So last week I made a pretty big leap from inanimate objects like trees and mountains to a living creature. Drawing the cat was pretty difficult; the fur, the eyes, etc. were not things I had really ever tried to draw in any kind of realistic way. I actually thought that this week drawing a house would be easier, however the opposite was true. I do not have the steadiest pencil in the world, and I do much better with messy, imprecise lines than with straight lines or precision. Even though there is no shading, and this picture is just a bunch of straight lines, I actually had to concentrate very hard to create it. It is pretty obvious from my final product that I have trouble with precision. Again I turned to YouTube for instruction, and again I believe it was very useful. As I have progressed through my learning I have been able to answer the questions I set for myself at the beginning of the project: 1. How much will this cost? One of my first concerns when beginning this project was cost. As a student I do not have a great deal of money, so this was a natural concern for me. One of the things that I really appreciate about drawing is that it can be nearly free; all you really need is a pencil and something to draw on. 2. Do I need any special tools, i.e. pencils, paper, etc. The answer to this question is really tied in with the first question. Much of what I have seen says you should buy special pencils, charcoal, etc., however, it is not really necessary. When I begin to improve, I may purchase more specialized equipment, but for now, a pencil and paper are fine. 3. Why should I learn to draw? The only good answer I can think of for this question is that it is something that I can do anywhere if I find myself bored. One day I may be able to create something beautiful; for now I will be content with keeping myself occupied. 4. How often should I practice? Drawing is like any other endeavor; the more you practice, the better you get. I am not a good artist, but by practicing a great deal I was occasionally able to create something that looked half way decent. 5. What will I draw? This was something I actually struggled with at first. I was starting to draw after not really doing it for twenty plus years. After some consideration, I decided to begin simply, and gradually increase the complexity. Still-life is the easiest, and a good way to practice shading. 6. Are there any local classes I can take? There are art classes you can take at the local junior colleges, however that did not really fit in with my schedule, or my budget. 7. Are there any online resources I can use? During this project I tried to learn to draw, however this really seemed like a demonstration of the usefulness of YouTube as a teaching tool. I began to rely pretty heavily on YouTube for instructional videos to help me as I learned. 8. How difficult will it be to become "ok"? It is arguable that I still do not know the answer to this question, because even calling me an "ok" artist is something of a stretch. I believe that if I keep practicing, I will keep improving, but it may take a long time to get any good. 9. Is there any subject matter that is best for beginners to draw? From what I learned using YouTube, the easiest subject matter was things like landscapes, mountain ranges, etc. Animals and people are much more difficult for most people. I actually had the most difficult time with anything that actually required a straight line. 10. Do I have any natural talent? Easy answer....NO! I did a great deal of drawing, and I only posted my best work here! Some people may be able to simply pick something like this up and be good at it quickly, I am not one of those people. When I first began this project, I was barely able to draw a circle; that is probably still the case, but I still feel like I have made a great deal of progress. I decided that my final drawing should be something a little further outside of my comfort zone than what I had been doing in all of my previous posts. I decided that doing an animal with fur would likely be pretty challenging, and I was right. I think I would feel better about my cat if I did not compare it to the one done by the artist in the video I included with this post. Overall, I was able to make a reasonable amount of progress without buying any special pencils or other materials. I set aside an hour a week to practice, however I did spend a good amount of time doodling throughout the week, and I did not really keep track of that time. I would say that is one of the nice things about something like drawing; you can do it almost anywhere, at anytime, without any special materials. I believe that as much as I learned about drawing during the last 5 weeks, I learned at least as much about how useful YouTube can be as a learning tool. The amount of information readily available is truly staggering. I was able to find numerous examples of whatever type of drawing I wanted to make. I had used YouTube to learn before, however this experience has really demonstrated how useful it can actually be. I know I still need a great deal of practice, however I have made much more progress than I thought I would. So this week I decided to try to learn how to draw mountains. There are quite a few good videos online that show how to do this. I chose a YouTube video that was pretty easy to follow, and did not require much in the way of specialized pencils or other art gear. The video did show the artist using a different