Classic Sketchbook: Botanicals

Secrets of Observational Drawing

Valerie Baines

• Publisher: Rockport Publishers
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781631596957
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art Techniques

Learn to draw beautiful flowers from the old masters with some help from Classic Sketchbook: Botanicals. Improve your skills by learningtechniques on one page, and practicingon the next page.

Imagine learning to draw roses with Redoute, or tulips with Pieter Brugel. Imagine learning the secrets that made their flower paintings stand out in their eras and still stand out today. Classic Sketchbook: Botanicals is an art book that shows you how to create flowers that will stand the test of timeby taking a close look at the details of great floral paintings, and then coaching you through the techniques. Each spread in this unique bookis made up of two hard working components: The left-hand pagefeaturesa close-up illustration froma noted 19th century and earlier artist, and the right-hand page, made from quality, uncoated stock, is for drawing. There are also coaching tips, observations, and a demonstrative sketch on each page. As you progress through the book, you'll get to try a variety of artists' styles, and see how to apply them to your own personal style. Don't wait to get started! By learning from the masters, you'll become a master yourself.

A BOTANICAL SKETCHBOOK

A bouquet of flowers from this book—by Valerie Baines.

FLOWER SHAPES

The petal shapes here are defined by the shadows, striping, and leaves. Start with the leaves. Press firmly with a sharp white pencil to draw the central line of each leaf; then add the malachite green edges. Finish the smaller, lower leaves with moss green stripes.

Color the yellow crocus with light circular strokes. Press harder where the color is darker. Add stripes to the petals and stem with rose pink. Add color to the center with fast orange.

For the blue crocus, start with the rose pink and violet markings and then color the petals lightly with sky blue. Add shadows and striping with blue.

Shade the white crocus with light gray. Add the center detail with fast orange. Add detail to the base of the flower with yellow. With a very sharp violet pencil, draw in the feathery markings on the backs of the petals.

PALETTE

white, malachite green, moss green, yellow, fast orange, rose pink, sky blue, blue, light gray, violet

Study of Four Species of Crocus, watercolor on paper. Georg Dionysius Ehret, German, 1710–1770. Private collection/Bridgeman Images.

TEXTURE

Pussy willow offers a real challenge to artists with its fragile pollen, silky buds, and hard shiny husks.

Draw the pollen first with yellow dots made with a very sharp point and a little pressure. Next, lightly add the silky buds with mouse gray in short strokes round the edges and just a hint of scarlet on three buds. Where the pollen shows in front of the gray, furry buds, lay the gray pencil almost flat, and, using the side of the point, lightly skim over the yellow dots.

The husks...