Drawing in Black & White

Creative Exercises, Art Techniques, and Explorations in Positive and Negative Design

Deborah Velasquez

• Publisher: Quarry Books
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781592537242
• eBook ISBN: 9781631593437
• Topic: Kunst
• Subtopic: Kunsttechniken

Hone your drawing skills and you eye for design by learning to draw in black and white.

Working with only positive and negative lines and shapes keeps the focus on the basics: composition, balance, and harmony. And using white and black gel, ink, and paint pens on black, tan, and gray papers allows you to experience drawing in a whole new way! Drawing in Black & White is a clever drawing and design book that contains 36 inspiring exercises and a gallery of artwork. Follow the tips and draw on black, gray, and tan paper to learn how different colored papers can make simple images pop. You'll find lessons on drawing, pattern drawing, drawing with cut paper, and simple collage. Learn to see your drawings a new way by drawing in black and white!

Exercise 1:
WARM-UP

WARM UP YOUR DRAWING HAND WITH FREE-FORM LINES AND SHAPES TO GET YOUR CREATIVE JUICES FLOWING AS YOU PREPARE TO DIVE INTO OTHER PROJECTS. I USE A TIMER TO TIME MY EXERCISES. USING ONE FREES YOU FROM OVERTHINKING OR OVERSTUDYING YOUR SUBJECT. UNDER A TIME CONSTRAINT, YOU WILL FOCUS ON WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IN YOUR VISUAL REPRESENTATION. I SUGGEST ONE MINUTE TO START. BE BRAVE AND TRY THIRTY SECONDS! MAKE IT A MORNING ROUTINE. MY YOUNGEST CHILD LOVES THIS EXERCISE; IT IS AN EASY, TIDY WAY TO MAKE ART WITH YOUR LITTLE ONE.

MATERIALS

Music

White sketch paper

Pen or pencil

Timer (optional)

1. Play some music.

2. Set up your sketch paper.

3. Put the tip of your pen or pencil on the paper and, without lifting it, cover the entire page with lines, circles, squiggles, or angles.

4. Get the flow going in your drawing hand. Stand up and put your body into it.

5. Let your lines be free, loose, overlapping, and fun.

Exercise 2:
GESTURE DRAWING

IN THIS EXERCISE, YOU WILL DRAW WITH ABANDON AND CAPTURE THE ESSENCE OF YOUR SUBJECT QUICKLY. GESTURE DRAWING HAS ALWAYS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH FIGURE DRAWING, BUT I LIKE TO APPLY IT TO OBJECTS OR ARCHITECTURE, TOO. THERE IS NO OPPORTUNITY FOR OVERTHINKING IN THIS EXERCISE. IT IS SO FREEING, AND I LOVE THAT SKETCHY FEEL THAT HAS PASSION, EMOTION, AND MOVEMENT IN IT.

MATERIALS

Timer (optional)

Drawing instrument of choice

Sketch paper, printer paper, or a paper bag

Craft paper or cardstock

1. I prefer to stand with my drawing pad propped up at an angle: It makes for a looser hand while drawing gesturally. Set up your drawing materials and reference objects in a way that is comfortable for you.

2. Set a timer for 20 to 60 seconds per object (this is optional). Study your object quickly and draw quickly. As your eye follows the shape, your drawing hand captures the essence of what you see. The drawing should not be perfect or realistic. Make your marks intentional and decisive.

3. Using five to ten sheets of inexpensive sketch paper, draw individual sketches of your object.

4. When you are finished with your individual sketches, draw five to ten of your favorites on one sheet of craft paper or cardstock to create a final piece of art.

5. Your drawing will have personality in its lines and curves. You can see this as you start and stop and as you move quickly up, down, and around the page. Think of your gesture drawing as a short story rather than a novel.

Exercise 3:
TWO-HANDED REFLECTION DRAWING

IN THIS EXERCISE, YOU WILL DRAW IN A FREE-FORM MANNER US...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Why Work in Black and White?
• How to use this Book
• Materials
• Exercise 1: Warm-Up
• Exercise 2: Gesture Drawing
• Exercise 3: Two-Handed Reflection Drawing
• Exercise 4: Follow the Line
• Exercise 5: Contour Drawing with a Continuous line
• Exercise 6: Blind Contour Drawing
• Exercise 7: Continuous Line Kitchen Drawings
• Exercise 8: Line Work Botanical Drawings
• Exercise 9: Playing with Negative Space
• Exercise 10: Mark Making for Texture, Value, and Form
• Exercise 11: Create Texture with Wrinkled and Folded Paper
• Exercise 12: Connect the Dots
• Exercise 13: Scribble and Fill
• Exercise 14: Brush Discovery
• Exercise 15: Painting with Gouache
• Exercise 16: White on White
• Exercise 17: Flock of Birds
• Exercise 18: Washes, Shadow, and Tone with Pen and Paint
• Exercise 19: Black Gouache Washes and Tones with Detail Work in Pencil and Pen
• Exercise 20: The Secret of Acrylic Ink
• Exercise 21: Sumi Brush Writing
• Exercise 22: Torn Paper Strips
• Exercise 23: Circles in Torn Paper
• Exercise 24: Cut, Fold, and Glue
• Exercise 25: Painting with Scissors
• Exercise 26: Cut Paper Fun
• Exercise 27: Hole Punch Garden
• Exercise 28: Hole Punch Village
• Exercise 29: Sketching with a Craft Knife
• Exercise 30: Stencil Art
• Exercise 31: Found Object Printing
• Exercise 32: Stamp Carving Tutorial
• Exercise 33: Block Print Patterns
• Exercise 34: Block-Printed Scenes and Cityscapes
• Exercise 35: Embellished Block-Printed Shapes with Line Work and Paint
• Exercise 36: Stitched Block Prints
• Gallery
• About the Author
• Acknowledgments
• Dedication
• Copyright