These past 2 years I’ve been working intently and almost exclusively on foundation skills: ie. traditional drawing and painting. Part of that traditional training is regular studies of the old masters.
I recently got the privilege to see master sculptor Auguste Rodin’s work at the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco, CA. Since I have way more traditional drawings and paintings then digital/commercial work I’d like to start regularly posting sketchbook pages and other foundational studies.
“Rodin Study #1″, pen, marker and white pastel on toned paper.
“Rodin Study #2″, pen, marker and white pastel on toned paper.
This tutorial is an introduction to figure quick sketch drawing. Quick sketch is a name for short, gestural drawing from life or figure model. The poses can generally range from 1-5 minutes. Topics covered will be the fundamentals of gesture drawing, laying-in the figure and an introduction to the Reilly Method. Figure quick sketch is a key fundamental skill in creating effective drawings so let’s get right into it.
The approach to Reilly Method I use is a synthesis of three teachers: 1. Sergio Sanchez, 2. Rhaban Canas and 3. a touch of Steve Huston. When I first started to study Reilly Method, the first thing I was taught was how to properly lay-in the torso. The torso is important because it is the largest mass of the body and it is where all the limbs and extremities originate. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will use a front view of a female torso in a relatively static pose. Since the torso is so important, I will spend some time breaking down the steps of the lay-in before we move to light and shade.
Step 1: Capture the ribcage
The torso is the largest mass of the body and the ribcage is the largest mass of the torso. We want to lay-in or capture it’s shape and gesture. Since this pose is static and up and down, I am able to simplify and capture the ribcage into a rectangular shape. Of course, the figure is dynamic and the shape of the ribcage can vary depending on the pose and the angle of the viewer.
This is the second part of this Guerriilla Sketch mini series taped during an afternoon of wine tasting at Orfila Winery in sunny San Diego, CA.
“Guerrilla Sketching” is the art of quick and covert sketching of a live subject in a public place. The video is a demo of how to draw a moving target, or subject, in this case, a 2 year old boy moving around the room. Click here to check out the first part of this series on Youtube, or view the last blog post. For more sketches and high res sketchbook scans, please visit the sketchbook gallery.
Cool Soundtrack by Japanese DJ group Nujabes, feat. rhymes by Cise Star.
Guerrilla Sketching” is the art of quick and covert drawing of a live subject in a public place. My favorite places are cafes, restaurants and airports. This video was shot at Orfila Winery in San Diego, CA during an afternoon of wine tasting. Cool soundtrack by legendary Japanese rock group, Dragon Ash.
Quick sketch is a short, 3-5 minute drawing used for the study and practice of key drawing fundamentals. The techniques used in this tutorial are derived from the Reilly Method. Generally, quick sketch is done using charcoal on paper, but ballpoint pen makes a good substitution. Being able to draw heads well is a vital fundamental skill to have, so let’s get started.
The subject of our demo will be “Beat” Takeshi Kitano, the legendary Japanese filmmaker. This picture works really well for this demonstration because of the high contrast lighting and clearly defined shadow pattern. We’ll get into shading later, but first let’s start with the basics.
Step 1: Beginning the Lay-in
OK, so this is pretty much how ALL of my head drawings start and how a lot of artists approach head drawing. At this stage I try to observe the key landmarks that will guide the construction of our drawing. For more info on some of the key landmarks of the head, check out the last portrait painting tutorial.
