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Technical Directive 27 October 2004 The First Three Steps TO CREATE ART, YOU GET AN IDEA AND THEN MAKE IT REAL FOR OTHERS. The idea comes first—then you do it. An artist selects a subject, decides how it should be as a drawing or painting, and pictures it done before getting started. The clearer the [...]
Technical Directive 26 October 2004 Mirrors and Reducing Glasses We’ve been using plumb lines and mirrors to help us draw accurately for centuries. A mirror image of a subject reverses it, doubles the distance, and gives us a fresh, new look. An accomplished portrait artist will use a mirror to help perfect the likeness of [...]
Technical Directive 23 October 2004 Measuring with a Stick To measure any length you see, compare it with another. One at a time, you can sight two dimensions along a stick, compare them and note the difference. You can compare a height and width, height and height or width and width. The margin of error [...]
Technical Directive 20 October 2004 Three Basic Principles The THREE BASIC PRINCIPLES are the broadest working principles for creating fine art: Relate a part to other parts and/or the whole. Always work from large to small. Cycle throughout the whole thing. These three principles are ways TO OBSERVE—to notice with a purpose. Used alone or [...]
Technical Directive 19 October 2004 Stable Point You will increase a drawing’s accuracy if you carefully align its parts. Aside from being less than entirely accurate in the first place, as we draw, various parts can shift about without our realizing it, causing all sorts of misalignments. All drawing errors can be remedied by pinning [...]
Technical Directive 18 October 2004 Direct Your Progress The director of a play sits in a seat far back from the stage to ensure the performance works from there. Drawings and paintings must pass the distance test too. In fact, many painters center their styles around this idea. Study the paintings of the great French [...]
Technical Directive 17 October 2004 A Rough Sketch A ROUGH SKETCH CAN BE A ROUGH PLAN UPON WHICH TO BUILD AN ACCURATE DRAWING. It’s easier to fit parts together on a plan than it is on blank paper. For a rough sketch at Mission: Renaissance, we rapidly sketch an overall impression of the subject, then [...]
Technical Directive 16 October 2004 Ovals Ovals help us depict circular objects like cups or vases. The proportions of ovals can vary. The easiest way to make an oval symmetrical (the same on both sides) is to flow it in. Continue circling it until you draw it exactly. Improve its curves and proportions each time [...]
Technical Directive 15 October 2004 Overall Proportions A subject has its overall proportions (its highest point compared to its widest). Regardless of the size, the proportions remain the same. Before begining a drawing, notice the overall proportions and decide on a size. Keep them in mind as you draw, or indicate them on your paper. [...]
Technical Directive 14 October 2004 Preparing to Sketch Seeing to Sketch One day in 1975, I was instructing a young man who, to put it mildly, had minimum drawing skills. But, he desperately wanted to learn. Rick was totally frustrated. Nothing I did helped. Then I asked myself this question: “When I draw, what do [...]
