On 23 Nov, 2014 With
Question from Daniel Michalovics, Drawing Academy student
Hi,
My name is Daniel. I live in Germany and I am glad that I have finally arrived at the Drawing Academy. I am currently working on Assignment 3 – Drawing in Perspective.
At this point, I must mention that when enrolling in the Drawing Academy, I did not know that there was a proposed list of assignments. However, I find this extremely helpful. The assignments seem to be in an order that is very easy to follow. I really appreciate this curriculum because in the past, I tried to make my own assignment list which was nowhere near as logical and target-oriented as the one found here. This one really encourages me to work hard on my drawing skills.
Here is my actual question. I tried to draw an imaginary set of pyramids with squares at their bottoms in a one-point perspective. How do I know how long I need to draw the edge of a square that is facing towards the vanishing point?
It must have some specific length so that the bottom plane is seen as a square with equal side lengths. From the rules of perspective, I know that this line must be shorter than the horizontal line at the front. However, when drawing from imagination, I can only guess its real length. Is there some kind of trick I can apply here?
I have seen a few internet videos that teach how to draw a perfect cube in a two-point perspective. However, the methods they show are rather complex. I prefer not to use them every time I try to draw a simple square. I also do not like the fact that these methods only cover a two-point perspective. If there is no simple method, how can I learn to estimate the length correctly? …
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On 17 Nov, 2014 With
Questions from Xuan, Drawing Academy student
Hello Vladimir, Thank you for the excellent video lessons. I very much enjoy them. You mention that the ellipse (representing a circle in perspective) is distorted, with its front portion larger than the back portion, so that it becomes an oval with only one axis of symmetry. I think, a circle always appears as an ellipse from a linear perspective. While it is true that the closer half of the circle is larger in perspective, the resulting shape that we see is still a perfect ellipse. However, the horizontal line that bisects the circle does not intersect the ellipse at its widest point…
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On 9 Nov, 2014 With
Questions from Saninny, Drawing Academy student
I recently obtained access to life model sessions and although I am currently not far in the Drawing Academy, I decided to proceed forward and take advantage of the opportunity to draw life figures.
I would like your opinion on how to improve my gesture drawings so that I can depict a long pose more effectively.
I realize individuals differ on how they believe a gesture drawing should be accomplished (for example, some believe in the usage of scribbly free movements, spare lines that capture main direction only, et cetera), but I welcome your suggestions and advice…
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On 2 Nov, 2014 With
Hi,
My name is Daniel and I’m from Germany. I’ve been trying to learn to draw for a few years now. What inspired me to this is that I’ve been quite a fan of Japanese Manga. So I’ve bought a book on “How to draw Manga” which unfortunately was of almost no use to me. It had a lot of images and explanations on specialized topics but it didn’t really improve my drawings.
I realized that what I was truly looking for is something that can teach me the basics, the fundamentals of drawing. Something that will give me the skill to draw whatever I see or imagine.
So I’ve read some books which were widely recommended for teaching exactly that. I can’t say that they were bad, in fact I’ve learned some things that improved my drawing skill a bit. Anyway I’m still not at a level that I can draw confidently the things I see or imagine.
So when I stumbled over this website on YouTube it caught my interest instantly. After watching the free video previews I realized that Drawing Academy was exactly what I’ve been looking for all the time. That’s why now I’m quite sure that I’m going to enroll in the Drawing Academy as soon as I finish my busy work at university.
I have the following questions:
Can I learn to draw the human figure without having access to a life model?
I can only access tutor questions by the link provided in the e-Mail Newsletter. I can’t find them anywhere on the website.
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On 1 Nov, 2014 With
Question from Daniel Trpka
Hi Vladimir,
What do you think about a sight-size drawing method?
Many artists say that sight-size is not good for imagination and memory drawing.
French artists from 18-19 century (Bouguereau, Gerome, Cabanel…) had excellent imaginary paintings…
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On 28 Oct, 2014 With
Many thanks to all subscribers who are asking various things about art and how to learn drawing.
Today, I will answer several short queries.
If you have any questions, please submit them here »
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On 27 Oct, 2014 With
Question from Skotchy
Do I really have to know how to draw humans if it’s my goal to know how to draw animals and made-up creatures?
I ask that because many drawing lessons are about drawing humans…
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On 25 Oct, 2014 With
Question from Anastasia, Drawing Academy student
Dear Vladimir,
I have seen some drawings with very dark backgrounds. When I try to shade dark areas, the graphite marks become glossy.
How to achieve dark tones in graphite drawing?
What is the best technique to render really dark values? …
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On 24 Oct, 2014 With
Question from Anastasia, Drawing Academy student
Dear Vladimir,
Thank you very much for the drawing course! I have learned so much from your video lessons.
Please see my portraits below that I was doing in a life drawing class. When making these sketches, I have been told by an art instructor that the line use is wrong; she insisted that it all has to be done tonally. Can you please clarify the correct way to draw sketches?
Thank you again for your support and opportunity to study! …
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On 23 Oct, 2014 With
Question from Slater Smith, Drawing Academy student
Hello,
Some artists and instructors have recommended making blind contour drawings. Without looking at the paper, you move your pencil “with” your eyes until all the contours of an object have been drawn. The practice is supposed to help hand-eye coordination, but I’ve never seen a Master drawing from any period that uses such an approach, or at least not from what I can tell.
On top of that, all I ever manage to get out of blind contour drawings are scribbles that hardly resemble the subject.
What does the Drawing Academy have to say about this technique?
Should I use it, or am I better off avoiding blind contour drawings? …
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