Thoughts on Drawing

Looking back over the course of this semester, I’m amazed at how much I’ve learned from this drawing class. Aside from the doodles I used to draw out of boredom, I had never had any formal or informal drawing experience. I remember the first time we sat down to draw from observation in the beginning of the semester. I had NO idea what I was doing. I was actually pretty nervous about it. But then as time went on, I began to pick up some intuitive techniques alongside the things we were actually learning in class. I’m just really excited that I can see a legitimate improvement in my drawing. When looking at my drawings and the pieces produced by my classmates, I realize that I have a long way to go in my “drawing career.” I’ll admit that it was often intimidating, and even discouraging, to walk in and see the beautiful pieces that my classmates had made hanging next to my drawing. But despite that, it’s nice to know that I am capable of doing this (albeit, to a lesser extent than my peers) as long as I put the work in.

Of all the techniques we’ve studied, I’d say that drawing with charcoal and using the eraser as a tool have been the most useful in jump staring my drawing. I’ve grown very fond of the fluidity and painterly-like aspect of charcoal, and using the eraser as a blending tool has made this art seem much more feasible.

Like I said, I had no drawing experience prior to this course. But I am so excited because this class has introduced me into this world of drawing in a way that I doubt I could have done on my own. Not only do I have the materials that I need to actually do the work, but I also have learned classic techniques that I think will go with me over the years. Considering how time consuming these pieces can be, I worry that I won’t be able to keep up the practice as diligently once the course is over. But I hope that I can at least apply what I’ve learned in Art 199 to whatever drawings I do.