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Drawing & Painting - Observing an Object
- Tools and Techniques
- Making a Quill
- Making Marks to Music
- Observing an Object
- Introduction
- About Drawing from Observation
- Step 1 : Which object to choose?
- Step 2 : What background shall I place it on?
- Getting started on the drawing
- Step 3 : Size of the drawing, and where to place it
- Make a Viewfinder
- Step 4 : Basic Sketch
- Step 5 : Light and dark (tone), and shadows
- Step 5 continued: Highlights
- Step 6 : Texture
- Suggestion - What next?
- Doodling
- Visiting an Art Gallery
- Drawing video
Downloads
"I'm happy with my drawings. I'm impressed with my own work through the help of the exercises and guidance."
Introduction
Follow this exercise to have a go at drawing something you can see.
You can see this exercise demonstrated on video.
You will need:
- Range of drawing tools eg pencils, pens, charcoal, (see ‘Tools & Techniques’ exercise for other ideas)
- Some paper, such as a sketch book
- A subject (object) to draw
- A drawing board or easel (optional)
What might this exercise offer?
The Observing an Object exercise:
- Enables us to learn new techniques or sharpen existing skills
- Makes our drawings more accurate
- Helps us to gain confidence in self expression
- Increases our hand/eye coordination as we observe and draw simultaneously – good manual dexterity helps with many tasks in life
- Enhances our ability to notice, and therefore draw details we might otherwise miss. Noticing our surroundings is important for our wellbeing, as a recent report (the Foresight report) shows us. You may have heard of the Five Ways to Wellbeing campaign that came from this report, and ‘Noticing’ is one of these Five Ways (or positive actions to take)
How long will the exercise take?
You can spend as long or as little time as you like on this. The exercise is split into small stages. We suggest you make yourself a tea or coffee and enjoy the time to yourself, immersed in this exercise. Take as many breaks as you need. Remember it’s a good idea when doing a creative exercise to have a break from it and come back to it with fresh eyes.
