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112 The Drawing Club
(Text)
ExEr C isE:
Structure first
Several artists in this book mentioned this next bit of advice
to me, so I thought I should pass it on because it is basic, but
important.
Practice your structure first.
One of my relatives is an optometrist. He is a big fan of jazz,
so when one of his jazz piano heroes walked into his office one
day unannounced, he had to try his best to keep his composure
and not freak out like a fan. The guy came in for an eye exam,
and while checking his eyes, my cousin would slip in a question
about jazz every once in a while. How much did he practice?
About eight hours a day. Eight hours composing new songs?
No, mostly scales. The musician practiced scales all day because
when he performed, he wanted to play without thinking about
playing. He just wanted the music to flow from him naturally.
Creativity happens through good structure. So before you
get too carried away looking at all the drawings in this book,
wondering how they were done, remember that most of these
artists base their decisions on their understanding of structure.
It might be their knowledge of 3-D form, or anatomy, or 2-D
design. Their deep understanding of structure might compel
them to do something completely different than what the rules
say. Now that’s control!
In a very basic way, everyone should practice structure.
Thinking about what your figure-drawing teacher said about
anatomy or the 3-D form will help you when you are drawing a
character in a workshop such as The Drawing Club. You will be
able to conceptualize how the costume wraps around the charac-
ter. If you practice enough, hopefully it will just flow out of you
without having to think about it.
Club Tips
■■Just think one drawing at a time, and work consistently.
■■ Throw a costume party with fellow artists and take turns modeling for each other.
■■ When you’re at home, try sketching from freeze frames on television.
Taking sToCk
■■ Are you drawing every day, even if it’s just for ten minutes?
■■Are you drawing from life?
■■Are you allowing yourself to make mistakes?
The Avengers, china marker on paper,
Mike Greenholt
French Guy, colored pencil on paper,
Stephen Silver
The Boxer, china marker and white gouache
on gray paper, Virginia Hein
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(Text)
In a very basic way, everyone should practice structure.
Thinking about what your figure-drawing teacher said about
anatomy or the 3-D form will help you when you are drawing a
character in a workshop such as The Drawing Club. You will be
able to conceptualize how the costume wraps around the charac-
ter. If you practice enough, hopefully it will just flow out of you
without having to think about it.
Chapter 8: Mileage
The Boxer, china marker and white gouache
on gray paper, Virginia Hein
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