Pencil drawing basics. Nine Fundamental Laws of Drawing

You will need

• - paper;
• - simple pencils:
• - eraser;
• - postcards;
• - dishes and other simple shaped items;
• - plaster models.

Instructions

Start mastering life drawing skills by looking at other people's drawings. It can be Greeting Cards with cartoon characters, illustrations for children's books, reproductions of drawings by famous artists, etc. Try a simple picture. Analyze what parts the image consists of, what geometric figure this or that element resembles, at what angle the fragments are located to each other, establish the ratio of sizes. Draw first hard pencil, and remove erroneous lines with an eraser.

After you learn how to copy images from pictures, move on to drawing three-dimensional objects of simple shape. For example, it could be an opaque cup. Place it at some distance from you and examine it carefully. Set the ratio of height and width, see at what distance from the bottom the handle is and what shape it is. It is best to place the cup so that one side is very well lit and the other is in the shade. Look carefully at where the border between light and shadow lies. Notice that the side in shadow appears darker. Take a closer look to see if there is a light glare on the front wall. As a rule, it is located on the most convex part. Please also note that the opposite wall is slightly visible from above, and the circle at an angle appears to be an oval.

Draw a cup. Start portraying her with vertical line. Set aside height, swipe horizontal lines through marks. Set aside the width on them Draw a rectangle. Draw ovals on the top and bottom of the axes. Not all of the lower one will be visible, but only that part of it that is located closer to the viewer. Draw the thickness of the walls. Mark a place for the handle and draw its outline. Use shading to convey the shape of the cup. The strokes can be either vertical or arc-shaped. In the first case, the shading will be thicker in dark places. Try to draw a few more opaque objects of simple shape, then move on to drawing glass vases, glasses, etc.

Having mastered drawing dishes, take a plaster model. A mask is best to start with. Before getting down to work, it is very useful to at least briefly familiarize yourself with anatomy for artists. In particular, you need a section on facial structure. There you will find basic proportions and basic information about how the base of the face is built. Drawing plaster models in art universities is given a large number of teaching hours. It is important for an amateur artist to master general principles in order to learn how to draw figures of living people in the future.

Try to draw a landscape from life. First you need to choose what you would like to depict. At the initial stage, simple architectural structure. For example it could be country house. Before you draw it, find out perspective and how it is conveyed in the drawing. On the sheet of paper, mark the locations for all objects - a house, a fence, a tree, a flower bed. Try to imagine on a plane what you see. The height of the tree in relation to the height of the house depends on the distance of both objects from the viewer. Objects located further away appear smaller. Please note that the wall of the house, which faces you at an angle, seems shorter than it is, and if you imagine it on a plane, it will be located at some angle upward. Outline the contours of all objects, and then draw them, taking into account the shape of each, the ratio of parts, etc. The sequence of working on a landscape is not much different from what you used when drawing elements of a still life, there are simply more objects in the drawing and the relationships between them will be more complex.

Drawing Basics - I’m talking about the method of learning, thanks to which I, at one time, managed to complete a college course in four months and enter a prestigious art institute the first time, scoring 298 points out of a possible 300 in the exams. I hope my experience will help you too. After studying the material, you will understand that drawing is not such a complex science as it seems at first glance. It is very important before you start learning the basics of drawing to visit the page on how to properly hold a pencil in your hand. This knowledge is needed for correct setting hands. Study the material, I'll wait for you.

Drawing Basics

If you are a beginner artist, then you now need a basic knowledge of the basics of drawing. Don't look at the works of great artists, you will understand them a little later. Focus on yourself. And we will start with understanding the drawing itself.

All objects are in space, they are shrouded in it, fit harmoniously into it and obey its laws. In the simplest still life, you need to perceive not individual objects, but the whole ensemble, the consonance of lines and shapes. You need to look at it as a continuous tone of lines, shapes, light and shadow. The drawing is the conditional space of the sheet, in which there is an object plane, proportional relationships of all objects and light and shadow distributed according to the shape of objects.

Basic elements of visual literacy:

Flat figures (two-dimensional)

Volumetric figures (three-dimensional)
All objects, one way or another, have these figures as their basis.

Cube-like 3D image basis in the conditional sheet space:

Basics of drawing. Understanding.
To begin with, I want to tell you a short story about a little ant. Can you imagine? A little ant was climbing through the grass and came across something... What is unknown. He didn't know either. And he wanted to know what was blocking his way. The ant climbed onto this something with difficulty, climbed from all sides, up and down, but still didn’t understand anything. I didn’t understand, because he himself was very small and saw only separate parts of the object and could not form a picture about it. Then he climbed a tall tree, looked from above and saw big picture....

Well, what he saw is not important to us in principle, but the meaning, I think, is clear. So, to make it faster and clearer, we will start with the overall picture.

Let's continue. The cube is the basis of a three-dimensional image in the conventional space of a sheet. It has vertical, horizontal and depth. It contains the understanding of drawing in general. To begin with, we will work with our cube. We will develop logical thinking through analysis real shape using figurative and logical constructions.

The phrase “logical thinking” has quite a bit of meaning behind it. This is observation, imagination, and fantasy, in the end a special vision of the world, which in our case allows us to create an illusion visible world in sheet space. We will learn to correctly see the three-dimensional form of an object and logically consistently depict it based on the understanding of our main working form - the cube.

Developing logical thinking is your primary task; this is your tool with which you can independently understand the drawing. And in fact, it is not difficult or even boring. This is easy for everyone to understand.

And before work, let’s get rid of small formats. From now on, your main working paper format is A2. Go to big sizes, if you haven't done this before. You can use 40/60 or 40/50 tablets or even larger ones. At first, it seems like there’s just a huge white wall in front of you and it’s not at all clear how to fill it. Not scary. Remember this in a couple of weeks. Then an ordinary landscape sheet will seem tiny and completely inconvenient to you.

Drawing Basics

Exercise 1 to understand the basics of drawing:

We sit down at an easel, attach half a sheet of Whatman paper to it, you can use inexpensive paper, even wallpaper. Wallpaper is even better if you're on a budget and don't want to go broke on expensive poster paper. So let's start small. Draw a square. Try to draw as straight lines as possible, naturally, opposite sides should be parallel and equal in the square.

What do we see in front of us? This is an ordinary square, which in no way gives us a sense of conventional space in the sheet. Boring and not at all interesting. But that's it for now.

Now you will need to turn the square into a cube. From the corners of the square, draw edge lines into the distance; for me, their slope is approximately 45 degrees. Stick to this number. Well, we need to finish drawing our cube, we determine by feeling and draw the back side of the cube.

We have a cube, but so far there is no sense of any conventional space in the sheet here either. You can easily confuse the near and far edges. This is a flat drawing and nothing more. In order to feel the space in the sheet, there must be PLANNESS - some details or objects will be closer to us, others further away, and this plan must be correctly conveyed. First, let’s pass it on, and then think about the word “correct.” We convey planning in the following way: the side of the cube that is closer to us should be highlighted, should be clearer, conveyed more actively. Let's take our charcoal or sanginka and focus this side more actively.

Now we can clearly distinguish where the side of the cube closest to us is and where the far side is. So we conveyed the planning quite simply and uncomplicatedly in order to achieve the result - to obtain a conditional space in the sheet. But that is not all. Now it’s time to talk about the correct transfer of planarity, so as to get not a flat drawing, but volume in the plane of the sheet. It sounds strange, but it's true.

Let's train our logical thinking by analyzing the real shape - our cube. We understand the cube - how the basis of a three-dimensional image in conventional paper space. It has vertical, horizontal and depth. It contains the understanding of drawing in general.

