The Human Face

As an ending to my blog posts, I have decided to put all of my new skills together and draw an entire face. My goal when finding my book was to find techniques to which I could apply to my drawings, more specifically, realistic drawings. For this full face finale, I decided to draw another picture of Pony, a famous Korean makeup artist.

For a face, Holmes notes a few things that an artist must understand before drawing the face, and those are portioning features to one another (head shape, eyes, etc.), noticing the things that make us unique human beings (dimples, scars, etc.), also understanding what direction objects protrude in (nose, lips, etc.), and that you can use a grid to help with these measurements (72). Here are some of beginning steps the book gave me:

I used the grid, and it made everything much simpler, here are a few other steps I went through in the process of drawing Pony: 

Here you can see where I applied my learning of drawing noses, eyes and lips. Learning how to draw those before attempting an entire face was really helpful to me, because I didn't have to worry about if I could draw them or not. Holmes also writes a face checklist that lists the different parts of the face and what the artist should know about each one.

She also notes, "Hair is usually darker than the skin on most people" (73). This may seem completely obvious, but in general, I would just draw the outline of a person's hair and leave it at that. Pretty much like the second picture above. This affects how realistic the picture looks. In the end I came up with this:

The picture is not perfect, but it is the most realistic picture I have ever drawn. The book guided me through the steps and Holmes helped me to understand that it truly is not extremely difficult to draw cool things! My goal was achieved, and I've found some great techniques to apple to my drawings. I still have a lot of learn when it comes to drawing in general, but How to Draw Cool Stuff was a great investment. I guess judging a book by its cover this time around, actually turned out okay.

Have you ever attempted to draw a face? If so, what do you struggle with?

Book citation:
Holmes, Catherine. How to Draw Cool Stuff. Library Tales Publishing, Inc., 2013.

The Human Ear

I, as an artist, have never attempted to draw an ear, simply because I never needed to. The book How to Draw Cool Stuff covers the ears as a section within the chapter of the human face. So, I took this as an opportunity to try drawing an ear! My drawing was based off of this photo:

I decided to draw one with piercings because I find them cute :)

In this section of the book, Holmes gives a bit of information about drawing ears when they are going to be attached to an entire face. She explains that the ears are generally placed symmetrical on each side of the head (70). I unfortunately did not draw an entire face with ears showing, however it is good information to know when I attempt to draw them in the future.

To begin, Holmes suggests to start with two circles, as seen in this picture:

From there, I was instructed to erase a couple of lines and add one underneath the bigger circle:

After this, I was instructed to do a few more things before coming out with my finished product!

Holmes states, "The average human ear can be drawn realistically by using standard guidelines/measurements" (70). This is a reoccurring statement that I've noticed throughout this book, and I could not agree more. I have applied the simple techniques proposed in the book, and my drawings have never looked better! Though my shading still needs a lot of work and the perfect is not perfect, I understand where to start, and can draw my pictures in an organized manner without overcomplicating things.

Have you ever attempted to draw an ear? If so, how did you start? 

Book citation:

Holmes, Catherine. How to Draw Cool Stuff. Library Tales Publishing, Inc., 2013.

The Human Mouth

Are you seeing a trend with my titles?
As you can tell, this next post is going to be about the human mouth. The lips/mouth are the defining feature of many people in the world. There are different shapes, sizes, pigmentations, and textures. Being able to capture that on paper is something I strive for. My drawing was based on this picture:

Ignoring the lip pencil

The mouth is something I also have struggled with as an artist, my problem was that I never knew where to start, and that is a reoccurring problem that I've always had. I would also like to learn how to properly draw teeth, but unfortunately that is not covered in this book.

Unlike my last two posts, I show you some of the beginning of my drawing. Like all of the other parts of the body, Holmes says that the human mouth can easily be drawn realistically with simple lines and measurements (68). This book teaches the simple steps to more complex drawings, and I believe that anyone of any skill level would benefit from reading it. First I started out with drawing the basic shape of the top lip a line under for where the bottom lip would be:

Next, I drew lines to connect the line at the bottom with the sides, and drew lines for contour.

