30 Day Drawing Challenge Day 9- Upside Down Drawing

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

30 Day Drawing Challenge Day 9- Upside Down Drawing

Drawing is not the same as form, it is a way of seeing form. 

Edgar Degas

I know, I know...you're thinking what in the world? But trust me, this is a great technique for getting your mind out of things and learning to trust your eyes. I constantly amaze myself with my ability to make things up as I draw. I think I'm looking, but so often I don't really see, and my hand keeps going, and then....things get all muddled up. Relationships of objects aren't right, and proportions get skewed. I'm guessing that maybe you can relate...

What's the answer? It may surprise you that my answer is often to turn my subject upside down. Crazy as that sounds, it works, and it's way easier than drawing on my head!

Materials you'll need:
Pen of your choice (yes, I'm feeling demanding again)
Paper
The drawing below:
Draw using this image or
Print it out and turn it upside down from this site http://www.gramilano.com/2011/10/two-quirky-ballerinas-strike-a-pose-at-the-frick-collection/

Draw the ballerinas by Picasso by looking carefully at the drawing and the relationship of lines to one another, and to the edge. Try to not label anatomical features as anything but shapes and lines with direction. You can talk to yourself, and you can look at your paper (see how nice I am?).

Hint: for the outer contours of the figures, think about the "negative shapes" that are formed by the edges of the figures and the edge of the paper. See how far you've come? You actually know what I'm talking about when I discuss negative shapes now. =) Draw those shapes and you'll be on your way to correct placement and proportions.

Have fun with it...it's upside down and it's a wacky image anyway, so there' s no big risk in tackling today's challenge. When you're done it'll look something like this:

Thanks for sending in some of your drawings from your arduous efforts at drawing over the last week. Think about it, we are almost ⅓ of the way to completion already! Are you feeling any dawning awareness? Are you gaining insight? Feel free to share it here or via email.

For those of you who are participating, look at these examples of real work from previous days of the challenge, sent in by real people just like you. I especially love the recorded "thoughts while drawing" of the shoe! lol If you send me your images prior to the end of the challenge, I'll include them in future blogs.

Keep drawing and I'll see you with another challenge to keep you on the path toward 30 days of Drawing and improving!!!