Technique Project #7: Squaring Up
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Supplies Needed
Fine Point Sharpie or other permanent black marker with a fine tip (micron pens are also amazing) A magazine photo portrait (as large as the page preferably) or a photograph of high resolution printed on 8x10 paper Drawing Pencils & Ruler |
Goal of this project
To learn the technique for enlarging images using relative measuring.
To learn the technique for enlarging images using relative measuring.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. I would encourage you to attempt a 1 to 2 ratio for this first attempt at "Squaring Up".
2. Choose a photograph or magazine photo . Using your ruler and fine point sharpie marker, measure it out at one inch intervals on all sides of the photo.
3. Use your ruler and fine point sharpie marker to create a grid on the photo.
4. On your paper create a centered box that is 2 times the size of the photo you are enlarging. If you measured the photo at 1 inch intervals, that would mean that this new box would be at 2 inch intervals. For example: 4 inch by 4 inch photograph would be an 8 inch by 8 inch enlargement for the drawing.
5. Use your ruler to create a grid in pencil within the box on your drawing paper.
6. Now use the photograph with grid as a guide to draw the shapes within your new (larger) grid on the drawing paper. I recommend drawing very lightly with a 2H pencil.
7. Take your time. This is drawing and even though you are using a photo and grid as a guide, you still do need your attention.
8. If need be, you can draw a diagonal line across your squares in the grid to help give more relative clues for drawing the shapes within the boxes correctly.
9. This skill is incredibly helpful when creating more complex compositions or for other types of drawing & painting projects. We will use this skill/technique more throughout the course.
1. I would encourage you to attempt a 1 to 2 ratio for this first attempt at "Squaring Up".
2. Choose a photograph or magazine photo . Using your ruler and fine point sharpie marker, measure it out at one inch intervals on all sides of the photo.
3. Use your ruler and fine point sharpie marker to create a grid on the photo.
4. On your paper create a centered box that is 2 times the size of the photo you are enlarging. If you measured the photo at 1 inch intervals, that would mean that this new box would be at 2 inch intervals. For example: 4 inch by 4 inch photograph would be an 8 inch by 8 inch enlargement for the drawing.
5. Use your ruler to create a grid in pencil within the box on your drawing paper.
6. Now use the photograph with grid as a guide to draw the shapes within your new (larger) grid on the drawing paper. I recommend drawing very lightly with a 2H pencil.
7. Take your time. This is drawing and even though you are using a photo and grid as a guide, you still do need your attention.
8. If need be, you can draw a diagonal line across your squares in the grid to help give more relative clues for drawing the shapes within the boxes correctly.
9. This skill is incredibly helpful when creating more complex compositions or for other types of drawing & painting projects. We will use this skill/technique more throughout the course.
Technique Project #8: Abstract Portrait Painting
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Supplies Needed
Your Acrylic Paints and Brushes Your Painting Pallet Water Cups Spray Bottle Paint Rags One of your Blind Contour Drawings Drawing Pencils Ruler Tracing Paper Gesso Painters Tape |
Goal of this project
To practice our three-brush painting technique and apply it to an abstract portrait.
This will increase your color mixing and blending confidence.
To practice our three-brush painting technique and apply it to an abstract portrait.
This will increase your color mixing and blending confidence.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Prepare a piece of Rives BFK (at minimum the size of your blind contour drawings). You could do a much larger painting as some students choose to do, but I would recommend using the "Squaring Up" method to enlarge your painting. It takes longer than the tracing paper transfer we do in this video, but you get a larger painting surface out of it, so it depends on your preference.
2. Select one of your Blind Contour Drawings.
3. Use a softer pencil (at least a 2B or 4B) and tracing paper to trace your blind contour drawing.
4. Flip the tracing paper so that the side you just drew on is face down on prepared Rives BFK.
5. As you press down your pencil to trace from the other side, the previously drawn lines will transfer onto your new surface.
