Iowa State University DSN 131 Exam 1

What 4 primary skills does drawing build?

Perceptual, manual, compositional, and conceptual skills

Conceptual skills

drawing is the most efficient way to think through and give form to visual ideas

inspiration

Some form of stimulation and motivation which triggers a creative response; the conscious formation of a problem or goal

incubation

a period where the conscious mind rests and turns to other things while the subconscious takes over

illumination

The sudden emergence of a solution to the goal; involves making connections

Perceptual skills

Through drawing we learn how to see

Manual skills

how to control materials using our hands

Compositional skills

Aware of organizing the elements of a drawing and can quickly work through several different design options through preliminary sketches.

What is creativity NOT?

making something out of nothing

What are the four stages of creativity

inspiration, incubation, illumination, resolution

Resolution

giving final form to the idea; involves deliberate organization of concepts and materials

What is one thing you should do everyday to get better at drawing?

sketch daily

design

The organization or arrangement of design elements to give form to a visual idea.

What is a term synonymous to design?

composition

design elements

line, shape, volume, value, texture, space and color

format

refers to the shape and dimensions of the drawing; This is the first shape of the drawing and it exists before you make any marks on the paper surface

thumbnail sketches

Small, quick, preliminary organizational line drawings that investigate compositional alternatives;

organizational line drawing

A light, simplified sketch which focuses on mapping out the general size and locational relationships between forms

pentimenti

Light, preliminary marks which serve as an underdrawing. “Mistakes left unerased by the artist”

subject matter

That which is depicted in the drawing

style

characteristics of form which are consistent that make a work identifiable as the product of a particular person, movement, period or place

content

The meaning inferred from the form and subject matter of a visual work

gesture drawing

A quick, spontaneous, all-encompassing statement of form. In gesture drawing the hand duplicates the movement of the eye as it scans the entire subject for essential directional and spatial relationships.

contour line drawing

Line drawing which describes the edges of forms, including both outer as well as interior visible contours of objects

cross-contour line drawing

Line drawings where lines appear to go across or around an object to indicate the turn of its form; indicates three dimensions

planar analysis drawing

Line drawings that describe the three-dimensional structure of forms in which curves are major planar shapes

tonal drawing

Drawings that emphasize contrasts in tone (instead of line)

medium

The specific material used by an artist

The two general categories of media

dry and wet

mixed media

made with more than one medium

metalpoint

A drawing technique in which the drawing medium is a think metal gauge wire. Good for detail work and is the predecessor of the graphite pencil

graphite

comes in pencil, woodless pencil, mechanical pencil, stick and powdered forms; on a grade scale

Two basic types of charcoal

compressed charcoal and vine charcoal

compressed charcoal

Compressed charcoal is better than vine for lines, sharp edges and dense blacks

vine charcoal

More easily smudged, blended and erased than compressed charcoal

Chalks and Soft Pastels

available in a wide range of quality, price and colors; easily mixed and smudged; pastels are better for drawings that are not too small

Crayons (wax) and Oil Pastels

easily smudged not easily erased

Colored Pencils

softer leads allow for wider range of contrast and intensity through pressure, harder leads keep sharp points longer which can be better for intricate detail

Watercolor Pencils

water-soluble pencils can be used with either wet brushes or dry.

blending stomps & tortillions

pointed, rolled paper tools for blending

chamois

animal hide rag used for lifting vine charcoal or blending larger tonal areas

eraser shield

thin metal template with various cut out shapes, the shield is laid on top of the drawing to mask edges creating sharply defined erased areas

kneaded eraser

can be shaped by hand to lighten blemishes, very useful for softening lines, erasing smudges and for working subtractively with vine charcoal

art gum eraser

erases soft markings, may fail to remove heavier lines

plastic stick eraser

Denser white plastic eraser that comes in a string-pull or mechanical pencil form

Pink Pearl eraser

standard general use pink rubber eraser

dry cleaning pad

a small cheesecloth sack filled with a powder that gently removes dirt and smudges from drawings

mahlstick

dowel stick used as a bridge to rest your hand on so that it doesn't smudge the drawing

Exacto knife

a sharp razor-edged knife used for scraping the drawing, sharpening pencils and erasers

pencil sharpener

ones which will produce good points with baldes that are sharp enough not to crack leads, portable hand-held sharpeners should have replaceable blades

fixative spray

a transparent varnish available in aerosol cans that is sprayed over drawings to keep them from smudging, "workable" fixatives allow most drawing media to be layered on top of sprayed areas.

