http://www.myamericanartist.com/ en-US Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:15:00 -0400 http://www.typepad.com/ http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/324021059/positioning-you.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/07/positioning-you.html Set up your drawing board and easel on your drawing hand's side so you don't need to move your head or draw across your body as you work. Ideally, you will only move your eyes back and forth from the... Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:15:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/07/positioning-you.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/313783885/move-your-drawi.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/move-your-drawi.html Constantly move around your drawing, working up various areas at the same time to the same level of finish. Don't get caught in the small stuff in one particular area. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:13:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/move-your-drawi.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/303679868/posing-the-mode.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/posing-the-mode.html Ideally you should pose the model so he or she is slightly elevated above your eye level. That way you will see the whole figure from its middle, and there will be an equal distance from your eye to the... Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:10:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/posing-the-mode.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273525/figure-long-pos.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/figure-long-pos.html When drawing the figure in long poses, be aware that the model will usually relax and settle into the pose after a few minutes. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:09:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/figure-long-pos.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273526/drawing-the-fig.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/drawing-the-fig.html When drawing the figure start with the model’s torso and build out from there. Save arms for last since they are simply attached to the larger mass. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:08:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/drawing-the-fig.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273527/drawing-is-look.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/drawing-is-look.html Drawing is 90% looking and 10% mark-making. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:07:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/drawing-is-look.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273528/light-sources.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/light-sources.html Nothing destroys a multi-figure narrative faster than an inconsistent light source. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:06:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/light-sources.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273529/creating-textur.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/creating-textur.html When drawing in colored pencil, lifting pigment with small wads of crumpled masking or drafting tape can suggest many natural textures such as the the tree needles, twigs, and rocks on the forest floor. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:06:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/creating-textur.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273530/starting-a-draw.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/starting-a-draw.html When starting a drawing, it is helpful to start with the large masses moving to the smaller forms within. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:05:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/starting-a-draw.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273531/measuring-the-f.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/measuring-the-f.html When measuring the figure with a straight angle, be sure to always lock your arm at the elbow so the distance from your eye to your measurement tool is always the same. This will keep measurements more consistent. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:01:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/measuring-the-f.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/306273532/avoid-distortio.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/avoid-distortio.html To avoid distortion when drawing, use an easel that is perpendicular to the ground and parallel to the picture plane. When a drawing is in your lap or is tilted, there is a greater chance of distortion, because of the... Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:00:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/06/avoid-distortio.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/285559758/center-point.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/05/center-point.html Make sure you are at eye level to the center of your drawing surface so you can judge your drawing's composition from its center point. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Wed, 07 May 2008 10:40:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/05/center-point.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/285559759/beginning-a-dra.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/05/beginning-a-dra.html At the beginning of a drawing, draw from the shoulder and not from the wrist; think about large, sweeping, expressive marks. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Wed, 07 May 2008 10:00:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/05/beginning-a-dra.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/265827532/highlights.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/highlights.html Where light strikes an object perpendicular to its surface is where the light is most intense—that will be your highlight. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Mon, 07 Apr 2008 09:55:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/highlights.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/265827533/light.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/light.html Light only illuminates what is in its path. As light leaves its source it decreases in intensity. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Mon, 07 Apr 2008 09:00:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/light.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/265827534/lines.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/lines.html A line is not a line, it is a form’s edge. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Mon, 07 Apr 2008 08:50:00 -0400 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/04/lines.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/248021275/shadow-colors.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/03/shadow-colors.html Keep in mind that shadows are rarely black or completely black due to reflected light. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:45:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/03/shadow-colors.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782433/edges-as-guides.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/edges-as-guides.html As you are drawing, think of edges and how they can guide the viewer’s eye through a work. The sharper an edge, the more an area will stand out. Soft edges recede and pull contours back into space. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:37:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/edges-as-guides.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782434/shadow-values.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/shadow-values.html No value in your shadow area should be lighter than your darkest light—always compare values in relationship to the whole so that drawings will have proper depth and dimension. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:35:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/shadow-values.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782435/cast-shadows.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/cast-shadows.html The light’s direction can be determined by the direction of an object’s cast shadows. An object’s cast shadow will be thrown behind the object in the same direction in which the light is striking the object. Light doesn’t bend, it... Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:29:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/cast-shadows.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782436/the-body.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/the-body.html When drawing a body’s contour, it is helpful to think about how the forms on the inside overlap each other and push out to create the contours. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Fri, 08 Feb 2008 08:05:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/02/the-body.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782437/edges-in-pictur.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/01/edges-in-pictur.html Remember that a single edge will vary in sharpness and softness as it travels through the dimension of the picture plane. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Wed, 09 Jan 2008 08:04:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/01/edges-in-pictur.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782438/contour-drawing.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/01/contour-drawing.html Draw as if you are doing a blind contour drawing—just with a little peeking! That is, look more intensely at what is in front of you than at your drawing. Draw with your head first, then your hand. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Wed, 09 Jan 2008 08:00:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2008/01/contour-drawing.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782445/the-human-body.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/the-human-body.html Remember that the human body’s forms are all convex; there are no flat planes that meet each other. They are all convex "hills" that run into each other at varying angles. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Thu, 13 Dec 2007 07:59:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/the-human-body.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782446/light-and-dark.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/light-and-dark.html Be careful of light areas that are adjacent to dark areas; those light areas will appear to be lighter than they actually are. To better approximate the correct values, check each light area against other light areas. Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Thu, 13 Dec 2007 07:58:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/light-and-dark.html http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/americanartist/drawingtips/~3/235782447/highlights.html http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/highlights.html Under one light source, highlights are hierarchical based on their distance from the light source. Light’s intensity diminishes the farther it travels from its source so the closest highlight will be your highest value and your farthest will be your... Drawing Tips AmericanArtist Thu, 13 Dec 2007 07:42:00 -0500 http://www.myamericanartist.com/2007/12/highlights.html