, “Ifyou can draw the figure, you can «draw anything,” she said. took her advice and fellin love with drawing, ‘fwe are to draw things we ike, then its very likely that our drawings will Include ‘people. There are few things more compelling than the human face, or more beautiful than the human figure. “Most of the exercises in this section involve drawing from a live model, which ‘ill include friends and family, fellow patrons, strangers, and paid models, = DORAWING LAB FOR MED.MEOIA ARTISTS This figure drawing was drawn from ‘ave model and created with reo ‘concentrated watercolor and an eyedrapper The atawing took less than a mirete. 1*/ sheot white card stock ‘black entre-fne-pont permanent marker 8nd “True friends stab you in the front.” —Oscar Wilde IN THIS LAB, YOU WILL DRAW a friends face, using only a permanent marker and your non

    You might also like