You will need:
Paper/ sketchbook
A drawing tool
First drawing:
Find and object you like to draw.
Sit comfortably in front of it
Draw it, as you like, no instructions or guide lines.
Second drawing:
Find an object you like to draw.
Sit comfortably in front of it
Stare at the object: study its contours (outlines) and shapes by moving a pointed finger from a stretched arm with only one eye open. Move your finger around the object several times as if you are drawing it in the air. Keep going till you feel comfortable to start your drawing.
Start by drawing the larger shapes
Move into smaller shapes
Add light and shadow
Simply draw what you see, just as you see it. In order to do that you have to make sure your eyes are constantly moving from the page to the object, keep your head steady. Don’t get ‘sucked’ into your drawing, the information that you need is in front of you and not in your drawing. Look for edges which describe shapes, not just an outline (an edge is a boundary line between two shapes). Where a leaf bends it will form a new unique shape. Shadows, colors, textures can help define a shape. Try your best, the more you practice the better you will get, and keep in mind what my intro to drawing teacher – Donna Keegan always said: “it is not the end result that matters, but the process of drawing is what counts”
Lessons from working with Zoe:
Zoe is a strong minded girl who needs to do things her own way. When it came to drawing it was no different. So we came up with this system where she first draws something her way, once she is done she tries it my way. After doing this for few times, I have noticed how her drawing have changed, she started to incorporate things that we have been working on without my guidance. She is doing great at observation and actually looking and really seeing what she is drawing.
I don’t draw for her; I help her find the shapes and edges in the object she is drawing. We talk about what we know about the object, what we think we see and what is actually there. At the end we always have fun looking at the 2 drawings she made. Not for the purpose of identifying which one is better but simply to see the differences between them.
An example:
this is ‘Ketem’ , it is a favorite stuffed animal, therefore a great object to draw.
Zoe's first drawing of 'Ketem', I stayed completely out of her way keeping Ori busy.
After she was done with the first drawing, she started the second one. This time I was close by. She didn't move 'ketem' he was still in the same position as before. The difference was that this time she was looking at 'ketem' while drawing it, only moving her eyes between the page and the object. I interfered only to help her see the difference between what she thinks is there and what she actually sees.
For example:
1. She was straggling with drawing the body of the dog above the head like it appeared to be since in her mind she knows the body usually comes under the head. Once I pointed it out, she could see it.
2. She had a problem seeing the face features in relation to one another, location and size. I helped her locate the line under the eyes pointing out where it needs to be relative to the ears. Once she located the eyes above that line, it was easier for her to locate the rest.
3. The ears started as a smooth contour line. I asked Zoe what were the ears actually like, are they fuzzy or are they smooth. Once she had the answer she also corrected their contour to correspond with uneven edge created by the texture.
When I guide her I usually ask her questions about what she sees without giving her the answers, by having her come up with the answers, I know SHE is making the observations and she knows she figures it out herself.
