The benefit of starting with drawing for painters

Representational Painting can be broken down simply into these 4 technical fundamentals:

Shapes Values Edges Color

Drawing teaches you 3:

Shapes Values Edges

By practicing these fundamentals with the simpler tools of drawing first, you can more efficiently learn to paint after.

Portrait of Maryanna

Step-by-step

The Assignment:

Make a copy of my Portrait of Maryanna.

Please read through to the end before you begin (like a baking recipe)

The supplies:

  • This drawing was made using graphite (I prefer a simple mechanical pencil).

  • a smooth piece of paper (this was Strathmore 400 drawing series).

  • A grey kneaded eraser will be the most helpful erasing tool.

  • A number two pencil and a sheet of printer paper will do if you have nothing else

  • Tip: Make sure you pad your paper with several more sheets of paper behind it or your pencil will make harsh and awkward marks.

    Three ways to utilize this lesson listed by increasing difficulty.

    1) Make one drawing. Start with referencing my step 1 image/instructions and moving through the progression of steps one on top of the other until you complete the copy.

    2) Make three drawings: The first is a copy of step one. The second starts as a copy of step one and ends as a copy of step two. The third combines the copying of all three steps. If you do this you will learn a lot, but it takes some patience.

    3) Make a copy of my completed drawing while only referencing the completed drawing image and reading the steps. See if you can retain the concepts.

    Tips

    Set a timer for 20 minutes of focused drawing time, and also for 5 minute breaks. Do not look at your drawing on the breaks. This will help you remain objective. Objectivity is your most valuable tool, as learning a skill this difficult can be very emotional at times.

Write down any questions that come up for you. This way you have points of focus for your next attempt. Breathe and have fun.

Step 1

  • Draw only lines as you map out shapes. You are carefully and patiently separating the light values of your subject from the dark values of your subject in a simple 2 value system. When it is not obvious what value a shape is, squint to decide if it belongs in the light or the dark (when you blur your vision a middle value will scurry toward one extreme or another). When two dark shapes touch they are to be combined, as we are only working with 2 values at this point. You are only drawing the dark shapes (hunting darks I’ve called it) because the paper is light, it would be the opposite on dark paper. You may need construction lines to figure out some shapes and distances between shapes at first, and that is fine (like the line I made where her nose meets her cheek which does not indicate the border of a dark shape) but simplify the shapes when possible. Another example of construction lines: See how in my step 2 image below- the shadow under the chin is connected to the hair and the cast shadow on the neck and shoulder when the darks are finally filled in. Those were big shapes and I needed to use some extra information to measure them correctly.

  • In this stage we are thinking of flat abstracted shapes, accurate but not worried about anatomy or detail (so don't try to invent detail in the eye!). Big truths are more important to begin with. Likeness does not require detail, it requires accuracy of the big shapes.

  • There should be no filling in of the shadows in this step.

  • Use a light touch as you start to make sure you can erase mistakes.

  • Draw with straight lines, this will aid in accuracy of likeness. It is difficult to record an accurate curve, it takes years and years of observational drawing from life to get it correct right off the bat. Using a series of short straight lines to illustrate a curve is a better plan.

Step 1

Step 2

  • Now it’s time to fill in your dark shapes. Do not touch your light shapes, and do not alter or elaborate edges.

  • You must take your time to fill in your darks with a single medium value dark, don't go black. This will take patience. Fill in as smoothly and simply as possible covering all the white of the paper within the dark value areas. You do not want to fill in carelessly and have it appear that there are unwanted and confusing shapes in the darks.

  • Always correcting: You may notice that in step 1, I separated out "light" shapes in the hair, but then thought better of it and got rid of them when I moved to step two. I am always improving my plan of attack, streamlining my process.

Step 2

Step 3

  • Utilizing your carefully crafted map of shapes and values to bring the drawing to finish with full value and thoughtful expression of edges.

  • Begin with the eye. The eye is a small portion of your drawing but it has a dynamic range of values and edges so if you bring it to finish first you will learn how to deal with everything else, it’s a microcosm of the greater complexity. Jumping around from place to place depositing various degrees of finish is not wise when learning. Bring the eye to finish (full value, accurate edges), then when you are satisfied you may move methodically to the nose... mouth.... etc.

  • Remember, when rendering to finish not to use the eraser in the darks that you filled in in step 2. You may darken more... but the "average dark" cannot be lightened.

  • Tip: Nothing in the darks can be as light as anything in the lights, and nothing in the lights can be as dark as anything in the darks. We must respect the greater two value system in order to portray the light on form in a realistic way.

  • I recommend a time limit. 3 hours is a good length of time. Whatever you accomplish in that time limit is enough if it is done with control and intention. You will get faster through developing self discerned economy of action the more times you attempt this.

Step 3

*If you want a critique make sure to take pics of the exercise step by step, and not just at the end! See you in Critique Club!