Learning from Life

[BlackGuy]

I wanna start by saying that obviously, drawing/painting from life is never a waste of time. However, when you're drawing from life for the sake of learning (as opposed to drawing from life for the sake of producing a pretty picture), I can't help but feel like that there are some things that could make the whole process more benficial. So I'm asking what kinds of things should we be looking for when we're doing our life studies? What should we be thinking? What should we be analyzing? Where should we be paying extra attention? What will help us learn as much as we can from each life drawing session, instead of copying the model in front of us without really processing anything to later use in our imagination drawings(/paintings)?

I encourage everyone to post your thoughts, this isn't only directed to professionals and teachers.

[Chandan]

I try to look at each pose for 30 seconds talking myself through the body instead of starting to draw right after a quick look.

[Jedmo]

I'm no expert and my drawings from imagination arent terribly great but, for what its worth, here are some things that have definitely helped the process for me as far as learning goes. First, and I think probably most crucially, try to work out some mass conceptions for different areas. The body is pretty much full of egg shapes and cylinders. It really helped my life drawings when I started to look at the forms of the body not as, say, an arm, but as various kinds of basic shapes hooked up together. I've found that I can more easily control the light on the body by thinking this way and make my drawings look "more correct" than what is actually in front of me. Going along with this idea, studying anatomy is another biggie. In your study though, try to look for the muscles you are learning about and how you actually see them working in the model. I find it helps to kind of say "Okay, for this pose, I'm going to focus primarily on the torso and whats going on there". Keep an anatomy book handy and try to pick up on where you see certain muscles and bones influencing the form.

I think probably one of the best people at both of these things is CA's own Mentler. His drawings show a wealth of anatomical knowledge and one can learn a lot by studying his drawings (and reading his handwritten notes on his sketchpages). Looking at his stuff has helped me pick up a lot of these things. Also, Glenn Vilppu's Drawing Manual also opened my eyes to a more knowledge-coupled-with-observation kind of approach to figure drawing. Well thats my two cents on the topic. Maybe some of the pro's will drop in here and blow my ideas out of the water. Actually, I'd kind of like it if they did.

[armando]

Life drawing is an opportunity to test our knowledge. In figure drawing for instance, it is best to already have an understanding of the figure and anatomy before attending a session in order to test it against reality. The prerequisites of life drawing are a prior knowledge of the subject, and a basic understanding of drawing techniques. E.H. Gombrich's "Art and Illusion" is an interesting book about this.
The style we use to draw while doing studies is also important, it should suit what it is we're trying to focus on. Mass/modelled drawing, cross contours and plotting in perspective would be suitable for studying the form and structure of a thing. Tone drawing would be suitable for studying atmosphere. Gesture drawing would be suitable for drawing moving things which are too fast to scrutinize. Line rhythm is useful in figure drawing to figure out how masses are balancing.
On the whole I think the most important thing is to have a hypothesis first, which can then be tested. The cool thing about this method is you can test your ideas without even needing to draw. Most people tend to overemphasize the pysical act of drawing rather than the thinking going on behind it which is more important.

[BlackGuy]

Interesting takes. Knowledge of anatomy and seeing it in action is definitely an essential. And I definitely agree about Vilppu, I love the fact that he stresses analyzing the model, instead of copying it.

Armando, the thinking going on behind the drawing is EXACTLY what I want to discuss! I'm going to try to check out "Art and Illusion," thanks for that recommendation.

So are you guys consciously thinking things to yourselves like "ok so in that pose, that guy's clavicle is turned this way, and his pecs are stretched out like this..." or does all this stuff tend to be more subconscious? Because after like 10 minutes of drawing, I find myself more focused on drawing the model as I see it, as opposed to trying to analyze the model while I'm drawing.

[Flynt]

Drawing from life is great for understanding and investigation of what you are seeing so that when you can’t work from life you can impose those lessons and experience. Some questions to ask might be:

Where is my light source? How does it relate to my subject? Why does it appear brighter here and darker there? Is it the angle of light? Is it the distance of light? Is it a local value change? Where is true shadow? Which planes most face the light source?

What forms make up this contour? How do these forms relate? What proportional relationships pop up again and again? Which muscles are active? Why? Which are passive? Why?

This list could go on forever. Best of luck with your investigations.

-Flynt

[Fl3wk]

I actually like the work I produce in life drawing. Sure some speed sketches might be a little off, but heh, its good to see my mistakes. :spam: