Lauren Reading; Gesture and Blind Contour
November 18, 2016 § Leave a comment
I haven’t posted for some time now and so I thought I’d throw in a drawing of my daughter, Lauren using a quick gestural and sometimes blind contour.
Stages in a Mixed Media Drawing
February 15, 2016 § Leave a comment
I recently have been working with mixed media works using colored pencil and watercolor. This first piece of a pileated woodpecker is the contour which provides the framework for my drawing. I can’t stress enough how important this stage is in revealing your personality as an artist, demonstrating form in the subject, and laying out your composition. I draw quite blind and by that I mean I keep my eye on the subject and let my hand become a tool of the eye. Prismacolor is one brand of colored pencil I use often.
Using Contour as the Framework
January 24, 2016 § Leave a comment
I will be recommending books that I believe will help you along your journey of self discovery through drawing and will start with my book the Little Book of Drawing; a Friendly Approach. This book is unlike others in that it highlights the contour line as the framework for your personality and emotion, composition, and reveals form and depth. My drawing of Lauren illustrates the importance of the contour. Notice that my contour is unique with its curvilinear quality and quirkiness. Yours will be much different. By allowing your hand and pencil to become an extension of your eye, you lose your inhibitions and connect with the subject. This gradated pencil drawing allows that line or contour to show through.
The Importance of Contour Drawing
June 3, 2015 § Leave a comment
Here are a pair of contours or line drawings of the sculpture of Persephone. Contour drawing lies at the heart of my teaching of drawing. It allows you as the artist to envision your composition; thinking all the way out to the edges. It provides the sense of a light source giving your subjects form or a three dimensional nature, But most importantly, by drawing blind and not keeping one’s head buried in the paper and instead on the subject, it reveals your personality. The hand becomes a tool of the eye and the contour becomes truly unique to you!!
Garlic Still Life
April 8, 2015 § 2 Comments
I’m showing the informative nature of the contour as it provides the framework for the finished gradation of garlic and cloves. 
Notice how the contour allows you to reveal your thought process of compositional considerations, the light source, area of emphasis. Once you have determined those elements, you are free to keep your eye on the subject and allow your personality to flow out onto the page. At this point, I keep my eye on the subject, let my hand become an extension of the eye, and rarely look at the surface of the paper. The contour line moves from light to dark describing the three dimensional nature of the subject, the light source, and the storyline you have set forth. Notice how my contour is curvilinear in nature. Yours will be very different. You can find examples such as these in my book The Little Book of Drawing; a Friendly Approach. My teaching style is encouraging in nature and allows you to try different media, techniques, and to find your own personal style of story telling through drawing. 
Quick Color Ink Contours
July 7, 2014 § Leave a comment
I’ve completed three quick ink contours for an upcoming color drawing class I’m teaching. Each will be supported with textural gradations using stippling, hatching, and scribble. And I’ll post when they are completed.
Edie
February 16, 2014 § Leave a comment
I’m posting a contour drawing of a wonderful little girl formerly named Sorissa and now called Edie by her adoptive parents. She has such a smiling face and I was attracted to her black and white characteristics which will contrast with the light source. I am hopefully working to submit this piece to Deviant Art which is show meant to dispel the myth of the dangerous nature of the Pit Bull and Rottweiler. A wonderful example of the warm nature of these animals is Edie. The contour provides the framework for the watercolor and colored pencil drawing. It provides me with so much information about the light source, the form and color of the body under the fur that if I never saw Edie’s picture again, I could complete the work. I’ll show this in stages.
Jess and Frankie
October 14, 2013 § Leave a comment
We could be two inches tall as we enter this magnified view of Jess and Frankie, We become part of a sentimental moment when the dog nestles into the arms of his mistress peacefully asleep. Included are the contour or line drawing, a partially completed gradation, and the final drawing in color pencil.
Letting the Contour do the Work for You!!!
September 19, 2013 § Leave a comment
Here is the contour and finished gradation of a floral. Notice how the line drawing does most of the work for you. It reveals the light source, which comes from the right. It tells a story of flowers nestling into their stems as they bend and reach upward. The composition gives a great sense of rhythm and repetition and shows an area of focus which is the flower on the right. Most importantly, it lets your personality shine through. The gradation should not require as much effort as the preplanning, expression, and the hard work have already been done!
The Hand as an Extension of the Eye
August 29, 2013 § Leave a comment
Here is another blind contour done with brush and ink. The lack of self control becomes even greater using a fluid medium. The blind approach is used to remove the desire for perfection and allow a more emotional side of yourself to be revealed. Each of us has a unique contour. Take the time to explore your personal statement. The control can come later!
Dr. Mary McNaughton and Drawing 