722x800 |
640x709 |
108x120 |
75x75
Mike Sibley
Comment
Posted May.1st, 2017, viewed 9 times
EXERCISE 1
Good attempts. There are some gaps so try shading down with decreasing pressure and then, altering the angle very slightly, shade back up with increasing pressure. If you don't alter the angle, you'll draw directly over the existing lines and might make the problem worse by reinforcing them.
You've achieved a smooth transition through the tones. Hopefully,you were aware of your black increasing in solidity and intensity as you shaded over it, although your blacks could have been even darker.
Your blended version is looking good too, although you were probably aware of your black decreasing in value. That's to be expected because blending removes a certain amount of graphite. Conversely, layering with a harder grade removes any white content and, in the case of the blacks, breaks up the large graphite grains, spreads them more evenly, and pushes them deeper into your paper - but it doesn't remove anything at all.
EXERCISE 2
This is a good result but your black corner is not as dark as it could have been. I can't stress too often that strong darks are what give a drawing impact; they broaden the range of values available to you; and because they generate much more contrast, the vastly increase the three-dimensional sense of the drawing.
Your drawing is free of faults - well done! - but, just to run through the common ones...
If you just stop the line it will finish with a blunt square end, and that and will not blend away. Second, if you shade up and down - draw each line one way and then immediately back up again - the termination of the line will not only be blunt, it will also have a double layer of graphite. No amount of blending will smooth out the end of such a line. And if you return to the beginning before you've complete the taper you will create a hooked end.
These faults result in the shading being in a series of steps instead of smoothly changing from black to white.
Apart from your lack of good strong values, your shading uses tapered lines throughout with no visible steps at all.
Practise lifting your pencil clear as you terminate each line. Just a short distance of decreasing pressure until it lifts clear is all that is needed, and that tapered stroke is fundamental to good drawing. Practice will pay dividends in the long run.
Also, when you have time, try drawing a series of lines that have tapers on both ends. Imagine drawing a flattened arc - gently drop your pencil down on to your paper as you draw to create the start taper, then draw your line, and finally gently decrease the pressure and lift your pencil clear of the paper to create the end taper. This is something we'll be returning too soon, so practice now will make that week much easier.
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