Like any other facets or factors in life, one need to know the basics on a certain subject or task at hand – and learning to draw is no way different from that. Ever wondered how Picasso produced such wonderful paintings? How about the magnificent painting of Michael Angelo on the ceiling of the Sistene Chapel? No pressure there! But of course you don’t need to be expert in just a snap of a finger. Drawing takes a lot of time to develop but as long as you have the passion and patience to keep on pursuing this dream, then there won’t be any problems.
The purpose of this book is to help you understand and start your passion to draw. You may not have an innate talent for drawing, but acquiring the knowledge and putting it into practice plus enthusiasm and determination will definitely develop your targeted skill.
Since the day you were able to hold a pencil, you are already starting to draw but those scribbles did not have any meaning to you at all. You just want to doodle and be fascinated with the colors and shape that the pencil produce on the paper. But as time goes by, your interpretation of these drawings mature and from careless scribbles, you are now more aware of using some dots, lines or shapes. The more you are exposed to the environment, the more you get to know about the different strokes, curves and dimensions; it becomes complicated which blinds you to be artistic. And this might be another reason why you are having a hard time to draw. No need to worry as we are going to let your inner artistry out in the open.
Now, before we begin with the step by step guidelines on how to draw you need to know that basic tools in order to start drawing. I have listed some of the things you need to get started:
Pencil. As a first timer, you will have to deal with a lot of erasures in your attempt to draw figures. Sure, nowadays, there are pens out in the market for drawing and some manufacturers are producing ink erasers but I’ve got to tell you this, ink erasers are not erasers per se. Typically they just masticate your paper until the ink is gone and believe me, you’ll notice that your paper becomes thinner to the point where if you’ll draw on the exact spot and erase it again, your paper will be torn. So stick with the use of a pencil. No.2 pencil is popular as it is the regular pencil we use since our toddler years. It is not that hard and not that black. You see, pencils are graded based on the hardness and the blackness of the lead used. So as a beginner, use the No.2 pencil first and when you progress, get yourself a 4B or a 5B pencil.
Eraser. Of course, everybody makes mistakes and in order to correct your drawing, you need a trusty eraser to help you correct them. There are different types of eraser you could find at a local craft or book store but pick a rubber one. You might want to consider the size of the eraser as well.
Working Area. Look for a working area which you are most comfortable with. It must be with the proper lighting so if it gets dark when you draw, you’ll be able to see it clearly. Design your desk the way you want it and think of how it will inspire you to sit down and practice what you’ll learn from this book.
Ruler. An ordinary 12-inch ruler is fine as you’ll not use it that much.
Paper. You can use standard bond paper for your artwork or if I were to recommend a better alternative, purchase a sketchbook. The purpose of the sketchbook is it will be your collection of drawings and it can serve as a record of your progress.
Wait! I know you are excited to start the process but it is also essential to know the basic elements of a drawing. This shall be quick. Below are the basic elements to ponder:
Line. Everyone will agree that line is the basic form or element of any type of drawing. But did you know that in reality or what we call the real world, line does not exist? Because it is considered as two-dimensional (the height and the width). If we incorporate line in our drawing, line separate two areas from each other but in reality it is a surface of a plane. Another example is in the 2D world, we call four lines connected on all ends, a square but in a 3D world, we call it a cube.
Shape. There are no further explanations for this as shape is always presented by connecting or linking 2 or more lines. It is basically formed by lines.
Proportion. Proportion is the measurement of your subject and for our topic, the body figure. It dictates the average or standard size of the parts of the body figure such as lower limbs are longer than your upper limbs or a female torso is thinner than a male one.
Perspective. It is the figment of your imagination or simply the illusion which make distant objects look smaller while closer objects look bigger.
Shadow. Creating a shadow in your drawing will add a realistic feature on it.