Week Five, Continue Study of Values, Shading Light on a Sphere.
Last lesson we started to think about values, 1 to 10 values, we made a value scale as a way to talk about light and dark values. Even though we were drawing white on white, toilet paper rolls against a white wall, our drawings were anything but white. Light hitting surfaces controls everything! Shadows define shapes. We used cool natural light coming in from the window on a simple cylinder shape. In looking at values, it's a process comparing this to that. “This is two shades lighter than that.....” Early on, when I suggested it's best to develop your drawing all over simultaneously, it's because of this comparing activity. We compare one shape to the next shape. We get the values correct in relation to neighboring values. We also compare sizes and angles, how is this shape compared to this next shape over....We don't want to get too invested in a bunch of details to realize they are in the wrong spot. HOLD OFF on those details!!
Put your eyes into the soft lens of looking without seeing details.
Often with this kind of tonal drawing, lines will disappear, and that's good. A drawing becomes shape next to shape. Original contour lines acted as a guide for shapes. This is a painterly approach. Here's a developed drawing, drawn from life, where the original guiding contour lines have disappeared. The drawing is about values, shape, 3-D volumes.
The values come right up to the next shape. See cast shadow under breast defining left arm. The background wall comes right up to the right leg, defining the leg shape. There is no obvious line there. The line served it's purpose as a guide, and now is absorbed into the shape.
Project, Let's go back to our set ups from last week and try this approach.1. make a nice contour line drawing in a #2 or #3 value, a light pencil drawing. 2. Then work up values right up to edges.
Let the shapes make the edges. Now is a good time to use a gummy eraser as a
drawing/blending tool. We are going to take this week's drawing much farther, we are going to develop our drawings. For example, spent 30+ minutes with your contour, spent 30 minutes to an hour+ with your shading.
Steps:assemble and sharpen tools
set up a simple arrangement
check the lighting
look, just look, what are you seeing?
Start with a contour drawing
measure
check angles
mark in shadows, cast shadows
what's happening in the background
shade in all shadows at about a number 3 value, pattern of dark and light areas
now go into specific areas and start to compare degrees of darkness, degrees of light
compare one area to the next, "if this is a 6, then this is a 7"
work this way all over the drawing
same in the lights, "if this is a 1, then this is a 2"
be aware of soft, hard and disappearing edges
look to decide where you might want to punctuate some marks
stand back from your drawing.
Second Project Try something experimental with a value scale, like stacking up values. Here's an example:
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Erasers can be very useful for tonal drawing, especially when you need to pull off some graphite to lighten an areas. Or if you've gone too far. Eraser can work as blending tools, they can tend to darken graphite before removing graphite,if gummed up, experiment. Also a light pencil, an H or a 2H can also be a blending tool, they don't put down too much material, but can even out a passage, try it! Shading, there's no “right way”, it depends how you like to move your hand. Some people use a stump, to blend....... I prefer to see a person's individual marks. Be energetic in shading passages, Experiment!
The most important thing to remember is when you have a soft edge, like a form shadow, come across the form, there is almost no other way to make a soft edge with a pencil.
Art term, disappearing edge When two values are the same along an edge, they merge, the edge disappears. This is a way to have edge variety. I like disappearing edges and try to find them.
Hard edge
Soft edge
Disappearing edge
When you look at drawing and paintings of other artists start to notice their edges.
A note on equipment....
Some people sharpen their pencils with a razor blade to expose a lot of the lead,and have a longer working time before having to stop and sharpen again. This is a good habit, keep your drawing equipment in a little basket, pencils, razor, eraser, and sanding block for extra nice tip sharpening.
I'll demonstrate in class. Youtube clip here
Paper can be taped or clipped to a piece of foam core or a drawing board, with a few sheets of newsprint to soften the surface underneath. If its necessary to protect the drawing while working on it, a piece of glassine will do the job nicely and it's cheap at art supply stores. Try better quality drawing paper.
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Back to shading and light, Light on a Sphere.......
If light on a sphere is understood, there will be an understanding on more complex forms.
It is difficult to “make up” light, make observations from life.
Light, coming from one source, either the sun or a primary lamp, will be consistent across the drawing.
Let's look at the sphere. We see 2 kinds of shadows, form shadow on the wooden ball and a cast shadow on the table.
The form shadow starts with a soft edge. The cast shadow has both kinds of edges, sharp near the ball softening as the distance increase. The darkest shadow on the ball is the core shadow. The lower part of the ball has reflected light bouncing off the table. Always look for the dark core shadow right as lit area turns into shadow, look for the "tideline" of core shadows just at the turn.
The lit side of an object will be in the 1 to 4 value range
The shadow side of an object will be in the 7 to 10 value range.
Keep the lights light and the darks dark. Here's a synopsis of how light and shadow hits basic shapes. See the darkest core shadow just past the lit areas. Do you see anything wrong here?
How would you have drawn the cast shadows?
Week 5 Take Home Project
Try a still life at home with natural light, daylight, and the same still life, using artificial light in the evening.
Compare different light conditions, were there any differences?
Here are some examples by Mary Beth Mckenzie, paintings desaturated into black and white images to see the Value Structure.
Check out her website to see these examples in color.
Above, a pastel, below an oil both by Mary Beth McKenzie Look at her value structure in her paintings. Look at her edge control, Look for soft, hard, and disappearing edges.
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