Life Drawing 101

Lily Song, 9

Herbert Wang, 12

Self-Portrait

The students really don't like to do self-portrait. They are so concerned about getting the likeness. But getting the likeness is not not the aim of drawing a face. The face in the art work takes a life of its own. Nobody cares how Mona Lisa the person really looked. It's the face in the painting that lives on.

Herbert Wang, 12

Michael Tu, 11

Conté Crayon Value Drawing

Art cannot be taught. The most an art teacher can do is to introduce material and method. I introduced Conté crayon today and asked the students to put something in the drawing so it won't be just a boring value study. Here is  what came out of everyone's imagination. 

 

In the World of Color

Today's class, opaque watercolor. The Night Watch,  by Melisa Li, 13. I prefer this one to Rembrandt's. 

Big Bird, Big Picture

My niece brought her scarlet macaw Naga as live model for the class. Macaws are big birds, so I had the students drew on 18x24 size paper.

Herbert Wang, 11

Max Peng, 13

师法自然 Learning from Nature

 A nice day out sketching at the Hanson Farm in Hinsdale.

Summer Time, Flower Time

Derek Song, 10

Max Peng, 13

Lily Song, 8

Michael Tu, 10

Herbert Wang, 10

Diving Into Water

After drawing in black and white for two months, the students are asking for color. I decided to let them paint with watercolor instead of drawing with colored pencil, for even the most expensive colored pencil do not match the pigment concentration of watercolor, therefore, the color of colored pencil will never be as exuberant as watercolor. Watercolor is the most difficult painting medium. It is unpredictable, and there is no correction can be made once the paint is on paper, because of this, however, it makes watercolor painting an exciting adventure. Each art medium is like a different instrument. It takes a long time to master the tool. 

Herbert Wang, 11

Max Peng, 13

Michael Tu, 10

Your Room, Your World

A few days ago a violin student of mine showed me a gouache painting that she did of Grand Canyon. She has never been to the Canyon. She painted her picture from a photo. To me that is not the purpose of making art. We make art to show our own world, to express our own feelings, and to reflect things that have personal meanings to us. I had the students drawing a corner of the room today.  I hope that they will draw their own rooms, like van Gogh, a simple painting of a corner of his room that have touched so many hearts. 

Lily Song, 8

Herbert Wang, 11

Max, Peng, 13

Michael Tu, 10

van Gogh

Summer One Drawing A Day Challenge

They are drawing at home! 

Max Peng, 13

Melisa Li, 12

Michael, Tu

Lily Song, 8

Herbert Wang, 11

Keeping Them Forever Young

It takes a long time to become young. --- Pablo Picasso

Charcoal pencil drawing of toy animal replica. As a teacher it is my duty to guard the children's innocence and originality.These drawings would make Picasso envy. 

Lily Song, 8

Max peng, 13

Michael Tu, 10

Herbert Wang, 11
                                        

Melisa Li, 12

Hard to Go Slow; Hard to Go Fast

Thread Drawing by Jin Zhang 

The weather is nice. Although the students have been drawing for only one month, I thought I must prepare them for outdoor sketching. So I introduced thread drawing technique today, which is to use fast continuous moving lines like a long thread to draw quickly. To my surprise this technique seems to be more difficult for the students to grasp. I thought it was hard for the mind to go slow; apparently it is equally hard for the mind to give up control and let the eye and the hand go fast. So for this week’s gallery you are seeing more contour drawing of shoes. I am sure I will have some thread drawings from the students to show after they practice for a week.

Herbert Wang, 11

Melisa Li, 12

Michael Tu, 10

Max Peng, 13

Lily Song, 8

Slowing Down the Mind: Drawing Objects with Complicated Shapes and Lines

I introduced objects with more complicated shapes and lines to the class today. The difficulty to draw such objects is not associated with the eye but with the mind. It requires the mind to go as slow as snails crawling, which proves to be itchingly difficult. The eye sees everything if time is given. But the mind, the impatient bully, never gives the eye enough time.  

Lily Song, 8

Herbert Wang,  11

Melisa Li, 12

Max Peng, 13

Michael Wang, 10

500 Sheets of Paper: The Start of A Drawing Life

The spring of 1985 I entered the second semester of my freshman year in college. Besides my music classes I took Art History 101: From Giotto to Renaissance. Other than the textbook the professor only assigned us one book to read, The Lives of the Artists by Giorgio Vasari written in 1549. In the preface Vasari expressed his view of artists as divine genius. I felt doomed on becoming an artist. I was clearly not endowed with this divine talent. But as I read on I started having hopes. When Vasari talked about Giotto’s teacher, the hard working young Cimabue, he said, “. . . [the] continuous practice so greatly enhanced his natural talent.  .  .  .” As a person who started the violin at age 5, I understood this so well. I am never lazy with practice. I know that if my middle name is not Amadeus, I must practice hard to call on divine notice, and the moments often come. Three weeks ago I gave each student 500 sheets of newsprints for them to start their drawing life. They have all made their permanent drawing corner at home. The point of taking drawing class is not for them to draw in my studio but for them to draw in their own studio for a life time.      

Herbert Wang, 11

Lily Song, 8

Max Peng, 13

Michael Tu, 10

Melisa Li, 12