All objects are in space, they are shrouded in it, fit harmoniously into it and obey its laws. We don't make a drawing with you, we draw. And without an understanding of space, our drawing will just look like a pitiful semblance of a drawing. In space, there is air; all sides, edges, corners of the cube are enveloped in it. What we see in front of us we will see more clearly, what is located further towards us will fade away due to the enveloping air. This means we need to select what is closer to us - the closest faces and corners of our cube.

To this we also need to add the following: where breaks in shape or intersections of planes occur must be highlighted, because this is some kind of action in the space of the sheet, an accent, NOT static, dynamic. But just like everything else, these accents will fade away as they move away from our eyes.

Now we do the following: we take and select the corners of our cube, since a break in the shape occurs there. The corners will be most distinct. We select all the corners of the cube, but do not forget that the corners facing us will be more clearly defined, since they are closer to us. The rear ones go into space and will tend to fade away.

Once again, the near corners and sides will look sharper, those that go deeper we will make less clear to achieve sensations of space, because everything that goes into perspective tends to fade away due to the surrounding air. We draw edges that go into perspective less clearly, and besides, their clarity will fade away gradually. Invisible edges are needed for construction. So we take and highlight what is closer to us - corners, sides, edges.

Draw lines starting from the corner towards the other corner. In the middle of the edge, the clarity will be slightly lower, since the tension on the edge is less than in the corner. In general, in a drawing, a line should not be monotonous; where some action, rotation, or intersection of lines occurs, it is clearer, stronger, more distinct. Where there is less tension, the line is softer. So it is in our case here. I remind you once again: what is closer to us - edges and corners - will be more expressed, everything that goes into space is less expressed and fades away. Look at the resulting drawings. This is roughly how it should work for you here. And now you have already created space in the sheet using a simple shape.
If you understand what you are doing and know what I expect from you, this job does not seem difficult or difficult at all.

You can use sanguine, pastel, charcoal, or draw with a pencil. If it is a pencil, it should be soft, M2 or higher.

Well, now let's draw a second one in front of our cube! And all the conditions that apply to the first will be applicable to it. But note the key word - "before". Everything is exactly the same as we did before - we drew the first cube, but here now the second cube will be closer to us. And we must highlight it more clearly than the first one, so that our already created space in the sheet is preserved.

And then try to draw a third cube, which will be located behind the first two. Naturally, the third cube will be drawn much easier, softer than the previous ones.

Be sure to also draw invisible edges; the constructive beginning of the form must be shown. The figures should not run over and crash into each other, you must see and understand where one figure ends and another begins. Clearly.
The first cube is closer to us, which means it will look clearer. The second one is weaker and all its faces will be weaker than the far edges of the first cube, since the second one is located behind the first cube. You must clearly understand this this is the basis of spatial vision, the basis of the drawing.

It takes training, practice, understanding. And once again, draw a cube that will be located in front of the first two. To make it clear that he is in front, he needs to be highlighted! So we highlight its sides and edges so that they are clearer than the sides and edges of the cubes in the background:

There is no need to be mistaken, this is not a simple drawing of a cube, as it seems at first glance. This system of teaching drawing has a small but very cunning secret: you may not notice it, but already at this simplest initial stage of learning you learn:

1. Draw straight lines, your hand gets used to reproducing clear, conscious movements, your hand learns to hold a pencil and control it consciously. Is it difficult for you to draw straight lines now?

2. Already at this stage you begin to learn to perceive the sheet not as a plane, but as a conditional space.

3. You learn to create volume, a three-dimensional image in the space of a sheet.

4. Learn to convey planning in paper space and understand how to achieve all this.

5. To this you can add such an important point as acquiring the skill of doing correct shading, but more on that later.

This is how much you already begin to get when you do this simple exercise. But doing it consciously is the most important thing. Without bothering too much, you get the basic knowledge to understand such an exact science as drawing. This is the main advantage of this drawing teaching system.

The above is written for you so that you understand the meaning of what is happening and pay more attention to these exercises. And if you understand what I’m telling you, then your logical thinking is starting to work.

All this work can be done on one sheet. But this will not be enough for us. Draw as much time and patience as you have until everything turns out clearly and competently.

REBUILDING YOUR VISION

Try to draw now not each cube separately, that is, when you draw one cube, you forget about the presence of what has already been drawn. Try to see two cubes at once, all at once. Constantly scatter your attention over the entire space of the sheet. Give it a try. Look at one point (at the edge of a cube, for example), but you also notice everything else. Use "lateral" vision.

Already at this stage you learn to see the big picture, and not everything separately. A general vision of the picture, of the entire space of the sheet, develops. The eyes begin to see relationships: volume to volume, angle to angle, height to width.

All angles of the cubes should be approximately the same, like ours - 45 degrees, all opposite sides - faces are parallel, others - perpendicular, and this cannot be achieved if you do not observe everything that happens in your space of the sheet, but look at everything in turn, separately from one another.

On your sheet, the cubes can not only be arranged like little soldiers, they can fly as they please. Do this exercise until you master it. Draw at an easel using any material. Here are some examples of completing the task:

When the cube is positioned like this:

the corner and edge closest to us will be more active. We must highlight them - everything else fades away. It doesn't matter how much paper you spend on this exercise. Don't use an eraser, it's better to think again. Until you master this exercise, you cannot move on to the second. Here you can learn quickly, but if you don’t learn the basics, all your work will be in vain. There is no need to strive for beauty and purity in the drawing now. The main thing is that you yourself do not get confused in what you are drawing. The main thing is now learn to understand what you are doing.

TIME and DEADLINE

I don’t know at what level you started training and what you can do. Therefore, I can’t give a clear answer - how many days should you work like this? For whom will a day be enough, for someone week, for others - more. One thing I can say for sure: until you understand this material, you cannot forget about it and you need to return to it if necessary. As for the quality of execution - the lines are not parallel, the angles are different, the figures are crooked, the sheet is dirty - it takes practice and time. It won't happen all at once. The same applies to each subsequent task.

During the execution of a long drawing, its author has to perform a lot of operations of various contents and purposes. There is an invisible connection between you and nature, the establishment of which is caused by all sides of the image process.

When depicting a three-dimensional object on a plane of paper, you need to define and identify the shape, its proportions, the position of the object in space, design, convey lighting (cut-off relationships), skillfully detail the drawing and generalize it so that when the work is completed, you can see it as a whole.

Let's get acquainted with drawing methods. There are two main ways of drawing - from life and from imagination.

What does working from life give a draftsman?

The word “natura” translated from Latin means “nature”, “real reality”. Any object really exists and, therefore, has its own form and its own content. When drawing any object from life, you are given the opportunity to seriously and deeply comprehend the principles of constructing a three-dimensional form on a plane, which forms the basis of the image.

Each person during his life receives a huge number of very diverse impressions from meetings with other people, as well as with objects, forms, phenomena, etc. Everywhere you have to see, and often remember for a long time, certain characteristic features, signs of objects and phenomena. An artist who, by virtue of his creative profession I just have to be more observant, notice vigilantly bright features and forms, you must always have in your artistic arsenal the constant ability to deliberately, systematically and purposefully perceive complex, multifaceted, meaningful images of people, objects and phenomena. External signs often carry a very expressive meaning of possibility. The artist confirms the ability to see signs and use them for study, cognition and understanding in his works.

You need to learn to understand what features of nature are important for its perception, and show this in the drawing as accurately and completely as possible.

So, we already know that drawing from life is an act of conscious, meaningful and interested action by the draftsman. Such work, of course, cannot but contribute to the ability to draw “on one’s own.” After all, meaningful drawing from life helps the draftsman develop his ability to think spatially, and to be able to construct, and as a result, to well recall the shape of various objects, and also to be able to see compositionally - all of the above affects the work of representation.

