Sept. 25th, 2020

Practice makes better!

 The above student is drawing from a photo-reference using the Grid-Scale process. Her basic materials are the soft leaded "Primsmacolor Pencils" and drawing paper.  Notice the vivid contrasting colors in the pencils drawing.  Because these types of pencils tend to be of a softer lead they blend better.  Plus the brand offers a broader range of colors than most other brands. 

Below are the basic notes to follow for the basic Grid-Scale process.

 The student below is drawing a self portrait using a mirror as her visual reference instead of a photograph or digital selfie type image.

A student sample of the Black & White Grid Scale drawing.
 Notice the clean line quality and values.

"Prismacolor" brand, soft-lead colored pencils and all-purpose drawing paper are recommended for this assignment:

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The above unfinished "Red Cardinal" Drawing and the below completed rendering of a "Red Car" were both done using the Color Grid-Scale Process. 

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It requires selecting a color photograph. Do not use an illustration, cartoon or low resolution image from the internet.  In most cases students have the option to select a reference photo image per glossy pages from magazines.

Draw a one-inch-grid over the photograph.  First there must be dots places around the four edges of the photo at one inch apart.

Then line them up using ink or a marker, draw the grid.  Afterwards the top row should be labeled alphabetically and the left row labeled numerically.

On a sheet of 18" X 24" Drawing Paper draw the same type of labeled Grid using pencil or ink, however the dots must be placed two inches apart.

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This grid will be about twice the size of the original color  photograph in most instances.

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This process requires one to be dedicated to drawing precisely the proportions, textures, values, lines and colors exactly as they appear in the smaller photograph onto the larger gridded drawing paper.

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Note the drawing directly below is a Values Grid to be drawn in order to learn and master how the colored pencils may be used to create a needed range of values and shades.  

Both student/artists tested the pencils along the sides of the actual drawing while working to match colors and textures.  

Many times the correct colors are created by blending assorted colors.  

Keep in mind that at times the pencil colors do not exactly match those in the photo-references.

“Line quality” is used to describe the character and aspects of the linear mark-making in a work of art. It is not a scale of good to bad or less to more skilled; instead it calls attention to the “hand feel” of the marks. It references the variation in width, smoothness, movement, briskness, depth, etc.

There are many types of lines: thick, thin, horizontal, vertical, zigzag, diagonal, curly, curved, spiral, etc. and are often very expressive. Lines are basic tools for artists—though some artists show their lines more than others.

By varying the line quality an artist can show form in a drawing with just the use of line. Line can also indicate shadow and form through the use of cross contour lines. Cross contour lines follow the contours of the object. Much like running your finger around the form of an object.

Shading is used traditionally in drawing for depicting a range of darkness by applying media more densely or with a darker shade for darker areas, and less densely or with a lighter shade for lighter areas. Light patterns, such as objects having light and shaded areas, help when creating the illusion of depth on paper.
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Gesture Drawing: Capture your Subjects in Action

• First observe the largest features of your subject and quickly note the overall movement or direction of the object. ...
• Limit the time you use for each gesture drawing. ...
• Ignore any lines you lay down which are not 'accurate'.

You may note that some of the samples above actually contain a smaller gesture drawing in the lower right corner of the larger dancers' based gesture drawings. It was a quicker look at the motion with even less attention to detail, line, form or shading...values.

A gesture drawing is basically a quick drawing that captures the essential gesture of a subject in its most distilled form. Gesture is everywhere, embodied in every object, person, and place. It is action, emotion, movement, and expression all rolled together into one cohesive motion.

Understanding and applying gesture to your daily practice is a crucial step in your artistic development. Gesture drawing is a method of capturing figures in exaggerated poses. Some gesture drawings lean more towards realistic representations while others exaggerate like crazy.