Article Pool

Free Article Directory!

• Home
• Submit Article
• Recent Articles
• Top Authors
• Top Articles
• Article Distribution Service
• Article Writing

Tips on Pencil Portrait Sketching - Painterly Awareness Mode

Published by Remi | January 6th 2009 | Views:

Loading

|

There are many modes of drawing: linear, value-wise, gestural, etc. In this commentary we will center on carving out form with a sculptural awareness.

This approach to drawing is very much like working with putty except that we are sketching on paper, of course, and using our fingers, a stump, tissue, and the kneaded eraser as our painting tools.

As always, begin with drawing the arabesque and situating the fundamental proportions of the facial area.

Before hatching-in the prime light/dark patterns you should squint and look at the model or the photograph. Squinting distills the lights and darks into simple patterns of one given tone because it obscures the minutia.

At this point, just concern yourself with the big masses, maybe even just two, a light one and a dark one. Do not yet attempt to break down the darks at this point.

Working in this way is also good training for painting because this is how you build up a painting especially when using the One Stroke method of painting.

Drawing, painting, and sculpture are subtractive/additive activities. You first add something and then you take something back, all the while proceeding towards the finished sketch.

You also will use your kneaded eraser to take out the lights. When doing this pay careful attention to the anatomical features; every form indicates a muscle.

We all have our personal preferences about how we sketchidea is to go for the "full stretch" of values, i.e., from the darkest darks to the lightest light.

Starting and intermediate draftspersons often fail to go for the full tonal stretch. Quite often the reason for this is the apprehension of ruining their drawing and also because they have read, or been told, not to overwork the drawing.

As a beginner you should take a drawing as far as you possibly can, even to the point of collapse. That way you will learn precisely how far you can go. If you always stop short you will never know what lies beyond.

Use your fingers, a tissue, and a stump to blend the values. The best thing is to start dividing each large tonal mass into two separate smaller masses of different values wherever your observations tell you there is a distinction in tone to be made. Keep in mind the changing planes and the anatomy of the subject's features.

The hair is kept dark and simple with only a few strokes of the kneaded eraser to suggest the unkempt locks of hair. Do not overdo these strokes or they will look bleached.

In conclusion, when utilizing the sculptural approach to drawing a pencil portrait always treat your tools as if they were brushes. Pretend as much as possible that you are painting instead of drawing. Always keep in mind the anatomy and the changing plane bearings that you note in your subject. Always sketch from the general to the specific or from the large to the small. As you get more ablity, try to remember the things that work for you and incorporate them in your style of drawing.
Rate this article:

Total Vote: 0, Rating: 0/5




Comments (0)
Post a Comment