Final Piece: Figure

The shading in this picture gives it a sense of form and depth. There is also foreshortening evident in the arms, and slightly in the hands. The pose looks relaxed as no muscles in the shoulders are tensed, however the legs look slightly uncomfortable as they are raised and tensed slightly. The proportions in general are good, the only real problem is the legs go slightly off the page.

Final Piece: Still Life

This picture was focusing on composition, which has been effectively achieved. The drawing shows distinct rule of thirds, with the lower third being taken by most of the objects, and the right third being taken by the mannequin. There are also good lines in the piece, as it seems almost to be scaled up as it moves to the right, shown by an imaginary line from the top left of the chair to the head of the mannequin, and the bottom of the glasses to the bottom of the mannequin. There are also no kissing objects, and the dice makes a good focal point for the image.

Final Piece: Landscape

This picture is framed effectively by the top roof and the cameras on the side. Indeed it is framed multiple times as you look further into the image, and it has a great sense of depth because of this. The lines that are made by the curves of the window invite you even further into the image, almost making it seem that you could look past the building which blocks the view. The lines of the walls are clean and crisp in the centre of the image, adding to the feeling of the modern architecture which is the subject.

Week 12: Colour 2

A 20 minute colour study using chalk pastels.

This is somewhat more competent as an image than the previous colour study. There is nice depth, created by the shadow of the birdbath and the shadow behind it, it seems very obvious that it is not just a part of the background. The red tree in the foreground is also good for breaking up the image and creating depth, as well as observing rule of thirds. The plant in the foreground of the middle is not so good, however, as it doesn't really seem to be in front of the gravel floor, perhaps due to lack of tonal values and also it is slightly transparent due to the medium used.

Week 11: Colour 1

A 15 minute colour study using chalk pastels.

The composition in this drawing is good, using perspective of the conservatory which is mirrored on the ground by the stone tiles, it draws the viewer into the centre of the image. An issue is that the main focal points are the plant pots at the bottom left and the overly blue sky at the top right, and there is not really a lot going on in the centre of the image. This creates an odd imbalance of focus as most of the information is in one of the corners.

Week 10: Urban Interiors - Classical

A 15 minute sketch of a classical interior, this drawing is pleasing as a composition as it has multiple layers of depth, it has a foreground in the fence at the bottom, a midground in the pillar on the right, and the rest is background. This creates a good sense of depth in the image and also helps to break it up into smaller sections. It also follows rule of thirds as the pillar on the right takes up a third of the page.

The tonal value of the image is not great, as a lot of the stonework is similar shades which does not translate very well as a drawing, however there is enough variation to be able to understand where the layers of stonework are.

Week 9: Urban Interiors - Modern

A 15 minute landscape study of modern interiors. As a composition this is effective, there are lots of lines, such as the window and one that traces the three cubes at the bottom, point into the centre of the drawing, which the eye can then follow any one of out again. It also follows rule of thirds somewhat, with the glass panes making up two thirds and the building making up the left third. The cubes in the bottom also roughly fill a horizontal third of the image.

The perspective in this image is effective for the same reason as the composition, the multiple lines of the glass clearly point toward a horizon line in the centre. The lines in the building to the left do this equally well, also showing the form and curve of the building. The curves on the glass are represented well in this same way, as the lines do not seem random but do follow curves that make sense.

Week 8: Non-human Anatomy

A roughly 10 minute anatomy study of a bird, this image makes anatomical sense and the proportions are well placed. The wings and tail feathers are good, though the tail feathers could perhaps do with being a bit longer. It is also clear that the bird is looking down at an angle, even though you cannot see the eyes in the picture, the information gained from the position of the beak can inform you of this.

Another roughly 10 minute anatomy study, this is also a successful image as the pose is immediately clear. The rough way in which the feathers not on the head have been drawn gives a great sense of depth and form to the bird, helped by the shadow it casts. The head is well defined, though perhaps not immediately obvious as to its positioning due to the shading. Both the legs and the beak help to give the bird a pose which makes sense, and also make it feel very grounded on a surface.

Week 7: Balance & Weight

A 15 minute drawing focusing on the weight of the body, in this especially around the elbow this is evident. While the legs appear to be in a very relaxed position, shown by their lack of stretch and slight bend, the elbow on which she rests is in contrast and looks quite uncomfortable. This is increased by the slight hang of the head, which would occur when weight is focused on the shoulder and elbow.

