The Artist_s Magazine 2016-03__

ask the experts

March 2016 61

NORTH

WINDOW

EASEL

ARTIST

SETUP/

MODEL

If you don’t want to do that,

consider cropping a little of the

left or right of your image. How

much to crop? To i gure that, divide

the height of your drawing by the

ratio of the canvas: 12÷0.79=15.2

(rounded to the nearest tenth),

meaning you’ll lose 8/10 of an inch

from the length of your image. If

that seems okay, rule a line on your

drawing where you want to crop it (a

ruler with /10-inch markings, such

as a Westcott C-h ru 10ths graph

ruler, is helpful).

Once you decide how you want

to adjust your drawing for the 22x28

canvas, you can grid your drawing

with 1-inch squares and i gure the

size of the squares on the canvas

as explained previously—by divid-

ing the height of your canvas by the

height of your drawing.

MAKE THE MOST OF NORTH LIGHT

Q. What’s the proper position of

an easel in relation to a north-

facing window? Should the easel

be to the west or east so it’s at

right angles to the north light, or

BELOW: Positioning

of artist, easel and

subject in relation to

a north-lit window.