**Please note: If you like the way the image looked previously and you don't want it "reversed" then you just have to trace both sides so that the graphite would transfer. Basically, any graphite line you draw can be transferred.
6. Once you have your image transferred, I recommend choosing a color scheme for the foreground & background. I recommend attempting a painting that uses the contrast of warm & cool colors. For example: I want my figure to be warm colors and my background to be cool colors.
7. After you have selected your color scheme, lay down a wash to begin your base layer of painting. To make your colors pop, I recommend using a complimentary color. Yes, this will literally be painting a wash underpainting that is the OPPOSITE of your chosen top layer color scheme. Washing the ground in a complimentary color is a great way to layer paint so that your eyes dance and vibrate with interest. We don't always 'know' consciously the layers of paint we are seeing, but they make a HUGE difference in the final piece and the rich visual interest in the layers of paint.
8. Begin painting in each shape. I recommend using a transition (just like we practiced in the Three-Brush Painting Technique) transitioning from one warm color to another in either the figure or the ground, depending on which you chose. If the background is one shape, paint one large transition (hint: use your larger brushes!) from one cool color to another, again, depending on which color scheme you chose.
9. Paint in each shape until the abstract portrait is complete. If you feel displeased with a particular shape, blend, color, etc. No worries, just paint over it with some very opaque paint! That is the beauty of the two way street of painting. You can keep going!
10. Check out the slideshow below for examples of other student work on this project!
1. Prepare a piece of Rives BFK (at minimum the size of your blind contour drawings). You could do a much larger painting as some students choose to do, but I would recommend using the "Squaring Up" method to enlarge your painting. It takes longer than the tracing paper transfer we do in this video, but you get a larger painting surface out of it, so it depends on your preference.
2. Select one of your Blind Contour Drawings.
3. Use a softer pencil (at least a 2B or 4B) and tracing paper to trace your blind contour drawing.
4. Flip the tracing paper so that the side you just drew on is face down on prepared Rives BFK.
5. As you press down your pencil to trace from the other side, the previously drawn lines will transfer onto your new surface.
**Please note: If you like the way the image looked previously and you don't want it "reversed" then you just have to trace both sides so that the graphite would transfer. Basically, any graphite line you draw can be transferred.
6. Once you have your image transferred, I recommend choosing a color scheme for the foreground & background. I recommend attempting a painting that uses the contrast of warm & cool colors. For example: I want my figure to be warm colors and my background to be cool colors.
7. After you have selected your color scheme, lay down a wash to begin your base layer of painting. To make your colors pop, I recommend using a complimentary color. Yes, this will literally be painting a wash underpainting that is the OPPOSITE of your chosen top layer color scheme. Washing the ground in a complimentary color is a great way to layer paint so that your eyes dance and vibrate with interest. We don't always 'know' consciously the layers of paint we are seeing, but they make a HUGE difference in the final piece and the rich visual interest in the layers of paint.
8. Begin painting in each shape. I recommend using a transition (just like we practiced in the Three-Brush Painting Technique) transitioning from one warm color to another in either the figure or the ground, depending on which you chose. If the background is one shape, paint one large transition (hint: use your larger brushes!) from one cool color to another, again, depending on which color scheme you chose.
9. Paint in each shape until the abstract portrait is complete. If you feel displeased with a particular shape, blend, color, etc. No worries, just paint over it with some very opaque paint! That is the beauty of the two way street of painting. You can keep going!
10. Check out the slideshow below for examples of other student work on this project!
Design Challenge #4: Painting in Value
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Goal of this project
To create a "value map" studying the shapes of light and dark that make up the soft gradient transitions in a portrait. Learn to translate color into black and white painting. Continuing your development of the three-brush blending technique by painting wet-into-wet. |
Supplies Needed
Your X-Acto Knife and/or Scissors A magazine photo portrait (as large as the page preferably) or a photograph of high resolution printed on 8x10 paper Your visual journal Your drawing pencils Rubber Cement Black and white acrylic paint Your paint pallet, paint rags, paint cups, water spray bottle Your set of acrylic paint brushes |
Visual Art Vocabulary
Value Map- Creating a map that is made of closed shapes to show the breaks and shifts in values (light & dark). This map will often remind you of a paint by number.
