Detailed observation

For the following drawings and sketches I choose to study horse chestnuts.  I started with some pencil sketches, as detailed as I could mixing colour pencil as well.  The aim here was to observe the shape and proportions accurately.  I choose pencil as it is a medium I am familiar with and also a good starting point for sketching.

I can only work with sharp pencils which made the shading and detailed lines sharper.

The next piece was a colour pencil drawing.  Here I tried to observe form as well as tone and texture.  I used many different colours to build up the green husk and for the chest nut itself, I varied reds, browns and some black.

 

 

I then move on to experiment with pen & watercolour.  This is medium that appeals to me.  I enjoy its translucent effects mixed with the detailed and contrasting black of the pen.

I found it difficult to obtain a smooth blend for the chestnut but enjoyed using the colours in a non uniform way for the husk and shadows.

Again, it was important to observe form and shape.

The drawing below was an attempt at using oil pastels.  This is the first time I have used oil pastels for a still life drawing and therefore quite a challenge.  I would say that this is more of an artistic interpretation than an accurate still life drawing but I am fairly pleased with the results.  I found it very difficult to draw details and work in fine details, oil pastels are just not meant for that, especially as these were quite a cheap brand.

I do, however, quite like the overall effect, and just the fact that it is free and expressive rather than detailed and precise.

Exercise Line drawing detail

For the following exercise I choose several pieces of fruit and vegetables that were in the kitchen.  I tried a couple of continuous line drawings in pencil just to loosen up and get in the flow of work.  I found that the more detail there was the easier it was to draw.  The pear, although extremely simple and almost bare of detail, was actually harder to draw than the pepper.  I think this is because shape and form are so important.  For the broccoli, I decided not to draw all the detail for each floret as I was worried it might ruin the whole drawing, I wasn’t confident it would enhance it in any way.

Exercise Getting tone and depth detail

For the exercise in tone and depth I choose to work from some fir cones, of which we have an abundance, in the garden.   These sketches below took a very long time to do and it was literally a case of building up tone slowly.  For the main image at the bottom I draw a very faint outline of the shape with an HB pencil, the rest of the drawing was made using soft pencils and graphite pencils.  I kept the soft pencils sharp and worked hard to get the depth using deep dark markings.  I had to take very small bits of putty rubber to erase some of the tone to create highlights.

I finished these drawings in several sittings, working on them for a while and then going back to them after a few days.  There is more tonal value from shading with softer pencils than from hatching and cross hatching.  This is due to the nature of the object and small detail rather than a conscious choice.

Research Point

Alwyn Crawshaw is an English watercolour artist who I have admired for many years.  A few years ago I was fortunate enough to visit his studio and meet him personally and to watch him work.  It was a great day and inspiring.  He immediately came to mind when asked to find an artist with a sketchy and expressive style.  I have several of his books and took some photos from these of his pencil sketches.

 

His watercolour paintings are soft and expressive, using colour to intimate shape and form.  I would love to be able to paint and sketch in his style one day.

The other artist contrasting this style is another favourite of mine, Georgia O’Keeffe.  Although she is very well known for her paintings, detailing flowers she also spent a lot of time drawing and painting bones and skulls and abstract flowers.  Her style compared to Crawshaw is rigid and defined.  It seems very controlled.

Check and log

Which drawing media did you find most effective to use, for which effects?

Sharp pencil and pen for detailed line work and some hatching and cross hatching.  A mixture of soft and hard pencils for creating tone and continuous tone and detail work.  Oil pastels produced a more expressive picture and were not particularly good for detail.

What sort of marks work well to create tone, pattern and texture? Make notes beside some sample marks.

At the beginning of this project I spent several days experimenting with different media creating tone, pattern and texture.  To avoid repeating myself the comments on these are with those photos.

Did you enjoy capturing details or are you more at home creating big broad brush sketches?

Both are enjoyable to me however I have reservations for them both equally.  I love the idea of loose, expressive brush strokes and enjoyed working in a less controlled style with the oil pastels.  However, I find it more difficult to produce something life like with this style of sketching.  I do enjoy drawing in detail but unfortunately I do not have enough patience to spend hours and hours on one drawing and tend to want to move on to another project rather than finishing detail.

Look at the composition of the drawings you have done in the project.  Make some sketches and notes about how you could improve your composition.

I have not really thought about composition for these sketches as they are isolated or separate on the page.  I have tried to focus on the detail or mark making rather than composition.  Sorry.