Then, all there was left to do was shade! In the book in order to understand how to draw the lips, Holmes stated, "Shading in the direction of the planes of the lip to create form, curved lines to create contour" (68). I never realized how much the direction of your strokes affected the outcome of the shading. After following all of the guidelines that the book provided, here is the finished product:

I noticed that in the picture, the lips are slight pursed, causing the top lip to go upwards, therefore, I shaded upwards to mimic the affect. Overall, the book did a great of job of guiding me to draw these lips. Though, I wish I could have drawn one with teeth. Whenever I attempt to draw teeth, the person ends up looking like a monster, and I rarely ever draw smiling people. But, I believe the drawing turned out great in the end.

Is there anything I can do to improve my drawings? How do you begin to draw a mouth? And, for anybody that has advice on it, what are some tips for drawing teeth?

Book citation:

Holmes, Catherine. How to Draw Cool Stuff. Library Tales Publishing, Inc., 2013.

The Human Nose

I did I again! I didn't take a picture to show the beginning of my drawing, I apologize in advance. For this blog, and the rest of them, I will be focusing on the human face and its parts. For the second round, I've chosen the nose, and will be modeling based off of this picture of a Korean makeup artist that goes by the name of Pony:

Noses have always been an area where I struggled the most. This is the only aspect of the face that I have attempted to look for a technique, as I was utterly terrible at drawing them. One method I found was the "circle method." I call it this because it begins with a circle that defines the tip of the nose and everything else is based off of the circle. I never understood why the method worked, I could never get the correct shape, and my "draw what I saw," mentality did not do me justice what-so-ever. As she did when explaining the human eye, Holmes explains that the average human nose can be created using simple guidelines, it was easier than it looked (64). She provides tips and other necessary information stating, "The nose protrudes and is usually lighter in the center and darker on the sides" (Holmes 64). This was a key statement when it came to drawing the nose, because if something was not shaded correctly, it could make the nose look distorted. Here are some guidelines from the book:

As seen, Holmes simply defines the shape with lines and shades accordingly. Now, for beginners, shading can be a difficult concept, however, there is a section solely based on shading that is on pages 22-27. I read through the section, enough to get the general idea before starting any drawing. I followed the above guidelines for Pony's nose, and this was the outcome:

I still have a long way to go when it comes to noses, but I believe that at the least, I got the correct shape. Next time, I should try to choose a nose that is positioned forward and not up, this would make my task simpler. Then, move onto something more advanced. However, overall I believe the nose turned out well.

How do you begin drawing a nose? Do you use the circle method? Do you believe that the method in the book is useful?

Book citation:

Holmes, Catherine. How to Draw Cool Stuff. Library Tales Publishing, Inc., 2013.

The Human Eye

As an artist with little experience, but natural talent, I have never had the chance to find a drawing technique that I thought best fit me. I would simply just draw what I saw, and I couldn't help people that came to me for drawing advice. I want to focus on the human face and its parts. To begin I chose the human eye, and I modeled the drawing off of this picture:



The book I chose to aid me in finding good techniques is called How to Draw Cool Stuff  by Catherine Holmes. I was compelled by the interesting cover photo that the book provided. There are 6 chapters, each with different things to learn. I will be working in chapter 2, which covers the human face and its parts. The author explains what the artist needs to know and understand, and therefore can do. It then follows up with a step-by-step guideline to drawing the shape. Holmes explains how to draw the human eye in simple terms by stating, "The average human eye can be created by using standard guidelines/measurements" (60). As I stated before, I never learned a technique that I could confidently say I had, however Holmes makes the drawing easy to understand, therefore, easy to draw. She explains the process in simple steps, (I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of the beginning of my drawing), first starting with a circle (61).

This book focuses on finding the simple shapes within complex drawings. After following the guidelines I ended up with this finished product:

The lashes are messy and so is my shading, however I believe the book guided me quite well. I started with a simple circle (the iris), and continued to add lines (any creases, the pupil, etc.), then all that was left was to shade! I believe the drawing turned out very pretty! 

Do you have a specific technique for drawing the human eye? If so, let me know! Or if you don't, was this helpful, and can I clarify anything?

Book citation:

Holmes, Catherine. How to Draw Cool Stuff. Library Tales Publishing, Inc., 2013.

