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Human figuring drawing
January 20, 2020
Part 1: Multiple poses for studying proportion and mass of the body
Gestural Drawings
Sample 1, 2 & 3: Canson grey papers(S1,S2), Manila paper(S3), HB/3B pencils, Conte sticks, no erasers used (5 mins each)
I find this part of the program most challenging since I need to finish my drawings quickly, and I was not allowed to use an eraser. I choose to draw the model very large as it can fill up the entire page because it is easier to do so. The body gesture can be clearly demonstrated by amplifying every part of them. Even though some of the body parts are poorly drawn, but the at least the outline of the model is shown and the proportion is correct. When I draw them, I like to begin with putting a central line on the paper, so that I can measure the left and right ratio in my mind. Then I use circles and lines to place the head, the shoulder neck point, the hip and other protruding bones. Those bones help me to better locate the body parts and connect them all together. When I assemble the body parts. I use circles and ovals to make the body line looks smooth. I think I develop great skill from this part of the program.
Short poses
Sample 1: Canson grey paper, 4B/5B pencils, compresses charcoal (when drawing the darker lines), no eraser used (15 mins)
Sample 2: Manila , 4B/5B pencils, compresses charcoal (when drawing the darker lines), no eraser used (15 mins)
Fifteen minutes is slightly longer and it allows me to put more details onto my drawings. I spent almost 2 minutes for each of the samples to "stare" at the model and measure out the proportion and the ratio of her. After my measuring, I find that the model is six-heads and her upper body and her lower body are in the ratio of 4:6. It is quite evenly divided. Like usual, I draw the head and the general construction lines first, then I divide the other parts by putting the axis lines of action. After the brief outline of the model is shown, I put thinner and specific constructions on the paper. While I draw, I have to be very careful that all the body parts are drawn fully. The muscles should be more rounded and outstanding. This took me a lot of time since it is difficult to make my drawings to look more vivid. My last step of drawing the outline is to improve the model's head. I usually draw a circle at first, just to locate the position of the head. Then I use more certain lines to outline the head. I employ the egg and ball concept in Sample 2. With the help of this concept, the facial features are better located.
Part 2: Completed Drawings with rendering the human figure
Sample 1: Canson grey paper, chalk pastel (green and blue), Compressed charcoal, 3B/4B/5B/6B pencils, rendering stick, Plastic rubber (30 mins)
I tried to use different materials in this part. I experimented with coloured chalk pastels. Chalk pastels are not easy to work with. They can be very messy. I apply the pastels on drawing the towels. I tried to use very straight lines to show the wrinkles of the towels. I started well with using the material since I drew very light, but as I dug deep, the effect was unexpected. It turned out pretty bad. I think it was because I used the blunt and think parts. The density and the lines are both poorly drawn in this picture. I think next time when I use this material again, I should not press the pastels too hard, so that the powder messes up the image. Overall, I think I did well on outlining the model. Through the previous practices, I develop skills to measure the proportion properly. In this picture, the head is a little bit too big in size and the stool is not drawn correctly. They make the model look shorter than in reality, but the body was drawn to the proper ratio. Besides, I am also not satisfied with my shading, they are scattered and loose. The chiaroscuro is not shown in this picture and they are not fuse with each other. I found out those problems as areas to improve. In the following pieces, those problems are develop and the technique of scrubbing the shadows is employed.
Final 1: Thin black cardboard, HB pencil, Chalk pastel(white and black), crayon(white), plastic rubber, rendering stick (30 mins)
There are many different materials used on this drawing. I chose a piece of squared black card board paper particularly to differentiate with my other drawing. I pick this one as one of my final pieces for the midyear because it is completed well and the problems from before are avoided.
I started sketching the model with a HB pencil. The pencil mark is very light but it can still be seen on the paper. All of guidelines are done by using pencil since it is reversible. When the model sat down, she is 5 headed which is 1 less head than she stands. The pose oblique. I could barely see the other side of the model and a towel covered a leg of the model. The model is pretty relaxed, and she has a hunchback. Both of her hands are drooped on her legs. Her legs are slightly parted from each other. Her neck leaned forward, so that her head is look forward. I contoured the model carefully and closely compare the ratio of the upper body and the lower body.
I re-contour my drawing by using the white chalk pastel. I realized that I should use the white crayons to contour the outline because the power of the chalk flies everywhere on the paper. Luckily, the powder is easy to be blown away. I find that the crayons have a oily texture, so that they stay on the paper well. I use the white and black chalk pastel to fill in the chiaroscuro. Black chalk helps to rectify the parts where white is drawn out. I blend both colours with the blending stick. I really like the blurry effect of my drawing. It kind of smooths out the shading and make the image to look more realistic . It also makes the skin to look like as it has a glow.
Final 2: Manila paper, 3B/4B/5B/6B pencils, 4B soft charcoal pencil, plastic rubber, rendering stick, Willow Charcoal (shading) (45mins)
This is the best one among all of my drawings. I apply all the techniques used previously, a combination of the egg and ball concept, comparing, chiaroscuro, etc. This time I make sure the head and the body are in the right proportion and the legs are slightly thinner. I add the stool to demonstrate the entire pose of the model.
The model sits on the stool and faces me with her body facing slightly to the right. Since I could not draw the eyes properly when they are opened, so I draw them closed. The model's nose is quite flat and her mouth is a bit thick. I literally tried my best to draw the face features, but they do not look quite like the model in real life. One of her hands is holding on the stool and the other is on her leg. The shoulder is tilted so that the bone there is obvious. Her legs are crossed over. This is the most challenging part of this drawing. I spent 10 minutes to change the legs to the right position.
The shadow of this picture involves a lot of contrasts. The shoulder and the hip are the darkest spots and the centre of the leg and the belly are the lightest since the light projects from the left of the model which is from where my position was. I sat close to the window at the left side of the room. The addition of shadows and highlights portray the 3-D image of the model. The image look more "round" instead of flat.
I think I have done well on this final piece. I, personally, am pretty satisfied with how everything turned out with this image. One thing I should be aware of next time is that there are some awkward shading on the drawing, for example, the highlight of the front foot. It is too white because I erased some of the pencil marks by using the plastic rubber. I think I should keep practice how to shade.
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