[Rohan]

Refering to Jason M's comments on drawing from life 'everyday' i was wondering what kind of stuff do i exactly draw from life?

Portraits of various people?
Drawings of the garden, flowers + trees?
Drawings of furniture/cars/my room?

And which areas should i focus on? Should i work on 'finished drawings' or just rough sketches outlining the various shapes + light/dark values?

Oh yeh, one more question . . what should the ratio be for time drawing from life and time just spent doodling + drawing in my sketchbook?

Btw the comments made about colour theory and unlocking drawing creativity were very very helpful! Everyones insights are very much appreciated!

Thnx to anyone who replies, cheers

[Jason Manley]

hi...

I agree with ya that the foundation threads are really helpful...going over this stuff helps me too...everones input has been great.

as far as drawing from life goes....you can simply draw anything you like...and whatever you have time for.

if it was me...I would try to do a variety of different things and different approaches. It will all help you later.

if you want a more regimented schedule to your foundation recipe then here are a few ingredients for 1-3 hour cooking times.

1. Draw anything you want from life. Start with short drawing times. Only give yourself five minutes or less to draw what it is that you see. After you do at least three of these (or a page of sketches) move on to 1-2 drawings each consisting of 15-20 minutes. finally move on to a long term drawing of 1 hour-"however long you want" period of time.

if you are working from life...spend time drawing figures, animals, plants, archetecture...anything you think looks cool.

very short sketches of figures at the mall, bus stop, restaurant etc.. with just enough marks to capture the feel of the situation and the movement of the figures will enable you to accurate sketch notes later on.

draw as many portraits of friends...yourself..whoever..as you can. give yourself a half hour or hour and try to cut your time down to half that with the same results within 3 weeks.

draw from your imagination...construct complex ideas...try communicating ideas with your pictures. you must learn to communicate and not just learn to copy.

try adding your own perspective to the piece when working from your imagination...try making pictures that can communicate your ideas quickly. ask your friends and family if they can tell what your image is of..or about.

get LOTS of input.

In the beginning I would say that it is more important to learn the grammar of the visual language by working from life. But at the same time doing some work from your imagination so that you can become proficient in putting ideas together.

either way...you need to be making a concentrated effort at making finished pieces...what that means depends on your taste in art.

best of luck


jason manley

[worthless_meat_sack]

Draw what nobody else draws. This is a solid answer to the question posed in the other thread.

I see artists wandering around the fields until they see a view that reminds them of something they saw Monet do once...

Look around your house. Draw what is NOT picturesque and been drawn to death. Maybe draw the dead bugs in the windowsill. What you get out of original subject matter is twofold,

1) you have to think through the problems yourself, leading to a larger artistic mental muscle, and

2) your work might be more original.

Of course I am not saying abandon 500 years of learning coming behind you, but be aware of the damage that listening too closely can cause. It can blind and overwhelm you.

On the other hand, I think originality is overrated. It is accepted without question as the highest artistic value. It's the "without question" that is unfortunate. If you consciously decide that originality is the pinnacle, that's fine. It is a matter of values, not a matter of right and wrong.

I hope that makes sense. A little bit of originality goes a long way. You do not need to reinvent the wheel every time you pick up a pencil.

The one thing that will make your time well spent is to think about what you are doing. Learn to look and analyze. The more you internalize and understand about about what you are drawing, the more that will come through in however or whatever you draw. And I am not talking about touchy feely stuff, I mean understand about its physical nature and form. Drawing just to put in the hours is better than nothing, but concentrated study will really get you ahead.

[ October 21, 2001: Message edited by: worthless_meat_sack ]