Using Line Variation in Your Art

Drawing with patterns and certain shapes can help add element to your artwork. Not only does it add variation to the style of artwork you produce, adding patterns can actually make the process of drawing simpler. "Strengthening your manual dexterity will improve your confidence and ultimately appear in the quality of your marks" (Sherman 24). What Sherman means by this statement is, by using simple patterns and textures of lines in your artwork, you can overall improve in that skill.

On the right and left are examples of  textures and variations of lines shown in Playing with Sketches. To complete this exercise, I used some of the patterns shown in the book to make unique characters.

Sherman states, "You will have the endurance to maintain a consistent line quality and the flexibility to easily change your line work, bringing variety to your image," (24). Overall, this exercise was simple and fun. Those who want to add variety to there artwork should try incorporating line variation.

Do you think using different line textures/variation makes art more interesting? 

Bicknell, Sarah. Sherman, Whitney. Playing with Sketches. Beverly, Rockport Publishers, 2014.

Using Other Senses to Draw

Blindly drawing is a very difficult task, it involves using all senses except for site to draw. Whitney Sherman states"Use the same technique to to take your mind away from what you think an object should look like and allow your hand to freely interpret shapes," (116). While drawing without looking, you have to use your memory to make something presentable.

Above, is the example shown in Playing with Sketches. The book used lettering rather than just normal drawing, however, since I am looking to improve my drawing skills, I chose to blindly draw.

Drawing from memory, while being very difficult, helps you gain a better understanding of the object you are drawing. "When looking at shapes we readily know, such as letter forms or faces in a slightly rearranged formations, we can observe new relationships in the imagery" (Sherman 116). Overall, I would recommend this exercise to anyone who like to gain a better understanding of a certain object like a face. Personally, while doing this exercise I close my eyes and do not lift my pen/pencil.

Do you think drawing an object blindly can help you draw that object overall better?

Bicknell, Sarah. Sherman, Whitney. Playing with Sketches. Beverly, Rockport Publishers, 2014.

The Culture Behind the Art

The Culture Behind the Art 

The origami art was originated from japan .The word "origami" comes from the Japanese language. "Ori" means folded and "kami" means paper. "Used as an inclusive term for all folding practices, regardless of their culture of origin. The goal is to transform a flat square sheet of paper into a finished sculpture through folding and sculpting techniques" (Shaffer 11).  Origami is the art of paper folding, which is often associated with Japanese culture.  Origami folders often use the Japanese word refers to designs which use cuts.

Folding pieces of paper was a valuable gift used in japan. "When origami was first practiced, however, it was a craft only for the elite. Japanese monks folded origami figures for religious purposes. Origami was also used in various formal ceremonies"(Shaffer 12).ceremonial paper folding were important, these models would act as a certificate of authenticity. As paper became more affordable, common people began making origami figures as gifts or creating folded cards and envelope. 

Can origami still carry that deeper and cultural meaning or was it lost due to its wide population throughout the whole world?

Shaffer, Jeremy. “Origami to Astonish and Amuse.” Amazon.com, 6 July 2001, www.amazon.com/Origami-Astonish-Amuse-Jeremy-Shafer

Drawing techniques: Get Into the Flow of Drawing

An important step in the drawing process is to loosen your hand and mind before you draw, in order to allow your drawing to be as creative as possible. Elaine Clayton gives a couple of techniques to loosen your mind, stating that "It is a way of activating the total mind as it works in unity..."

 All you need for this exercise is a blank piece of paper. Pretend that your pencil is a figure skater, and the paper, a frozen pond, drag the pencil across the paper continuously "skating" across the page. Play around with speed and pressure of your line. When you are done, try to identify any shapes you made. Here is my example of the exercise:

A second technique Elaine suggests is playing with line gradation, or the change from one type of line, to the complete opposite line; for example, light to dark. Here is my exercise:

These drawing warm-ups will help you to draw concisely, accurately, and intentionally. Do you have any warm-ups you do before you draw? Let me know if you have any, and thanks for reading!

Clayton, Elaine. Making Marks: Discover the Art of Intuitive Drawing. Atria Paperback, 2014.