Drawing from an idea is done without nature. It is possible to imagine something only on the basis of an image that was once formed in the mind, and to recreate it in a drawing - you can depict it from memory, from imagination, from description.

Of course, images of ideas are significantly inferior to images of perception. Concreteness and fullness characterize nature, which is also in conditions of lighting and environment. The images of representations depend entirely on how much the drawer has developed his visual memory. There are, of course, a few people who have innate figurative memory (eidetism), but a person who has not developed the ability to remember the visual image of an object is unlikely to be able to think figuratively.

One can ask the question: why is it necessary to draw from an idea, if at every step it is stated that only conscious, meaningful and even creative drawing from life makes a person an artist. Naturally, an artist becomes one who religiously follows the well-known triad: object - visual image - artistic image.

When drawing from life, we constantly look at the object we are depicting. And the word “depict” comes from “to come from an image.” For a draftsman who learns to draw only from life, the image of the subject is very unstable. This instability is caused by almost every second renewal of the gaze at the object being drawn. And if you obscure nature in front of such a person, he will become confused, because he will not be able to continue his work. Consequently, the depiction of an object in a drawing without constant “support” from nature is possible only if the visual image is stable, i.e. the ability of memory to retain it for the required time.

It turns out that even when drawing from life, we can at the same time allow for some elements of drawing from memory and, therefore, from imagination. We do not draw the object itself, but about the object - nature, i.e. we recreate the image of this object, and the image cannot be a mirror-dead reflection even in consciousness. We do not react completely to everything that surrounds us or what we encounter. Here we make the most acceptable decision, leaving everything else unimportant for us. The object being drawn, for all its objectivity, is nevertheless viewed by us subjectively (this is how I perceive it, and finally, I want to see it this way). A wonderful master of engraving, a very subtle draftsman, Vladimir Andreevich Favorsky, noted that every image strives to become an artistic image. The artist superimposes an image on a sheet of paper that conveys the size, shape, and texture of the object, but at the same time as the objective qualities of nature are conveyed, there is an individual quality of perception and a personal relationship to the object arises, as a result of which its image takes on the features of an artistic image.

Thus, striving to achieve a repetition of the subject in a drawing (if an artist depicts from life exactly the same poodle as in life, then there will be no art) should not be, and will not be possible. Therefore, while working from life, you need to remember the words “look closely at your image,” which will allow you not to copy the object, but to reproduce it consciously and with interest. On this topic, one of the best draftsmen in the world, Frenchman Edgar Degas, said very figuratively that drawing is not a form, but a feeling that the artist receives from the form.

At the same time, drawing from life cannot be treated superficially, and close attention to the plastic content of the depicted object should not be excluded in the work. You need to work quickly, sharply and accurately. The same should be observed in the drawing by representation.

In addition to drawing methods, one must take into account the basic organizing principles of working on a drawing.

The main, most essential principle by which the entire system of successive steps in working on one drawing is built takes into account the nature of the image: they start from the simple and gradually move on to the complex.

From simple to complex is a principle that is used not only in working on a single drawing, but also in building the entire education system.

Analyzing all the moments of working on a drawing, let’s think about what important starting points we have to take when starting and finishing the image. Naturally, a person who is already familiar with some of the initial rules of drawing knows that it is impossible to start working on a drawing right away with some detail from nature. He feels that, starting with a detail, you can make a cruel mistake, since then you will have to “attach” others to the existing one, and nothing will come of such drawing, except for, perhaps, a sheet of paper filled with pencil marks. Therefore, here there is and must be observed the fundamental rule of working on a drawing, which states that the drawing must begin from the general to the specific.

An object always represents something whole. All its details only together with each other constitute something common, allowing the object to have its own content and form. So all parts of the body fulfill their purpose and at the same time are inseparable from it, depend on its appearance and multiply the variety of impressions during perception.

The image of an object begins with a general view, provided that the correct relationship of the outline (outline) of the object form to the plane of the sheet of paper is immediately established.

The principle “from the general to the specific” requires only such a sequence of images when the mass of the object, correctly taken in relation to the format and accurately drawn in light contours, allows you to begin work on identifying first the main parts, and then all other features and details.

It is, of course, impossible to work all the time from the general to the particular, and here’s why: after sufficiently checking the correctness of the constructive structure of the object, you need to move on to the detailed development of the form and concentrate on every detail, distracting from the whole, for a while forgetting about the subordination of the particular to the general.

The consequence of this stage of work on the drawing will be a period of completely acceptable separate vision of individual elements of nature, leading to fragmentation and destruction large shape in the image. However, this can be completely corrected if we keep in mind the following principle of drawing - from the particular to the general. According to it, you act like this: you generalize each part and subordinate it to the whole. Before this, each part was drawn in active light-and-shadow gradations and therefore was distinguished by its variegation and fragmentation, “climbing” into the eyes. Now you need to soften the image, remove the clarity of silhouettes and light and shadow contrasts in order to obtain an image brought into line with the general visual impression that arises from the integral perception of a full-scale production. This is done by weakening the tone in certain places of the picture or strengthening it in others, as well as by using an eraser that weakens the variegation and blackness of individual “pieces” of the image.

Thus, the process of creating a drawing includes the most different requirements, following which you learn to solve basic problems aimed at mastering the basics of visual literacy.

Drawing technique

Of great importance in the fine arts is the system of means and methods of transmitting visual images of all objects. real world. The masterful execution of a drawing or painting using appropriate technical means will not leave anyone indifferent. There are, of course, exceptions when brilliant external execution covers up the artist’s frankly indifferent position, and then the viewer is disappointed even by the effectiveness and artistry of lines, strokes, and colorful strokes. Consequently, works of art combine both profound life content, and a perfect art form.

Drawing technique is understood as a system of graphic tools and technical methods (techniques) that the drawer uses in his work to create specific images performed for educational or creative purposes.

Mastering the technique of drawing is unthinkable without organizing the workplace - from having a pencil and paper to choosing a point of view on the full-scale setting. The omission of some element, and they are all important, disrupts the necessary routine of the lesson and takes the artist away from the established rhythm of work.

You must comprehensively and meticulously equip yourself with everything necessary for the upcoming work from life: two specially sharpened pencils (TM, M), a soft eraser, thick white paper attached to an easel - a stand for drawing while sitting (Fig. 9).

Rice. 9

The distance between you and the full-scale setting should always be equal to approximately three sizes of the object being drawn, and from your eye to a sheet of paper located perpendicular to it - the length of an outstretched arm. Such intervals are optimal.

The illumination of the workplace is also important, because drawings, unlike painting, are often performed in artificial light. Try to position yourself in relation to the light source so that it is to the left and slightly in front.

So, educational drawings in our conditions are made with a graphite pencil. The technique of working with this drawing tool has its advantages, expressed in immediate use, in leaving lines of any thickness on paper, in reacting to the slightest change in pressure or direction of movement of the hand of the drawer, in correcting the drawing with an eraser at any moment of work.

The graphite pencil has some minor disadvantages: a metallic sheen to the mark, a relatively slow filling of the surface of the paper with tone, relatively weak possibilities for creating richness and depth of tones and a wide variety of gradations of texture. But nevertheless, the graphite pencil remains an indispensable tool for educational drawing. There are no special recommendations for sharpening a pencil. Here you can adapt to your skill.

The question of how to hold a pencil in your hand is not an idle one, because it is connected with the principles and rules for constructing a drawing, as well as further elaboration of the details of the drawing, bringing it to its final form. At the very beginning, the work is carried out with an almost outstretched hand, when the position of the instrument is completely unthinkable if you hold it like a pen when writing, but requires the skill of placing a pencil lying freely between three fingers (Fig. 10). And vice versa, when working on a drawing, it is impossible to hold a pencil differently, but only as when writing. With different ways of positioning this instrument, your hand should not strain and, in general, your entire arm should not get tired, if you take as a basis its free and easy movement: from the shoulder to minimal rotation of the wrist.

