Week3: Life Drawing 3 Skeletons, Anatomy and the Gothic.

Week 3 - Skeletons, Anatomy and the Gothic.

Continuing to answer the group’s requests for further specialized drawing practice, last week, portraits and expressive hands, this week – anatomy.

The University Science department has kindly loaned their Skeletons to observe and draw.

We'll revisit tonal drawing techniques from last semesters, to describe form, but also to explore gothic narratives.  

Warm Up Exercises.

Wax Resist Skeletons.

• In a plastic cup water down some drawing ink, place to one side.
• With a wax candle draw a number of skeletons on a sheet of A1 cartridge paper.
• Next, using a paper towel, wipe the watered down drawing ink over the paper to reveal the skeleton drawings. 
• Review drawings – what works, and why? Develop successes and experiment further. . . 
• Try using the ink paper towel a drawing tool as well, avoid making random marks, use descriptively.
• Repeat 2 or 3 more times -  each time lengthening the drawing time.  Consider reposing the skeletons, students could drawing them as a pair, one standing, one sitting.
• You may wish to include the Life Model in these wax drawings, draw them in wax along with the skeletons; will they appear as a ghostly figure? Find out!

Further warm up options – using barbecue skewer sticks to draw skeletons

Length of warm up approx. 30/40 mins

Compressed Charcoal Drawings.

Focus: Anatomy.

To simplify this rather challenging drawing day, use compressed charcoal to describe the skeletons, its such a bold medium, it will help prevent being caught up by tricky & troublesome detail.

Draw the Skeleton and the Life Model in a number of poses, sitting standing, lying down. The Skeleton can mirror the model. You should begin to get an understanding of underlying anatomy in each pose.

Try and interpret the model and skeleton as simple shapes, not focusing on detail too much.–Focus your attention on capturing these shapes accurately - correct proportion, angles and relationships.  

Each drawing, increase detail bit by bit.

Until final drawing has a lot of detail.

 3 or 4 drawings 20/25 mins each, simpler ones shorter length, complicated longer ? 

Keep to simple graphic line drawings, as this will be a demanding challenge. Your Focus should be on: proportion, angles, interconnecting relationships within skeleton and the model. 

Time approx. 1 hour 30 mins.

B     R      E      A       K           (20/30 mins)

Prepared Paper – Charcoal Tonal Drawing – using erasers, charcoal & compressed charcoal.  

Focus: Tone and Atmosphere.

Revisiting last semester’s tonal exercises, employing it as an atmospheric/narrative image making device as well as descriptive one.

2 or more long poses. Set up the model and the skeletons making dramatic combinations – keep your approach simple. Don’t over complicate your image!

Exaggerate the tonal differences to create drama and atmosphere. Your image should have large areas of dark shadow, and contrasting white areas/skeletons.

Use white chalk if available!

Fin