number pencil and a paper towel to smudge some of the pencil marks. I do all of my drawings with a number two pencil, and find that I can get close enough just buy varying pencil pressure as I draw. If I eventually become very good, I will spend money on a set of pencils, however, I do not think i am at that point yet. I am finding that the most important part of any pencil drawing is the shading. I had never really thought about it before, but if a picture has believable shading, the eye will sometimes ignore minor imperfections in other areas. I still need a great deal of work, but I feel I am doing well enough for a beginner. So for week three I have decided to try to learn how to draw trees. There are a ton of tutorials on YouTube to pick from, and I watched quite a few of them. The first thing I had to do was decide what kind of tree I wanted to draw; obviously drawing a fir tree is much different than drawing a palm tree. I actually did a number of quick doodles of different types of trees as I was deciding, and eventually thought it best to just try to draw something very generic. Eventually I would like to draw an entire landscape, and this is just one step to that end. The video I ended up using for this week's example of my work was relatively simple, and did not require any exotic materials...Just pencil and paper. So I am remembering why I never pursued a career as an artist....I have virtually no natural talent! That's ok though, I guess I never expected to make a living from my drawings. This week I decided to move on from drawing and shading shapes to something a little more complex. I have been looking at a good deal of still life drawings and decided to give it a try. This week I drew a cup and saucer. I actually discarded many versions before I finally got it to resemble what I wanted it to. Simple things like creating a symmetrical circle are actually somewhat difficult for me. I have been watching a lot of YouTube videos as my primary source of information. I find it very helpful to be able to actually watch someone else's hand draw an object. So week one, learning to draw. It might seem strange, but I can not remember the last time I actually drew anything; I am not a big doodler and have never considered myself incredibly artistic. I figured I would start out slow....I did not realize just how slow would be. It turns out that I have a difficult time simply drawing a circle, so I started with simple shapes. I watched a number of YouTube videos which I found very helpful. After some practice was able to at least make something that somewhat resembled a circle, so I moved on to shading. It turns out that the first video I watched was actually the most helpful, because it was simple and actually showed the artist drawing each shape. The video I used for the shading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExRRHY9wT6Q It took a number of tries, but I was finally able to create a number of shapes that actually resemble what they are supposed to. I am going to continue to practice simple shapes for now, I think I will eventually move on to something like fruit,as that does not seem like too big of a leap from what I can currently do. I also may eventually start using pens, graphite, etc., but for now I am going to stick with simple pencil and paper.
So after a great deal of thought I have decided to try to learn how to draw. The more I thought about it, the more it just seemed the right path to take. I have a strong feeling that finding time to draw will be easier for me than learning the guitar, as I can literally draw wherever I can bring pencils and paper. In addition I have always wished I was more artistic but never really put any effort into learning how; I had always just thought of it as something you are or are not born with. I am going to go get some good pencils and some decent paper, as well as begin searching the internet for any resources that will help me become a better artist. I am not sure what my first subject will be, however I am thinking I will start with something like a house or landscape. Who knows, if I get good enough, maybe I will even be able to get my parents to post my work on their refrigerator....JK.
I have found narrowing my choices down to two final contenders to be much more difficult than I had imagined. I have never given very much serious thought about the things I do or learn in my leisure time. Generally speaking as I pass through life, if something looks interesting I pursue it, if not, I don't; I usually do not plan this sort of thing. That being said, I have finally narrowed my choices down to two final options:
1. Learn to Draw As a child I used to be a pretty prolific dinosaur artist and would take every opportunity to adorn any piece of paper or other flat surface with as many ferocious creatures as I was able. I was never a very good artist, but I did enjoy it a great deal. When I think of myself now, artistic is not one of the adjectives I would use to describe myself, however I think I would like that to change. If I am going to start drawing again I might as well do it right. Some questions before I start:
2. Learn to Play the Guitar: Continuing with the theme of nurturing my more artistic side, I have also seriously considered taking up the guitar. I have not played an instrument since I played the coronet in band in the 7th grade, so I am starting from scratch. Some questions before I start:
|
Archives
May 2016
Categories |