For this week\u2019s project we\u2019re going to lay the groundwork for drawing portraits during the final week of class (April 28-May 5). Our primarily goal will not be an accurate likeness of our sitter, but to learn the structure, planes, relationships, anatomy, and proportions of the human head, neck, and shoulders. Paradoxically, the more we attend to those objectives, the better the likeness will naturally and inevitably be.<\/p>\n
We started this semester talking about the importance of overcoming preconceptions<\/em><\/strong>\u2014seeing things as they are, not as we expect them to be (or hope for them to be, or imagine them to be, or remember them to be).<\/p>\n Drawing a plant, for instance, allows a certain amount of distortion but it can still look like a terrific drawing of a plant. When drawing the head, however, any misstep or misproportion is immediately apparent. There\u2019s probably no image in the world that we know better (or think we do) and have more preconceptions about (and anxieties, expectations, etc.) than the human head and face\u2014especially our own–so that drawing the head is the ultimate challenge for overcoming preconceptions.<\/p>\n This is both good and bad\u2014good in the sense that the \u201cfeedback\u201d you\u2019re getting from your drawing is instantaneous and beneficial (if you persist), but bad because we don\u2019t enjoy seeing ourselves or our model in a bad light, either as the artist or the image in the drawing. Nevertheless, the ability to create a reasonably well-drawn head, much less a likeness, can be one of the great and empowering rewards of drawing.<\/p>\n The main drawing this week will be a drawing from another artist\u2014a copy\u2014as accurately, faithfully, and intentionally as possible; not just mimicking their work (although that\u2019s a large part of it) but seeking knowledge and understanding<\/em><\/strong> in the drawing decisions that they made by following in their footsteps.<\/p>\n More on that below under Drawing from Another Artist Instructions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n If you\u2019d like to get a leg up on drawing from another artist and the practice of portrait drawing in general\u2014including the portrait drawing we\u2019re going to be doing next week– I strongly urge you to do some studies (warm-ups), as follows.<\/p>\n I was getting ready to record tutorials on each of the features for this project, but since it\u2019s a popular topic I decided to search the internet and see what else was out there. I was pleased to find these tutorials about each of the facial features\u2014eyes, nose, mouth, and ears (and hair!) by an artist named Stan Prokopenko, or Proko for short. I was startled that he makes the same points that I do about this topic, in the same order, and even uses many of the same metaphors. They\u2019re widely known and shared, of course, but he and I present them in very similar ways (as does Professor Mullen and many others).<\/p>\n Best of all, his production values are much better than anything I could come up with, with animated illustrations and so forth.<\/p>\n Each facial feature (except for the hair) is divided into two videos, one on understanding the structure of each of these features and one a step-by-step demonstration. Don\u2019t shortcut the structure videos. They\u2019re only 6-8 minutes and have very useful, practical information on how to draw these features better.<\/p>\n Your assignment<\/strong> (should you choose to accept it), is to watch the two videos about the eye, for instance, and after his step-by-step, draw an eye following his lead. You could also stop and start the video as you draw along.<\/p>\n Then do the same for as many of the features as you\u2019d like (but I recommend doing all of them).<\/p>\n I suggest you use pencil on a sheet of copy paper, or if you have your 9×12\u201d drawing pad use that. Make your study 2-3 times larger than life size\u00a0 so that you have room to elaborate the details.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=u6-bCgRmcko<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=TtrqSIhZR_Y<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nWZZ3SFmDS8&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=3<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=lb1WrQp2EAI&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=4<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Xq3aHSuKRyg&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=5<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=N0vWyKyYv4o&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=6<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Yqgw_iMWwlw&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=7<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ncfm_3UnLKE&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=8<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ncfm_3UnLKE&list=PLtG4P3lq8RHHFhiyjXP4UT-yUo7pC13GQ&index=8<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Please submit any of these that you choose to do anytime this coming week, for feedback, and no later than Tuesday, April 28th, along with your Drawing from Another Artist.