The most basic thing in the drawing technique is, of course, the desire of the draftsman to show in his work with a pencil on paper all the possible variety of lines, strokes, tonal spots, the combination of which creates an individual manner of execution, boldly and uniquely expressed in the finished drawing. The path to such a manner, naturally, is long and difficult, connected with will, repeated efforts, where there should be no room for disappointment at the first failures.

Rice. 10

Each of you will have to practice repeatedly drawing a pencil lead on paper on the most different lines- narrow and wide, long and short, straight and crooked, broken and winding, continuous and interrupted, with pressure of varying strength, up, down, right, left with an inclination “towards you” and “away from you”, etc.

The painter must achieve in the image the transfer of light and shadow relationships of nature and the imitation of the material surfaces of objects, the so-called texture. All this is achieved by means of creating tone. When conveying tonality, pencils of varying degrees of hardness and softness are needed, as well as paper with varying surface grains. You also need to understand that even great masters of drawing never manage to achieve in the image a correspondence to the true light and natural texture of things. Artists strive only for relationships that are proportional to nature, and you should strive for this in order to create competent images. We will achieve greater verisimilitude in a drawing when we do not “chase” the effects of light, glare and beautiful softest transitions of tones, but only if we cope with the requirements of layout, construction and transmission of a three-dimensional form with the subsequent generalization of the image.

So, the workplace is organized, the life is staged, and you begin drawing.

Soon the image is composed, the correct proportions of the object are determined, a constructive analysis of the form is made, and now it is necessary to embody the existing image with concrete visual means pencil drawing what lines, strokes and light-and-shadow relationships are. How you apply certain methods of applying strokes ultimately determines the identification of the image of the production. The drawing resembles objects from nature if the artist knows the technical techniques of depiction.

In the technique of drawing done with a graphite pencil, its author, having found certain techniques, with confident movements of the instrument on the paper convincingly and simply solves the shape in tone, while experiencing truly creative satisfaction. Having achieved initial success, do not stop, but improve, carefully study the creative experience and brilliant skills of great artists. The artist Konstantin Fedorovich Yuon wrote: “In the process of work, the artist’s feelings are directed not only to the perception of the outside world - they at the same time concern the understanding of the qualities and properties of the materials and production tools themselves, all their potential features for using the right moment” (Yuon K. F. About Art. M., 1959. T. 1. P. 93).

Drawing techniques and, in particular, methods of working with a pencil are closely related to the entire educational process, since the thoughts and feelings of the drawer are materially embodied in the created combination of strokes and the tonal solution of the image and, ultimately, in the achieved imagery.

When mastering the technique of drawing, you need to perform both long-term images and short-term ones - sketches and sketches. Sketches and sketches help develop the ability to quickly perceive nature and find an individual style of pencil drawing.

The possibility of developing a drawing style is realized only when all the lines and strokes that make up the drawing are subject to strict image discipline. A random, careless, conventional stroke, filling some part of the image field, does not so much convey the shape of the corresponding object, but rather separates this area in tone from neighboring, lighter or darker ones. To prevent this from happening, set one immutable rule for yourself: every trace of a pencil must first of all depict something, convey some form, and only as a consequence of this initial function will its place in the play of light and shadow be revealed. Moreover, the more precise the stroke as a formative element, the richer the gradations of light and dark that arise from the interaction of many strokes. You will not immediately be convinced of the existence of this pattern, but over time you will have a presentiment. Therefore, you need to draw with a stroke, filling the space of the sheet, feeling the shape.

In order to master the technique of drawing, you need appropriate efforts associated with repeated special exercises for the hand. But the development of purely technical skills cannot be accomplished without mastering the rules and analyzing the patterns of the basic methods of depiction. Only thanks to this attitude towards drawing will you be able to comprehend the aesthetic value of the interaction of content and form, to understand the visual and expressive capabilities of this or that artistic material.

Drawing leaves and flowers from life

Practical significance of drawing plants

Each art educational institution prepares specialists of a certain qualification and sets the task of teaching the basics of professional literacy and skill.

In solving these important tasks, drawing occupies a special place as the basis of all types of fine art. You already know that drawing is not only a type of art designed to play a supporting role in studying the basics of visual literacy, but also an entire science that teaches you to think in form, understand the constructive basis and, in connection with this, depict the plastic structure of an object on a plane. At the same time, drawing is a means of expressing your thoughts and feelings, fantasy and imagination, ideas in any image, from a sketch from life to compositional work.

Your profession begins with understanding the basics of the artistic craft, and the path to mastery is long and thorny. And at all stages of practical work, you need to improve a lot and persistently in everything, including in mastering the skills of visual literacy. You should pay particular attention to studying flora, the stylized forms of which form the basis for the artistic decoration of decorative and applied arts products.

Why are people so partial to flora? Obviously, because this most perfect beauty gives rise to a reciprocal feeling in him, causing special condition souls. The plant world is as harmonious as a person can admire it and reflect it in works of literature and art, thereby acquiring the meaning of life itself. What attracts us to the plant world is the fullness of vitality, its constant development and renewal.

The special beauty of plants lies in the unimaginably complete embodiment of generic properties in a separate form, which in aesthetics is called “measure,” and yet we are shocked by the variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. Unique creative combinations and symmetries give these creatures of nature stability and proportionality. The signs already listed would be enough for a person to draw creative inspiration from nature.

But what is the “measure” of each individual species within the plant world? Let's turn to a plant, for example, chicory, found among herbs. If you study chicory according to the structure of each of its shoots from the main stem, you will discover an interesting pattern. The process “builds” its length in proportion to each new ejection into space, which corresponds to the dimensions of the “golden ratio”. So, if the first ejection, ending with a leaf, is “divided” into 100 parts, then the second will be exactly 62 parts and will end with a leaf, reduced in similar proportions compared to the first, etc. This is how nature, amazing the human mind, builds its original forms of symmetry.

Every plant object is something united, a whole. Nothing can be taken away or subtracted from this whole without violating the integrity. You cannot add anything, because it will be superfluous and will also violate integrity and harmony.

It is unlikely that you will meet a person anywhere who is indifferent to such a miracle of nature as flowers. They have been decorating people's lives since ancient times, entering life like music, painting, and poetry. The famous Belgian writer Maurice Maeterlinck, through the mouth of the hero of one of his plays, said: “Who knows what humanity would look like if it did not know colors...”.

The quality of inexhaustibility and therefore incomparability with any reproduction has natural beauty. A person reproduces the beauty of flowers, trying to reveal their essential features in a particular image, to create them. beautiful image. There is an insight into the essence of plants, into the laws of the structure of organic natural phenomena. A true artist in his work is likened to nature itself: he harmonizes the world, now figurative. Here the master does not describe the phenomenon or deform it, but expresses the whole in the richness of its content, achieving artistry through the aesthetic knowledge of plants and the expressiveness of their image, putting his experiences into the drawing or painting.

Big and deep world Nature has been creating vegetation for tens of millions of years, developing the appropriate structure of each species in relation to the environment. Therefore, plant forms captivate us with their grace, because in them natural evolution (the process of change, development) has removed everything that is not related to the essence of the species, i.e. everything is “superfluous”.

Nature “brilliantly” selected colors, creating myriads of unusually beautiful shades of color. This innumerable combination of shades and nuances (barely noticeable transitions, subtle differences in something) cannot be conveyed in painting; they can, and even then in the presence of deep aesthetic experiences, be captured only by direct visual perception.

