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Can We Go Back to Where We Were? Let's Try Some Drawing! - Page 2

© Gretchen Wms. Jurek

Well, people, I disagree. For those of you who are stuck with the stick people, I say I will give you a fast way of seeing that should help you immensely. Quick lesson: lines are really important, and they come in different flavors. Thin ones are not the only ones. Fat lines are also part of the picture. And straight lines are only a part of the equation. A straight line that stops abruptly and cuts back is an angular line, or rectilinear. A line that curves and flows is curvilinear. And there are spots and circles. A spot is like a circle, but it is filled in. A circle is a circle, but not filled in. A cell, a hubcap, the moon, bubbles.

So, there are the five basics to help you see. Next time you are stuck in traffic, or sitting on a bus or subway train, take a look around you, while keeping your foot on the brake, of course, if you are driving. Try to simplify what you see. Look at only a small area, maybe just the rear end of the vehicle in front of you. Or the umbrella of that fellow across the aisle - straight but also curvy. Are the lines of the car's trunk and rear deck just pointed and angular? Are they curved anywhere? What about the tail-lights? Are the tires really straight from the back, or do they bulge a bit at the bottom with a little curve?

What makes a baby know one face from another? Even without sound, a baby knows its mama by sight. It is these very relationships – how the eyes are shaped, where they are placed in relation to the forehead and the bridge of the nose, how long the upper lip is, how wide the mouth, how thin or full the lips, all of these go together to help us recognize instantly who it is near us. Instantly. Babies don’t see well far away, so the person has to get quite close, but anyone can tell if that person is recognized or not – by the baby’s reaction. Smile, wave the arms and gurgle; or grimace, kick, and erupt into a scream. This is so very basic.

Recognizing shapes and utilizing our ability is very basic. It is really a survival skill. Drawing is one of the first activities humans involve themselves with – sometimes a little too creatively with the limited medium they have available as infants… (blech!) But we are all artists of varying degrees. The loss of the willingness to draw, or to try to draw is a big loss, I think.

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