Sketch Book for the Artist

EARTH

AND

THE

ELEMENTS

Drawing in the Round

WHEN DRAWING IN THE LANDSCAPE, seek places in light

shade out of the glare of the sun, so the paper is not made

blinding and your hand cannot cast a shadow on your

work. I usually begin by making an image of the whole view.

This first drawing serves as a process of arrival, settling my

concentration, and seeing what the real choice of subject is.

After my first drawing, I am then able to home in on what

interests me most for further study. For example, making

the scene below led me to focus on the decaying boat

opposite. Similarly, on pp.214-15 my first drawing of the

whole view of the Tiber led me to see the real subject of

the day, which was the flow of water over rocks.

FINDING THE SUBJECT

Finding a remarkable subject is even better when you can circumnavigate it in an arena

of space. The mud of the tidal shore in Rye, England has embedded within it the decaying

skeleton of a burned fishing boat, bare ribs, engine, and tiller still standing proud. Circling a

subject and drawing it from several views imprints on your memory a better understanding

of its three-dimensional form. Building on earlier studies of structure in space using shoes

(pp.164-65) and a wire violin (pp.104-05), your challenge now is to find a sculptural

subject in the landscape, taking with you your drawing book and pen.

"Drawing in the round means to literally walk around your

subject, observing it from several views so as to better

understand it as a whole."