Aerosol warning

NEVER breath in fumes from a fixative spray

Wet Media

generally non-erasable. In some techniques, a light pencil underdrawing is established first when more control is desired

colored inks

Made of either "fugitive" (impermanent) dyes or permanent pigments

steel pens

come in wide range of separable points, best on hard smooth surfaces, four different shapes (A=flattened square, B=flattened round C=chisel, D= flattened oval )

bamboo reed pens

creates variable line and dry-brush effects; better for short, bold marks

fountain pens

portable, refillable and pressure-sensitive pens

technical pens

used mostly for drafting and create uniform line, interchangeable nibs of varying widths are available, good for stippling and crosshatching

bamboo brushes

offers greatest range of flexibility as determined by brush size, pressure, amount of ink applied, dilution of ink and angle of brush to paper

brushes

brushes are sized small (lower numbers) to large, and are available in soft and bristle (stiff) types

ink stone

rectangular sloped-well stone which holds grades of diluted ink for variable tones for use with brushes

invented tools

Sponges, rags, twigs, or any materials that will absorb liquid, these tools can be dragged or stamped in different ways

support

The surface material upon which a drawing is made. For drawing this is usually paper, but can also be various boards, parchment, vellum or non-traditional surfaces

acid-free papers

papers that are essentially free of acids, made either or cotton rag fiber of have been chemically treated to be ph neutral, acid free better bc more permanent, less likely to become discolored or brittle or deteriorate

tooth

refers to the texture of the paper (smooth, medium rough or rough). The tooth is a series of peaks and valleys which catch the medium as it's drawn across the surface.

weight

refers to the thickness and density of a paper and is indicated in pounds (lbs.) per ream

ply

refers to the number of bonded layers which constitute a sheet of paper.

Newsprint

inexpensive, good for quick sketches in a variety of dry media, but this paper will discolor quickly

Bristol Board

plate and regular surfaces
hot and cold press
heavier weight
good for a variety of media
very good for pen and ink

Illustration Board

heavy weight board
hot and cold press
very good for pen and ink

What is the distinction between a sketch and a drawing?

A sketch is a rapidly made freehand drawing that's not usually made as a finished work. A drawing is a more finished, refined work than a sketch

A sketch is NOT

a doodle

doodle

an unfocused or unconscious drawing made while a person's attention is otherwise occupied

How long should a gesture sketch take?

anywhere between 30 seconds and two minutes

In a gesture drawing...

Work from the inside out

What is the most important concept in gesture drawing?

Simple shapes

What is the essence of drawing?

Making mistakes and correcting them

What should you NEVER do while in the early stages of drawing

Try to make everything perfect

How do you begin a drawing?

drawing lightly and keeping shapes simple; move around the entire page

Corrections in a drawing...

are made in relation to mistakes and utilize pentimenti

What is a mistake to an experienced artist?

a gift

Stages of drawing

1) Viewfinder to make thumbnails

2) Organizational line

3) Correcting Primary Shapes

4) Secondary Shapes

5) Details

6) Line Quality & Final Presentation

format should be considered...

the first and most important shape of a drawing

viewfinder

windows cut out of cardboard which are miniature versions of the final drawing's format, should match the proportions of the sketch

What is the intention of the viewfinder/thumbnail stage?

to generate variety between compositions and to do this quickly

primary shapes

general symbols for the objects they represent

A thumbnail sketch should take no longer than...

2 - 3 minutes

When you make your large sketch...

make sure you have your thumbnail in view and that it matches the ratio

organizational line drawing is...

the foundation of a finished drawing; scaled up thumbnail (primary shapes)

In stage 3, you should NOT be...

drawing details

Learning to draw from observation requires that...

you always look for relationships

In order for sighting techniques to work...

our arm should be fully extended with no bending of the elbow. Hold the pencil or sighting stick so that it is perpendicular to your extended arm.

When sighting, your drawing should be...

perpendicular to your line of sight.

perceptual grid

lines that you make on a drawing to check and adjust positional relationships between shapes vertically and horizontally

triangulation

a subject fitting within a series of triangular shapes

Proportion

refers to size relationships between parts of a whole.

When comparing proportion its easier...

to compare a short dimension to a longer one

To create a regular grid to translate a three dimensional still life into a drawing...

pick one dimension of an object in the setup to use as a unit of measurement for the entire subject. You will use this unit both horizontally and vertically.

secondary shapes

Medium sized that describe more identifiable objects, not smallest details, will develop the flat, simple primary shapes into more 3-D volumes

focal points

Developing detail will serve to establish focal points in the drawing and will hold the viewer's attention.