Weeks Ten & Eleven: Sketching, Composition, Form, Value, Rhythm

Great sketch sessions, everyone!! Each of you discovered new sketching techniques, we explored the elements of composition by drawing an agave plant. Everyone accomplished the goal of sketching loosely, quickly, and accurately.

Welcome new sketchers, Haley H. and Ben!! Scroll down or look for your name in Student Lessons, shown in the column to the right.


Be sure to check out the music video with Star Sketchers in action! Click here

And here are some new pics of you guys. Click here


Mini Drawing Show:
Shown below are the sketches that were done during Friday's video sketch session. Your skills really shined while drawing BIG! Click on the picture to enlarge for viewing:


top, left to right: Brianna, Alec, Haley
bottom, left to right: Raquel, Demetri, Freddy C.

Alec inked some cool character drawings that can be found in eXpReSsiOn sEsSiOn. Click here

Happy Holidays! Look forward to drawing with everyone after the holiday break. --Rob

Haley

I'm not sure which songs you were listening to on the iPod while sketching the agave plant, but it sure inspired some VERY expressive line work!! Beautiful artistic composition, Haley! Lots of rhythm going on! The looseness of the contour lines and lighter and darker tones (showing the different values of green) is a big shift in your drawing style. Your excellent observational skills are starting to blend with a wonderful drawing style that looks like a painting--a great foundation for starting a sketchbook/journal.

Freddy C.

Really BIG-time breakthrough, Freddy!! Like I said in class on Friday, I think you're an artist but you just don't quite know it yet. As you were working on this sketch, you began to tap into the creative/artistic part of your mind. The contour lines forming the plant's leaves are loosely and confidently drawn. Your mid tones and darker tones look similar to brush strokes in an impressionist painting. Excellent use of the kneaded eraser for blending tones and showing highlight areas.

Demetri

Another awesome drawing, man!!! And it's another big step in developing a useful artistic drawing style. You turned your bold pencil strokes into expressive lighter and darker color values while maintaining accuracy. The contour lines of the plant's leaves are very well drawn. I really like how you started using the kneaded eraser to blend gray tones and show highlights. Just wonderful, wonderful sketching, Demetri!

Alec

Excellent! Sketch! Alec! The flowing, looser contour lines are a big shift from the tighter line work that you normally use. This composition is definitely taking an approach that a painter would use when making a study sketch of the subject matter. I know this sketch and the music you were listening to launched you into an eXpReSsiOn sEsSiOn drawing (which I posted), but I hope you continue exploring sketching form real life; it will help you in a big way with the cool work you're doing with writing and imaginative drawing. You've got an excellent eye for accuracy.

Ben

Welcome to Star Sketchers, Ben!! Fantastic start in drawing the agave! The proportions (sizes of shapes compared to other shapes) of the plant are very accurately drawn. Excellent job of drawing the contour lines (edges) of the leaves. I really like how you held your pencil sideways and sketched while moving your arm. Great job of adding light and dark gray for the different values of green shown in the reference picture. You created an awesome composition.

Haley H.

Welcome to Star Sketchers, Haley!! You jumped right in and got to work on an awesome sketch of the agave plant! Great job of capturing accurate proportions (sizes of shapes compared to other shapes) of the plant. Excellent start in using gray tones to show different values of green shown in the reference picture. Really cool how you sketched guidelines for the contours (edges of the leaves) then added layers of gray for the color values. REALLY nice composition! Keep it going.

Freddy S.

Great to have you back in class, man!! You got back into it with a very realistic and natural looking agave! Excellent work in nailing accurate proportions and contour lines for the leaves. Way cool to see you loosening up your pencil strokes as you sketched quickly and accurately. Great start in using gray tones to show the different values of green in the reference picture. Your own drawing style is starting to show in this wonderful composition. Keep sketching, Freddy!