Polka dots
Posted: July 28, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 4 CommentsStart with the spine. I learned that from Melanie Reim at a workshop in Santo Domingo. If you get the position of the spine right then it’s easy to position the rest of the body. And though it may look like this woman had some type of surgery all down her back, it was really just the starting line of my sketch. Who needs a life drawing class when you have the beach?
Shari:
I have a question. When do you use shading, and when do you cross hatch? Can you use them both in the same drawing or do you have to do one or the other and stick with it?
Joan
p.s. We’ve been to the beach lately, but I’ve been afraid to sketch the people. Next time I will.
Hi Joan. Sorry for the slow reply… but the answer is really simple.
I use cross hatching when I am using a pen and shading when I am using a pencil. But these days I hardly ever use a pencil with shading because I end up making a mess. I probably wouldn’t add pencil shading to a pen drawing either. I usually stick with one or the other.
I learned something similar from an art teacher. Draw the chest cavity and the pelvic cavity getting the orientation right. From there, then the limbs and head are positioned.
That’s exactly it Mike. And each part of the body was a geometric form with sides. Thinking like that helps me a lot when I am drawing people. That makes them more three-dimensional too.