There are many flowers and plants in the world, and almost all of them are beautiful. To create sketches of decorative decoration of products using plant elements, you need to make a lot of sketches different colors and leaves. Practical mastery of forms and bizarre compositions created by nature inevitably leads to knowledge individual species plants, creatively enriching masters in the field of decorative and applied arts. Consequently, you need to use every opportunity to assimilate such material, fertile for creativity, as the plant forms of the Earth.

Sketches of leaves of different plants

Plant forms, creatively processed by the artist, are found in almost all types of decorative and applied art.

Before moving on to the exercises, let’s briefly look at what arts and crafts are.

Decorative and applied art is one of the types of artistic creativity in which a person demonstrates the laws of his aesthetic attitude to reality, his understanding of beauty as the main aesthetic category.

The beginning of this type of art is connected with how our ancestors treated beauty back in prehistoric times. Ancient things found during excavations include hammers, axes, spear and arrowheads, beads, rings, clasps, etc. - they tell us more eloquently than any words about the origin of decorative and applied arts. What is most surprising about these things is that our ancestors did not simply decorate (decorate) this or that product with some pattern or zoomorphic composition, but even then developed the specifics of this type of art - an organic fusion of practical, functional and aesthetic properties in each product. This means that beauty is not “attached” to the product, but forms an integral part of it.

An object of decorative and applied art is distinguished by its architectonics (the fundamental interrelation of parts), the relationship between volume and color, ornament and form, and the artistic expressiveness of the product, its involvement in the world of art and our admiration for it depend on the successful solution of its components.

The greatest examples of carpets and tapestries, dishes and utensils, weapons and horse harnesses, jewelry and ceramics were created by artist-craftsmen of the Middle Ages. These were jacks of all trades, who not only knew the secrets of creativity, but also knew how to “work” a thing from start to finish. Their highly artistic craft has become a full-fledged branch of art.

Coming out of the walls of his educational institution, you will also work in the arts and crafts field. To do this, you need to learn a lot, learn a lot.

It is better to start drawing plants with leaves. For nature, use either dried leaves or a herbarium (leaves straight from the tree wither after a short period of time and look wrinkled and unpleasant). Make drawings in pencil to convey tonal relationships. This kind of drawing helps to develop certain skills.

Start with leaves that are simple in shape - apple, cherry, lilac, birch, etc. Place the sheet on white paper to clearly see its shape and tone. Start your image by defining the general shape. All leaves fit in one way or another into some geometric figure - triangle, polygon, rhombus, ellipse, circle. For example, the leaves of birch and cucumber are triangular in shape, grape and maple leaves are pentagonal, etc.

Outline the general shape of the leaf simultaneously with the constructive axis, which gives an idea of ​​the main direction of all parts of the plant. The constructive axis, located in the middle of the white silhouette of the image limited by the contour line, also turns out to be a kind of organizer of the symmetry of the drawn sheet. At the same time, try not to copy the shape along the contour, but look at nature. At the same time, mentally imagine it as voluminous, having a certain mass, and far from being flat in shape. Draw according to the basic principles: from general to specific and vice versa. Your sketch should include detail and richness in tone with characteristics of the textured surface of a leaf of a tree or shrub. Remember that it is not copying nature, but creativity to it, capturing light-tone gradations in the object with the transfer on paper of relationships proportional to nature, help you achieve a truthful image.

The leaves of oak, chestnut, and maple look complex in shape. Studying a complex form requires precise attention, because an inattentive person will never become a good draftsman. For example, an oak leaf has a specific shape in terms of the outline of its external boundaries. The absent-minded student does not allow himself to examine everything carefully. Having only glimpsed the sheet, he already “knows” it and hurries to start sketching (usually inattentive people do not have perseverance and diligence).

If you examine the oak leaf with concentration, you can be convinced of the validity of the comments addressed to the inattentive. The leaf is pinnately lobed with an obovate blade shape. All blades are distinguished by solid edges, without teeth, in the upper part they are short, rounded and slightly notched, at the petiole they are also short and narrowed, and in the middle they are large, fitting together with all the others into the rounded shape of the entire blade of the plant. The sheet is constructed according to the rules of the “golden section”.

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You can concretize your idea of ​​an object only on the basis of a close and detailed visual study of first simple and then complex forms. It is this approach to working on a drawing from life that will allow you to cope with inevitable difficulties. In this case, you should constantly adhere to the general principles in drawing from life: compare the shape and sizes of individual parts, details, correctly determine their location, correctly characterize the natural structure of each plant. Of course, in the educational quick drawing you should not look for figurative solution. The imagery of the image here is expressed in the search for the specificity of each leaf.

So, drawing in all its varieties is not only a constant educational exercise, but also, as you will be able to notice over time, a means of collecting material that accumulates for future compositions with plant elements.

Sketches of different leaves will help you quite easily distinguish plants by their shape. However, pay attention to interesting feature plants, according to which they still have internal similarity despite their external dissimilarity of outline. And for a draftsman this is very important, because his horizons gradually expand and his imagination develops. The benefits of all exercises in sketching plants, in “exposing” their structural structure, are undoubted, especially for a draftsman with a developed imagination (Fig. 11).

Always remember that you are not sketching for the sake of sketching; they say, you have to, since it’s supposed to be so, but you convey your attitude towards them. Even here, be sure to draw compositionally so that there is a keen interest in any work. Know that images in pencil are not “made”, but drawn. After finishing work on any pencil image, be sure to conduct an independent and self-critical analysis of the drawing, which greatly helps to see any inaccuracies in the transfer of shape, tone, and once again become convinced of the riddles that the layout of drawing objects poses for you.

7. Drawing lesson portrait.

Learning techniques in drawing lessons.

The basis of correct drawing a portrait human is knowledge basic techniques in head drawing lessons.

Drawing a head with a pencil requires both deeper knowledge and more experience, since the work here is not only about correctly depicting the head, but also about conveying the individual character and expressiveness that is especially characteristic of the human face.

Therefore, solving problems of educational drawing, students in art school New Art Intention, at the same time they develop a visual idea of ​​a person, the ability to quickly grasp and convey his essence, his character with utmost brevity. That is, novice artists face an important, difficult task - capturing the image of a person on paper. In fiction there are examples of the remarkable ability to determine in two or three strokes individual characteristics image, for example, in N.V. Gogol’s “Dead Souls” the pretty face of a girl is compared to a “freshly laid egg”, a rude wide face with “Moldovan pumpkin”. It is very important, through observation, sketches from life, drawings from memory, to develop in ourselves, in addition to constructive, imaginative perception of the objective world around us; this helps the artist avoid excessive dryness and protocol in his work.

To draw a portrait with a pencil in lessons, we recommend choosing a model with the most expressive shapes and try to emphasize them with appropriate lighting.

When starting a drawing, do not start working unless you have examined the person’s head from all sides, noted its characteristic features, its rotation and tilt. Have a definite idea of ​​the model in advance and keep it in mind throughout your work.

Regardless of your point of view on nature, it is recommended to feel it “as a whole.” As when drawing a cube (), we draw its visible sides taking into account the sides hidden from our view. Likewise, when learning to draw a head turned in profile, you need to feel the connection of all its parts. For example, when looking at a nature from the front, you need to imagine it from the back, in profile and in a three-quarter turn. In order to correctly recreate the barely visible wing of the nose, the barely visible eye behind the nose, or the contracted and almost imperceptible part of the lip, when drawing the head in a turn close to the profile, it is necessary to represent these forms as a whole. And only under this condition will they, even slightly outlined, be convincing and be able to participate in the construction of the entire head. In order to correctly draw an ear, eye, cheekbone during a profile turn, on the spot, you need to imagine the location of invisible, but corresponding paired forms and mentally link the depicted visible forms with them.

Thus, contrary to the opinion of beginners, we can draw a very important conclusion that building a head in profile is not the easiest, but, on the contrary, requires a lot of attention and experience.