The shapes will reflect the surface of the subject matter. As you practice this skill, you will notice greater sensitivity to observing and recreating subtle value shifts.
Value Map- Creating a map that is made of closed shapes to show the breaks and shifts in values (light & dark). This map will often remind you of a paint by number.
The shapes will reflect the surface of the subject matter. As you practice this skill, you will notice greater sensitivity to observing and recreating subtle value shifts.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Locate a portrait photo of highest resolution possible. Choose a color portrait as we will be practicing translating values (we will take the full color photo and translate a portion of it into grayscale, black and white). I prefer to use photos from magazines as they are large and often show nice contrasts between value differences (light & dark).
2. Using the rubber cement technique of dry contact, glue the portrait into your visual journal.
3. Create a box that will be the slice of the portrait you will convert to black and white, grayscale painting. I recommend choosing to do at least between 1 to 2 inches by 3 to 4 inches.
4. Set up your painting pallet with only black and white acrylic paint.
5. It can be helpful to do a value key (just like we did in pencil as our chiaroscuro gradient) in paint, setting your eyes to seeing the subtle changes in a painted grayscale. Some students really enjoy painting a black and white grayscale gradient before attempting this project.
6. Draw lightly in pencil lines to differentiate the value changes within your box on the portrait. These shapes will always be closed shapes. We are breaking down each color into a shape area. Basically you are creating a paint by numbers style map to guide your paint brush later.
7. Begin mixing your values and painting them in. You can check the area around the box to test and see if your values are as close as possible. Remember, your paint will always dry about 15% darker than what it appears to be wet.
8. Paint, paint, paint until you fill in your whole box! Check out how you just translated a photograph into black and white painting!
9. This project is a great way of practicing honing your value painting skills. You can vamp on it by grabbing some more photos or magazine pictures and practice by translating particular areas of them into gray scale or into blue scale or into red scale!
1. Locate a portrait photo of highest resolution possible. Choose a color portrait as we will be practicing translating values (we will take the full color photo and translate a portion of it into grayscale, black and white). I prefer to use photos from magazines as they are large and often show nice contrasts between value differences (light & dark).
2. Using the rubber cement technique of dry contact, glue the portrait into your visual journal.
3. Create a box that will be the slice of the portrait you will convert to black and white, grayscale painting. I recommend choosing to do at least between 1 to 2 inches by 3 to 4 inches.
4. Set up your painting pallet with only black and white acrylic paint.
5. It can be helpful to do a value key (just like we did in pencil as our chiaroscuro gradient) in paint, setting your eyes to seeing the subtle changes in a painted grayscale. Some students really enjoy painting a black and white grayscale gradient before attempting this project.
6. Draw lightly in pencil lines to differentiate the value changes within your box on the portrait. These shapes will always be closed shapes. We are breaking down each color into a shape area. Basically you are creating a paint by numbers style map to guide your paint brush later.
7. Begin mixing your values and painting them in. You can check the area around the box to test and see if your values are as close as possible. Remember, your paint will always dry about 15% darker than what it appears to be wet.
8. Paint, paint, paint until you fill in your whole box! Check out how you just translated a photograph into black and white painting!
9. This project is a great way of practicing honing your value painting skills. You can vamp on it by grabbing some more photos or magazine pictures and practice by translating particular areas of them into gray scale or into blue scale or into red scale!
Art Talk #4: Critique Doesn't Have
to be Critical
to be Critical
Watch the video for this Art Talk Lesson!
You can review the slides from this Art Talk here at your own pace!
