Lesson 3: Creating Depth

It is very wise to tackle one element of the drawing process at a time when you are starting out on your new venture. Drawing sure can get complicated - but only if you let it.

Overview. Teasing Out The Elements of Rendering.

At this stage of learning to draw people often begin to make it hard for themselves. Don't be discouraged! It is not hard if you don't try to "eat the whole elephant in just one bite." Consciously tease out the different elements of drawing. Learn them separately (although while in context) and then put them back together later. It is a simple exercise in gestalt psychology. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Later you will be guided by intuition. For now do the preparatory work of research, practice and study.

I am going to

1. walk you through a verbal
2. and visual description of the drawing process.
3. separate two different elements of rendering that have been used in one drawing.
4. I will show you how I drew in black and white first
5. then applied colour.

• why shading in tone is a different from using colour to create depth.
• and why it is also the same.

1. choose the subject matter
2. decide on the look and style you wish to create
3. choose the materials that will best enable you to achieve this
4. define the working space
5. draw in the shapes and lines using whisper lines
6. and ghost lines
7. and any other judging mechanisms such as guide lines that you may need
{I suggest you follow these stages zealously until such time as your intuitive powers take over without your knowledge.}

So now you are ready to begin rendering.

• hatching
• crosshatching
• building up the back ground - by making it darker behind the subject matter. (There is a thorough discussion of this technique in the abstract section.)
• For the sake of this exercise I have kept the light source even - however this too can become complicated if you let it.

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• The flower will be red and that is a warm colour so this is easy.
• For this flower I have chosen a
  1. cool,
  2. dark crimson pencil,
  3. a warm light cadium red pencil,
  4. a cool yellow pencil
  and
  5. white.
• Working on just the beads of the flower I tackle each one sperately. I used the darker crimson red and hatched around the outer edge of the bead.
• I then hatched the lighter red across the top of it.
• Toward the end I hatched the yellow over this and then blended it all together with the white.
• With practice a technique will evolve for you within which you will be able to work quickly and efficiently.
• Because the procees involves patterning it will be very relaxing, in much the same way that cross stitching is.
• Any technique that requires repetition is comforting. It is therefor relaxing and therefor can be therapeutic.
• So if you find the technique frustratingly slow at first - with time it will become relaxing and facile.
• Enjoy

Now is the rest of the process obvious? I would really like to know. Tease your way through the rest of the drawing. Draw a flower in the same way yourself - and - I will meet you in the discussion area to discuss how you went.

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