Without a comprehensive sense of form and mastering its laws, without improving your skills in lessons, the entire drawing process will be reduced to a mechanical copying of nature.

Pencil drawing lesson live model.

Thanks to the properties of our vision, every object is perceived by us “immediately”. We simultaneously see all its plastic and light qualities, and therefore the integrity visual perception and pass it on decisive role in a true depiction of objects.

In lessons we explain that you cannot draw nature by placing one part next to another, since in nature everything exists together and you need to create everything as one.

But since it is physically impossible to depict “all at once”, “all together”, and drawing the head in parts, as a rule, leads to negative results, the beginning draftsman must find a way to preserve the integrity of the visual perception of nature and work out its details. To do this, he must first of all construct a generalized but characteristic mass of the entire head, as a sculptor does. Then gradually work on identifying first its large forms, and then its details, but do not draw them point-blank separately, but compare them with each other and with the whole head, both in kind and in the drawing. Such work with “relationships” (in form, tone, proportions) is a kind of cement that holds all parts of the head together into one well-developed whole.

So, we emphasize that in head drawing lessons you need, first of all, to be guided by the form, to work in “relationships”, having mastered the sequence of work from the general to the specific, from simple to complex.

In our courses we follow a certain order: the work must have a beginning, middle and end. Violation of this sequence leads to disorganized, random sketching of nature.

At the beginning of the course, when the novice artist quickly outlines on a sheet of paper general shape head, showing its main parts, he works by the method of initial generalization.

In the middle of the work, its small forms are revealed in a generalized form. Here the beginning draftsman follows the path of analysis and detailing.

At the end of the work, when the smallest details have been found, the beginning artist again returns to generalization, but a final generalization, with the help of which the main thing in the drawing is highlighted and the secondary is subordinated to it.

Thus, strict consistency in work in this drawing lesson is the main condition for the successful completion of the drawing.

In order to learn how to draw a head correctly, we warn you once again about the need to start the job is easy touching pencil to paper. The sharp, black lines that beginners like to resort to make it difficult to see mistakes, much less correct them. Overuse of an eraser destroys the surface texture of the paper, making it almost unsuitable for further work. Pencil pressure and tone strength should increase as the drawing progresses correctly.

To begin with, having chosen a point of view on nature, determine the size of the drawing (slightly smaller than nature, depending on the degree of its distance from the person drawing). Stick to this intended scale throughout the entire work, as otherwise you may upset the proportions of the depicted head.

You also need to take care of the location of the drawing on the sheet: it depends on the rotation and tilt of the head, and on the surrounding environment (background, part of clothing, falling shadow).

The first mistake in drawing for beginners is placing the head in the center of the sheet, regardless of its position in space. For example, take a drawing of a head shown in profile and place it in the middle of a square sheet so that the outer contours of the head are at equal distances from the edges of the paper and the center of the drawing coincides with geometric center square (Figure 1).

In this case, the head drawing seems somewhat shifted towards the profile and understated, since the front part “outweighs” the back of the head: being an exponent of similarity and expression, it focuses the viewer’s attention on itself. A similar phenomenon occurs when comparing the upper and lower parts of the head - the latter, rich in detail, seems more significant than the upper.

The drawings made (1 and 2) are comparable, and you will see that a slight movement of the head on the sheet to the right and up (Figure 2) improves its compositional arrangement, making it more vital and convincing. This placement principle applies to all head positions in space.

When initially sketching the head and neck, the aspiring artist should pay attention to their position in relation to the vertical and horizontal, which we already discussed in lessons when constructing plaster heads. In drawing lessons, head positioning can be straight, tilted or rotated. Turns and bends are often combined in movement, mutually complementing each other.

The paired symmetry in the structure of the head (two frontal bumps, two brow ridges, two eye sockets, two cheekbones) allows you to imagine a middle (profile) line running across the face. With the head in a straight position, turned towards the viewer, such a line will run vertically, dividing the head into two equal parts. When you turn your head to the right or left, this auxiliary line will take on a more or less concave character and divide the head into two unequal parts. The ratios of these parts determine the degree of rotation.

The middle (profile) line helps in the process of putting all paired shapes of the head in place and, passing in the middle of the bridge of the nose, base of the nose, lips and chin, accurately determines their position.

A transverse, auxiliary line passing through the middle of the orbital sockets towards the ear openings divides the head into two approximately equal parts: the upper frontal - from the parietal bones to the bridge of the nose, and the lower - from the bridge of the nose to the chin. This transverse (auxiliary) line, by the nature of its location along the volume of the head (straight or concave), helps determine the degree of inclination of the head and angle. In Figures 3 and 4, you can see how when the head is thrown back, its upper forms are reduced at the expense of the lower ones, and when the head is lowered, the opposite phenomenon is observed.

The above-mentioned auxiliary lines (profile and transverse), crossing at a point on the bridge of the nose, form the so-called “cross”. Correctly outlined at the beginning of the drawing, it determines the position of the head in space and is the basis for further work on drawing lessons(Figure 5).

Based on the transverse line of the “cross”, lines parallel to it are drawn that determine the location of the frontal tubercles, brow ridges, eyes, cheekbones, base of the nose, and the lower edge of the chin. During drawing lessons, it is simultaneously necessary to pay attention to the proportional relationships of the parts, all the time comparing them with each other and with the entire head (Figure 6).

The question of proportions is complicated by the perspective reductions of forms depending on the position of the head. In lessons, you should always pay attention to the fact that paired shapes of equal size are perceived by the eye as unequal (for example, with a three-quarter turn, tilt and foreshortening).

Having placed the general shape of the head on the sheet, having understood its basic character (ovoid, spherical, expanding upward or downward), and having outlined auxiliary lines that determine the rotation and tilt, you should gradually move on to drawing the main surfaces that make up the volume of the head (Figure 7).

As on plaster head drawing lesson, you need to use a light chiaroscuro to separate the entire front surface from the sides going to the back of the head. The border of the facial surface will pass along the temples, cheekbones and chin. Using the same chiaroscuro, not forgetting the need for generalization, outline smaller forms lying on the front surface of the face. So, for example, Figure 7 shows the generalized shape of the nose in a turn and its parts placed on the surfaces: on the side surfaces - the wings of the nose, on the bottom - the nostrils.

Analyzing the shape of the forehead, as in plaster, one cannot fail to note that in its lower part it is formed by five surfaces: the middle one - the frontal one, two lateral ones adjacent to it, and two temporal ones. When drawing a living form, all these planes must be justified anatomically. You should also find a place for the generalized shapes of the eyes, cheekbones, chin, ears, nose, etc. (Figure 8).

The generalized form facilitates the perspective construction of the surfaces that form the head, suggesting the location of smaller details on them. But even at such an initial stage of generalization it is impossible to draw a conventional, roughly outlined diagram; To avoid this, it is recommended to outline the general “cut” of the head and its parts, guided by the selection of surfaces based on anatomy, and not by a random play of chiaroscuro. For example, cartilage and the bony base of the nose form its four surfaces; frontal tubercles and brow ridges - the frontal surface of the forehead.

The complete “cutting off” technique is applicable only as an indicator for the perspective construction of the planes that form the volume of the head. In a drawing of living nature, a conventional diagram should only be a guide to work as a separate drawing, as a means for consciously drawing a model; it should help to understand the essence of living form.

Paired head shapes are drawn simultaneously rather than separately; The eyes must be outlined immediately, finding a place for them in the eye sockets. Cheekbones, brow ridges, and frontal tubercles are also linked to each other.

Drawing a head with “paired forms” involves juxtaposing and comparing them as you work. This principle laid down in learning to draw living nature is of particular importance. Here, a comparison of paired forms helps not only their perspective construction and placement, but also the transfer of their “appearance”, since, being essentially the same, in different turns they are perceived differently in appearance and size.

