Close Up

Students are encouraged that their color drawing will only be as good as how you can differentiate light and shadow patterns in value only. Once the values are established, the logic of color principles can be applied. Saturation and Temperature. Pastels is all about layering. Unlike paint, you can't mix on your pallette. Most of the mixiing is done in layers of blending. The key of which is a base layer that is often neutral and pushed into the weave of the paper with a tortillion.

COLOR Demo

The block in and early layers of a color pastel demo.

Application of Materials

close up

Notice how flat the values are to begin with. This general shadow tone is applied with the charcoal pencil and flattened with the tortillion.

Day 2 The POSTER

I find that sometimes students rush their drawings to get "finished" in their minds as fast as possible. I can fall prey to this. Instead of using the basic tools presented we go on 'autopilot' and draw what we 'think' we know. We may get something that looks like 'a figure' but more than not it does not look like the figure we are drawing. I have to be vigilant and patient with the process. I specifically slowed down and did a minimal of value in this demo so that you can see how spending more time on one area, in this case the head, leads the way for the drawing to evolve naturally, instead of trying to do "everything at once".

The Value of a quick VALUE study

Day 1 we focused on the block-in paying attention to the basic essence (balance, gesture and proportion) while also utilizing the shadow edge. Before that however, on the left side we did some 12 minute values sketches getting the basic key of the painting, that is understanding how dark the general light mass is and the general shadow mass. This is a way of visulaizing your final drawing and preparing yourself to dive into the richness of the tonal varieties without fear.

Larger version

LIGHT BLOCK IN DEMO

This is today's light block in demo with notes. We will be focusing on these ideas for the remainder of the quarter.

Poster Demo Notes

Basic review of the simple poster and the basic characteristics of light. Drawing is a balance between what we see and what we know. The simple poster is seen best when you are squinting your eyes. The core shadow is always the darkest part of the shadow.

Sustained planar analysis of the male torso

In a sustained planar analysis the secondary planes are blocked in. Having a guide such as the Loomis handout is very helpful if its your first ever planar study of the figure. Remember, whatever happens on one side is happening on the other, in perspective. This is the basic principle ofsymmetry.

Box form demos

Think like a sculptor, as if you are using clay. Pinch the near edge of that box using line weight. Its the edge that you will not see on the figure, yet the one that will emphasize the dynamics of that form most effectively.

Box form demos

Box form demos

Breaking down the dynamics of the 3 moveable masses.

In a quick sketch, establish the general essence of the pose, which is the gesture, balance and proportion. Then establish a simple sense for the volume of the three movable masses, which are the head, rib cage and the pelvis. You are essentially establishing the mannequin or primitive forms of the skeleton. From there you locate and identify the key surface landmarks of the skeleton, which are, the pit of the neck, acromion process, the sternum, the last rib, the point of the ilium and the pubis. The basic landmarks of the skull are the chin, the zygomatic bone and the brow. On the back you will use the sacrum and the underplane of the buttocks. Now using your understanding of perspective, break the forms down into simple box forms, exaggerating the dynamic orientation of each one in relationship to the other.

Why Planar Analysis?

It is helpful to break down complex organic forms in order to better understand the structure, geometry/architecture, symmetry and volume of a form. Planar analysis helps us better understand what happens to the light tonally on a form. The tools used are the central axis line and linear perspective as it relates most specifically to the box form.