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Choosing a Drawing to Work From Go to the page titled Master Portrait Drawings<\/strong>, review them, and select the one you\u2019d like to copy. You can either work off a screen or from a print. The screen has the advantage of being able to zoom in for more detail.<\/p>\n You can also choose an artist of your own if you prefer, but note it has to be a frontal view of the face, and needs to be approved by me before you start<\/em><\/strong>. We\u2019re working from this angle since it\u2019s a good basic map of the features in relation to one another and to the head.<\/p>\n Finally, you might want to choose a drawing that looks like the one you\u2019d like to do next week, either of yourself or another model.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Media<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n All drawings will be pencil on either copy paper or 9×12\u201d drawing paper, but I’ve included some exceptions in my notes on the master drawings. I’m always open to any questions or suggestions for media you might have.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Demo<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ll be recording a demonstration for this project, but please refer to the following guidelines.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Format, Dimensions, and Borders<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Under each of the reproductions on the Master Portrait Drawings<\/strong> page, I’ve included the dimensions of the rectangle you should use for that image. They’re all small enough to fit on a piece of copy paper but can also fit on 9 x 12 drawing paper. Either way, please center your rectangle on the paper.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Step by Step Instructions 1. Begin with a very light schematic drawing<\/strong>, taking into account not only the head but where<\/em><\/strong> it’s located within the rectangle (i.e., composition). This is a significant lesson, since one of the pitfalls in portrait drawing is not anchoring the head to the rectangle, and, by extension, its implied relationship to the figure as a whole.<\/p>\n No matter how proficient your drawing per se<\/em>, a poor or neglectful composition will diminish it significantly.<\/p>\n A reminder about schematic drawing<\/strong>\u2014this is the stage to take your time and be very critical<\/em> of the placement and proportion of forms, including negative spaces<\/em><\/strong>. We\u2019re naturally inclined to avoid the added work of erasing and starting again, but with so little invested and so much at stake, this is the stage to do that most effectively and efficiently.<\/p>\n 2.<\/strong> Once the schematic drawing is correctly located and proportioned, begin to build up the image however you like. I recommend keeping all areas of the drawing moving forward together and to avoid finishing any one area in advance of the others. This will help you keep the drawing more unified and balanced.<\/p>\n 3.<\/strong> Your goal is to make a drawing as much like the original as possible,<\/strong> from its proportions and structure to the artist\u2019s unique style and technique, being especially sensitive to (and learning from) their touch with contours, hatching, line quality, line weight, and so forth.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n While you’re not expected to match their hatching stroke for stroke, of course, aim for the same resolution (the number of hatches per inch) and by all means the same direction\/s, tempo, lengths,\u00a0 line qualities, the way the hatching fills in shapes, etc.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This drawing is due on Blackboard, along with your self-assessment,\u00a0 no later than 4 p.m. EST, on Tuesday, April 28th.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For this week\u2019s project we\u2019re going to lay the groundwork for drawing portraits during the final week of class (April 28-May 5). Our primarily goal will not be an accurate likeness of our sitter, but to learn the structure, planes, relationships, anatomy, and proportions of the human head, neck, and shoulders. Paradoxically, the more we … Continue reading “Fourth Assignment \/ Portrait Drawing, Part I”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1042,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-841","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/841","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1042"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/841\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/visual-arts-1101-spring-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Drawing from Another Artist<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Optional (but Highly Recommended) Warm-Up Drawings<\/strong><\/h3>\n
But at the very least please watch the following videos.<\/span><\/h5>\n
Eye Structure<\/strong> \/ 8 minutes<\/h5>\n
Eye Step by Step<\/strong> \/ 6 minutes<\/h5>\n
Nose Structure<\/strong> \/ 7 minutes<\/h5>\n
Nose Step by Step<\/strong> \/ 6 minutes<\/h5>\n
Lips Structure<\/strong> \/ 5.5 minutes<\/h5>\n
Lips Step by Step<\/strong> \/ 8.5 minutes<\/h5>\n
Ears Structure<\/strong> \/ 6 minutes<\/h5>\n
Ears Step by Step<\/strong> \/ 8 minutes<\/h5>\n
Hair<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Drawing from Another Artist Instructions<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nDue Date<\/strong><\/h3>\n