The task was to select at least six cylindrical objects, and arrange them in a way that I could look slightly down on them. Then with a soft pencil, draw what I see without rubbing out mistakes, as an indicator of where difficulties are. Then make a second drawing from a slightly different angle and after gaining some confidence, a third with a pencil that cannot be rubbed out.
I made four drawings overall, and did an additional experiment by using the second drawing as a starting point for a “sand picture” – glueing coloured sand with painting filler.
Pages 1 and 2 – jugs and jars
I made two drawings from different arrangements of objects and again, found the task very difficult, and my drawings not very successful. I think I’m not a “line person”. I approached each drawing with very light, searching lines and then gradually became more clear about the shapes and positions of my object. I think I’m more a painter than a drawing person, my drawings are like modelling objects out of the grey muddle of lines, rather than knowing where the contours are and confidently drawing them. I did find some contours in the end, but had the feeling of imposing errors which wouldn’t have been that visible without the contours.
Very obvious that I need much practice, but it’s also a challenge that I appreciate.
What would help me to improve?
– First of all, practice
– I need to take a closer look at the points where lines run together, because I tended to draw lines that created “paper objects” without thickness of the material they were made of. The lines of the contours do not meet the lines of inner shapes, but I’m very unsure how to draw this
– I might try to draw more detail – not shade, but details of the objects, this would improve the credibility of the drawing
What went well?
– especially the first drawing, I found that it was drawn with much sensitivity. In the second, I was a bit exhausted. Maybe I should really stop after one drawing. I had a similar feeling after the second drawing of the books and boxes, as if I had been wasting my time. But I don’t know. In both cases, the idea of doing it again didn’t feel that good. It might really be better to do something else after each drawing and try again on the next day. I’ll try this out, to see what works better.
But when I looked at the two drawings 2 hours later that evening, my impression had changed and I liked them a lot, for the sensitivity and calmness they breathed, and also I found the composition of my objects very good. I will need more practice, but probably just accept my personal style of searching lines. Don’t know how to tackle the task with a non-erasable pen though – I didn’t rub out my lines but my style worked well with pencil where I could begin very soft and light and once I was more sure about where to locate the objects, then become darker and more defined with the lines. With black felt pen for example, this technique won’t work at all. Maybe working on the same arrangement will make the task a bit easier – based on the knowledge of objects I’ve gained through the earlier pencil drawing.
The sand picture
I made an extracurricular art work – a sand picture, using painter’s filler as glue for areas of sand in different colours, on thick bookmaker’s carton. I used the composition of the last drawing as a starting point. The picture is a bit chaotic, as I’m only beginning with the technique (first try), and I’m unsure whether the filler will hold the sand. I might need a finish to protect the sand from falling off. I might also try real glue next time, something that can be more easily applied with a pencil. I did it with a spoon and a thick painter’s brush, this didn’t support work on fine details very well.
When I checked again this morning, the sand did not hold very well and after consultation at my art materials supplier this morning, I bought transparent acrylic varnish to protect the work. I applied it with a soft brush and the small bottle was just enough for the 35×50 cm card size. I did it with stippling movements, because brushing movements dissolved too much sand. The customer service agent also recommended to use acrylic binding, colour or filler as glue material for the sand, which I will try out next – I wasn’t too happy with the filler because it dried too quickly when applied thin, and applied thickly the mass resulted in a wavy underground like sand under water which I didn’t like very much. I bought transparent binder and black acrylic paint – this might be a nice effect with dark grey, light grey and light blue sand that I’m using. Overall, an interesting experience. I like experimenting with new materials.
Pages 3 and 4 – more jugs and jars
I wanted to do one or two more to follow the instruction of using a pencil that cannot be rubbed out. I decided to use black felt pen, re-arranged the jars again, and started with a pencil drawing. I wanted to first get acquainted with the arrangement, before trying to draw lines with felt pen.
I feel that my third drawing of jars and jugs as again slightly improved, I found better solutions to draw material objects (rather than paper objects) – the problem was mainly at the points where lines met, and I began to draw inner and outer lines to indicate thickness of the object’s material. Also I felt more confident that the technique of beginning with light lines and gradually become more definitive would lead me to “correct” lines. The drawing isn’t constructed in perspective, rather done on intuitive measurement of shapes. There are errors but overall I like the drawing.
I decided not to draw with felt pen in the same drawing, but begin a second one and when I knew where my objects were on the paper by sketching them with pencil, then I would go ahead and use felt pen on top. That’s what I did, but I don’t know whether I like the resulting image. When using felt pen, I wasn’t looking at the arrangement anymore, instead tried a best guess about the correct line position and applied knowledge about the thickness of objects to draw inner and outer contours. Maybe it would be better to start with felt pen right away, to maintain the necessity to keep looking at what I’m drawing.
I feel totally unsure about drawing and somehow this is reflected in the drawings – even the felt pen lines are short and searching, rather than confident and bold. Maybe it’s personal style, maybe it gets better with practice.
Overall, an important exercise – difficult even to get simple shapes right, and showed me how afraid I am to draw lines.