We have already said how important this method is when depicting the head in profile.

With a three-quarter turn of the head, comparison of paired forms with each other makes it possible to more accurately position the eyes in relation to the lateral surfaces of the nose, determine the relationship between the lateral walls of the nose, its wings, nostrils, lips, and reveals differences between the nearest and distant (“shortened”) eyes.

A novice artist, comparing paired parts of the face, easily notes their characteristic features: perhaps asymmetry in the eyes or an eyelid drooping over one eye, or a raised eyebrow, a drooping corner of the mouth, a nose slightly shifted to the side, etc.

Thus, learning to draw with “paired forms” contributes to the three-dimensional perception of nature, the perspective construction of its forms and the identification of the characteristic features of the depicted head.

For a comprehensive study of the volume of the head, you cannot limit yourself to drawing it in one or two positions. Initially, it is recommended to build a head on one sheet from a variety of angles, turns and tilts, while simultaneously observing and comparing the perspective reduction of their surfaces (Fig. 10).

To work on a form more consciously, we resort to an imaginary “cut” of this form. On the plaster head, this imaginary “cut” can be replaced with a specially drawn line. The picture (Fig. 1) of the lesson on drawing a plaster head shows this technique.

The drawing of the head with the shoulder girdle and neck will be highlighted in a separate drawing lesson from our art school New Art Intention.

The structure of the neck is best seen when the head is slightly tilted back when turned slightly. With appropriate lighting we emphasize the constructive connection between the depicted forms. Thus, one can imagine that the shoulder girdle, limited in front by the collarbones, and behind by the visible upper edges of the hood (trapezius) muscle, forms a platform into which the cylindrical shape of the neck is inserted.

First of all, you should determine the location of the head, linking it with the collarbones. To do this, from the jugular fossa, located between the clavicles (indicated as the base of the figure), in the direction of the sternocleidomastoid muscle, the position of the ear is determined. A transverse auxiliary line drawn from it to the eye sockets and a profile line (going from the jugular fossa through the thyroid cartilage, hyoid bone and through the middle of the lower jaw up the profile), intersecting, form a cross with which the head is built in the usual way.

With this position of the head, the other sternocleidomastoid muscle is contracted and, also starting from the jugular fossa, goes in the direction of the second ear, hidden from our view.

So, placing the drawing on the sheet, choosing the movement (rotation and tilt) of the head, sketching its initial characteristic shape, determining the proportions of its main parts, their volumetric designation with conventional chiaroscuro (Fig. 9) - all this can be attributed to the beginning of the drawing, preparing the transition to learning drawing details.

Lessons on drawing details of the human head we will continue in the next drawing classes for beginners at art school New Art Intention.

Everyone who draws from life necessarily goes through different stages of increasing the complexity of the work. The process of learning to draw at a certain stage is associated with drawing a still life (from the French nature morte - dead nature).

The world of nature and the things that surround a person in everyday life is an inexhaustible treasury of shapes and colors. The simplicity and plastic perfection of everyday objects, the sophistication and delicacy of flowers, the unique structure and juiciness of fruits and vegetables, and much more have always been the objects of attention of artists. Drawings and paintings in which household objects, tools, vegetables, fruits, food, game, bouquets of flowers, etc. are embodied in figurative form are called still lifes.

Still lifes can be “seen” directly in life and “staged” specifically to solve different visual tasks. Both of them attract attention, which is why still life is given so much space in fine art that it has rightfully become an independent genre. A “seen” still life is a natural grouping of objects depicted by the artist, and a “staged” one is composed of deliberately selected objects necessary to realize the author’s specific plan.

The image of a still life has its own certain pattern and methodological sequence. It is completely impermissible, for example, just after starting a drawing, to start detailed study minor details, if the basic form has not yet been determined, the tonal idea of ​​the production has not been resolved. This immediately leads to fragmentation of the drawing, which is then incredibly difficult and sometimes impossible for an inexperienced draftsman to correct. In addition, such haste leads to errors in proportional relationships, and hence to failure, lack of self-confidence and disappointment.

Remember that in visual practice there is a proven method of sequential work on drawings, based on the principle: from the general to the specific and from the specific again to the general enriched with details.

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Work on a still life begins with the selection and placement of certain objects: in our task - a plaster model of a prism and a wooden vase for pencils, brushes, etc. (Fig. 21). The selection of components for a full-scale production must be logically justified and filled with semantic connections. It is advisable to choose things that are expressive in shape and volume.

After the still life is staged, you choose specific place, from where the production is clearly visible (we have already talked about the most optimal distance from the drawing to the full-scale object: it should be approximately three times the size of the life itself).

The expressiveness and truthfulness of a still life image depend on your ability to observe, compose, construct a drawing, model it with tone, etc.

Before actually working on the drawing, it is advisable to make one or two sketches of the production to find a rational and effective layout of the image on paper. It is advisable to make sketches quickly, based on the first, still very fresh impression of the production, trying to convey in them the characteristic features of nature, the relationship and proportions of the shape of each object, the ratio of the image area to the area of ​​the sheet format.

Once you have determined the composition of the image in the sketch, you can proceed to direct work on the format. Given the nature of the production, you have already chosen the format - horizontal or vertical.

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Now you are faced with the task of going through several stages of drawing a still life. Such stages, i.e. individual moments - stages or steps in the development of something; in working on a drawing there are usually no more than four.

Of course, the initial stage of any image is its compositional placement on a sheet of paper. You already have a sketch, use it in a non-mechanical way.

Here the main place is given to determining the entire width and entire height of objects at once to limit the field of the image; the positions of each of the bodies relative to each other and the plane on which they are placed are immediately outlined with light lines.

At the next stage of drawing a still life, you must clarify the place of each of the two objects in the image and determine their proportional relationships. During this period of work, also identify the constructive basis of the form. Here, base the solution to all problems at this stage of the image on a careful analysis of the production. For now, build the form with just lines, seeing your drawing as a “framework”, but follow a certain measure so that they do not look the same thickness everywhere (Fig. 22).

Carry out the third stage of work as a further refinement of the shape of bodies that have volume and relief. These signs of objects are perceived only under conditions of light and shade. Therefore, you must not only outline big light and a large shadow, but also to define with light strokes all the main gradations (gradual arrangements) of chiaroscuro. These patterns of distribution of light, halftones, own and falling shadows have been discussed in the textbook more than once, and you know about them. You just need to carefully monitor in situ and compare on paper how much one object is darker or lighter than another. In addition, do not forget also about the difference in the pattern techniques work in pencil in order to identify differences in the textures of objects already at this stage of drawing. Everything taken together and considered from the perspective of perspective construction, volume and relief of forms, tonal solutions, materiality leads you to last stage work on a still life drawing (Fig. 23).

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The final stage involves the process of completing the work - a generalization of the entire linear and tonal structure of the image. If the foreground and background are drawn in detail, both bodies of the production destroy the integral perception of the drawing, there is no softness of transitions in the modeling of the form with tone, then such an image needs to be improved, which is a generalization. In this case, it is necessary to soften the background, destroy clear boundaries in it (to create the impression of depth), “bring closer” one object to the foreground and “move away” another, highlight somewhere in the right place, in another, on the contrary, thicken the tone and so in this way to achieve the integrity of the drawing (Fig. 24).

All stages of working on a still life drawing are not stages of the image separated from each other. Here a consistent process takes place, logically conditioned by unity and indivisibility, the result of which should be a correctly composed, correctly constructed, moderately worked out tone, expressive educational drawing still life.

Now let’s look in great detail at how the process of creating a still life drawing made from plaster takes place. geometric body- a hexagonal prism and a wooden vase for storing drawing tools.