The concept of weight in this drawing is also helped by the shading in it, which gives a sense of form and shape to the body which helps the viewer to understand the weight it carries.

Week 6: Pose & Posture

Three 5 minute sketches focusing on pose.

The central pose has a good line running from the left side of the body down to the foot, forming a good area for the eye to travel. The feet in this picture, especially the left one, are not drawn very well, however, and have no real sense of anatomy, which is a contrast to the other areas.

Proportions in both images of the right are generally good, the rightmost one is not entirely accurate as the body appears elongated in proportion to the legs, but the arms exhibit good pose, giving a sense of what the woman is looking up to. The pose in the central image is also effective, showing a sense of sorrow or depression, as the limbs hang down and the face is turned towards the ground. The poses in all three tell a definite story of a woman who is depressed changing her attitude, which makes the three rather powerful when put together.

Week 5: Anatomy

A 10 minute anatomy and pose study, again with quite a focus on foreshortening.

In this image the foreshortening is clear and good. It is quite obvious to the viewer that the leg is held upright in front of the body, and also that the rest of the body is behind it at a different angle. The proportions are good, and the perspective points clearly to a horizon line above the top of the picture.

There are also some good lines in the image, for instance the one which comes down from the raised arm and follows the body towards the leg. This is a good continuous line and helps to create form in the image, as does some of the directional shading, which gives a feeling of weight and depth to the picture.

Week 4: Foreshortening and Perspective

A 30 minute drawing focused on perspective and the foreshortening that comes from perspective.

The perspective and foreshortening of the skeleton in the foreground is done well, the body is approximately 6 heads from top to bottom (or side to side) diagonally, which would indicate somewhere between half a head and 2 heads of foreshortening, which from the angle would make sense. The anatomy of the skeleton in general is good and proportioned correctly, all the limbs are placed somewhere which would make sense, and nothing is floating around wondering where the rest of the body has gone. There is one problem which is that some of the ribs are missing to the left of the spine.

As both the skeletons were diagonal from the viewpoint and the horizon line is not on the image, the only real hint that is given is the drapery on the floor, which would suggest that it is somewhere above the drawn space. This would indicate that perhaps the skeleton in the background should be foreshortened or angled slightly more, however it still adds to the depth of the picture and would appear to be proportioned in a way that makes sense with the skeleton in the foreground.

Week 3: Composition

A 10 minute line drawing focused on form and composition.

The composition in this image is good, as there are some good uses of the rule of thirds, specifically the jug on the right in the vertical, and the cup on the left in the horizontal. There are also some good lines in the image following the tops of the objects and also the sides of the jug which display long continuous lines. There are also no orphaned objects and no kissing objects, although with the tops of the two central objects it is slightly unclear if they are or not. The slightly lighter lines describing the people and area of the background also aid the image overall, as they give the composition more place and help to give a sense of depth to the picture.

The lines and especially the ellipses of some of the objects are good at describing the form, even though there is no shading there is a distinct idea of how the objects are shaped and where they curve, if they do. One place where this is not very effective is the top of the rectangular object, it is not entirely obvious what it is doing. 

Week 2: Form and Shape

A 10 minute negative space drawing focused on the forms in the composition.

The composition in the image, while central and potentially not very interesting because of this, is otherwise good as there are no orphaned objects, especially interesting as this means all the objects essentially merge into one due to the negative space, creating an effect where you are not quite sure where objects meet, but are aware of multiple objects in the image. There are also some interesting lines going through the tops and middles of the objects, creating a feel where the objects seem almost to be scaled up in size the further to the right they go.

The stark whiteness central to the image stands out from the background and creates interesting tonal values in the image, included in this is the drapery which has only been semi-shaded, creating a suggestion of space without a large amount of information.

Week 1: Efficiency and Effectiveness

A 15 minute drawing of drapery on a chair, this drawing is focused on being quick and efficient in style. This is achieved by using long, continuous lines which are measured and observed, and large areas of smudged shading to create different tonal values and highlights. The checker pattern is then essentially an overlay over this layer with some highlights picked out with a rubber. The checkers have been observed to make sure that they appear to follow the curvature of the fabric.

The composition in this image is not brilliant as the chair and fabric appear to be floating in space due to the lack of background, and there is no rule of thirds. However the image is balanced down the centre and has some good lines along the edge of the inside of the cloth.