After the format is chosen, it is determined what size the image will be printed on paper, especially since in preliminary sketches you are looking for proportional relationships between the image and the format. Proportions are woven into visual perception in accordance with the structure of the eye and the principles of its operation. Each person who draws determines the ratios of quantities and, do not be surprised, distinguishes among them the ratio of the “golden section”. You see in the setting that a vase standing vertically looks more preferable than a prism lying at an angle to it. This means that in your drawing you will pay special attention to the vase, and you will begin to associate the placement of the image on the paper with it. It will be located in the drawing no other way than in relation to the proportions of the “golden section”.

This nature of visual perception is confirmed by numerous experiments conducted at different times in a number of countries around the world.

The German psychologist Gustav Fechner in 1876 conducted a series of experiments, showing men and women, boys and girls, as well as children, figures of various rectangles drawn on paper, asking them to choose only one of them, but making the most pleasant impression on each subject. Everyone chose a rectangle showing the ratio of its two sides in the proportion of the “golden ratio” (Fig. 25). Experiments of a different kind were demonstrated to students by neurophysiologist from the United States Warren McCulloch in the 40s of our century, when he asked several volunteers from among future specialists to bring an oblong object to the preferred shape. The students worked for a while and then returned the items to the professor. On almost all of them the marks were made exactly in the region of the “golden section” ratio, although the young people knew absolutely nothing about this “ divine proportion" McCulloch spent two years confirming this phenomenon, since he personally did not believe that all people choose this proportion or establish it in amateur work on making all kinds of crafts.

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An interesting phenomenon is observed when viewers visit museums and fine art exhibitions. Many people who have not drawn themselves, with amazing accuracy, catch even the slightest inaccuracies in the depiction of objects in graphic images and in picturesque paintings. These are probably signs of a person’s aesthetic sense, which “does not agree” with the destruction of the harmony of form and proportions. Is it not with such a requirement for a sense of beauty that the phenomenon of the “golden proportion” is associated (as soon as this proportion is not called “divine”, “golden”, “golden section”, “golden number”)? It’s not for nothing, apparently, in all centuries of human civilization “ golden ratio"was elevated to the rank of the main aesthetic principle.

For you, the compositional principles of constructing a still life drawing should not be a stumbling block, because a person is endowed with the ability to clearly see the surrounding environment within a field of clear vision (at an angle of 36°). It is the proportional values ​​within the field of clear vision that are clearly distinguished by the eyes, and your task is to recognize them in order to correctly construct the drawing. The fact is that a person who draws sees the objective world in the same way as someone who does not draw. However, if you take an arbitrary point of view to construct a drawing, distortion will occur. You need to remember that in constructing an image everything is interdependent: point of view, field of clear vision and distance to the objects in the image. This means that in the process of composing the image, it is necessary to select such a part of the enclosed space (a piece of paper) that would include the objects of the still life and part of the environment (the background). The objects in the image should be neither too big nor too small. Otherwise, the large image “comes out” of the format, and the small one “sinks” into it. To prevent this from happening, try to consider the sheet of paper and the dimensions of the image as a single whole. compositional solution still life drawing.

After organizing the plane of the paper, objects need to be drawn as the eye sees them and as they exist in reality. To do this, you clarify the perspective changes in the shape of the vase and prism and at the same time try to immediately understand their objective structure, design, and analyze the lighting conditions. Chiaroscuro on objects is distributed according to the same laws that you became familiar with when drawing plaster models of geometric bodies.

Each drawing is at the same time a new knowledge of the objective world, which is accompanied by the mastery of knowledge, the acquisition of experience, new skills and motor skills of hand movements. Having placed the drawing on a plane and, for now, conveying the boundaries of the shape of each of the two objects in light lines and outlining the volume of the vase and prism with the same light strokes, you continue your work, moving on to the next stage. Now you continue to further refine the characteristic features of the form, all the time comparing the drawing with nature. Then you begin to work with relationships that involve determining the correct proportions, the relationship between spatial plans, details and the whole.

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The method of working through relationships allows the draftsman to acquire knowledge and skills to the extent that they influence the development of a person as a professional artist.

So, the first stages of your drawing: solve the layout problems, outline the general silhouette of the still life, highlight both objects and show the proportions, at the same time feel the connection of the forms, their correspondence to the general structure of the image. When working with relationships, the drawing is clarified by comparing and contrasting, i.e. comparing the image with the whole and the parts with each other. At the same stage of drawing, you should begin to identify the volume and relief of the shapes of the objects in the image, working through them according to the principle - from the general to the specific. This is the only way you will always see the whole - in structure, and in proportions, and in tone.

When you have confidence in the fidelity of the drawing and the correctness of the intended light-tonal relationships, you can safely move on to modeling the shape with a tone gradually saturated with density.

At this important stage of work - conveying a true image of a still life, as our eye sees it and how it exists in space - you need to see the whole nature all the time, i.e., touching this or that place in the drawing with a pencil, do not lose sight the whole production and the whole drawing as a whole. Always remember that you are accumulating knowledge, skills and abilities gradually and consistently and work on the still life accordingly. Tonal relationships in nature cannot be accurately conveyed in a drawing due to the discrepancy between the original light and the whiteness of the paper. They can be conveyed only by following light and shadow relationships that are proportional to nature, and you know that the quality of the tonal pattern depends on such transmission.

During the modeling of the drawing in tone, when you carry out all the work from the general to the specific, a moment inevitably comes associated with a great desire to take on the final elaboration of one or another part of the image, which is very attractive in production. This is where you get to the specifics, following the principles of drawing.

In practice, both educational and creative drawing There are two often intertwined technical methods of laying out tones on paper with a pencil - shading and shading.

Hatching, unlike shading, has its own distinct features. An experienced draftsman can only achieve the transfer of all the tonal and material properties of nature. At the same time, he uses a variety of strokes along the trace of a pencil on paper - straight and curved, short and long, overlapping each other in several layers. Consequently, shading should be understood as techniques for applying tone with strokes. The direction of shading in a drawing is very important. By using strokes directed according to the shape of the object, one can achieve volume, and, conversely, by haphazardly applied strokes, the form is destroyed, the image is covered with shapeless spots.

Masters of drawing often used shading - a technique of rubbing a pencil layer, applied flat with a lead, over the surface of the paper to obtain a soft solid tone using either shading or paper swabs and, very often, cotton wool. This technique was used very often and effectively by Ilya Efimovich Repin.

In the process of work related to the transfer of light and shadow relationships, the lightest and darkest places in the full-scale setting are determined and, adhering to them as tonal guidelines, the necessary aperture is gradually gained. And all the time you need to compare and compare the drawing with nature again. To do this, you can even move a short distance away from the drawing so that you can see your work from a somewhat distant point of view. There is another technique for comparison - look at the drawing in the mirror, being half-turned towards the image. The mirror should also reflect the natural object. Such a comparison can help you see mistakes in tone and eliminate them. The mirror technique is also effective because it allows you to see your work from an unexpected angle. Each painter not only gets used to his image, but often, due to inexperience and still lack of skill, ceases to notice serious mistakes in the drawing, not to mention the tone. Such an unexpected look will help you immediately see this or that flaw, which turned out to be difficult to pay attention to due to the inability to critically look at your own drawing.

The last stage of working on a still life drawing is related to the draftsman’s ability to complete the image, i.e. bring the image into line with the general visual impression with a seamless perception of the full-scale production.

1. What is still life?
2. How many stages of painting a still life do you need to go through?
3. What do you understand by the term "layout"? What role does layout play in a drawing?
4. Why should a full-scale production be perceived not in parts, but as a whole?
5. What does it mean to apply strokes to a form?
6. What is the methodological sequence of working on a still life?
7. How do we understand the term “generalization of a drawing”?