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I found myself focusing upon a single bloom in full sunlight. I was seeing a tulip! I was drawn into it. I felt an urge to sketch the flower and I. I spent a full hour seeing and drawing that tulip. I searched its shapes, its color con- trasts, its value relationships, its textures, its shadow patterns. I copied the forms meticulously, though not from a botanical viewpoint. My drawing probably would not satisfy a botanist because it was a translation into terms with which he could not be familiar.
He would not have seen what I saw, as I must have missed what he would be looking for. Each of us would necessarily see a tulip in different ways, and both of us could maintain that we had indeed seen it, though not in its. I like what William Saroyan once wrote about seeing: "There is such a thing as creative seeing. What constitutes such looking? Clarity, intelligence, imagination and love.
You make a point of looking at the object. You look steadily and clearly. You see the object, you see it again. You notice the true nature of it in its entirety. You relate its reality to all reality, to all time and space and action.
You admire its survival and you love its commonness and its individuality. And he made a mighty good job of it. The artist employs even more than eyes and brain; his muscles creatively enter into the seeing process. With- out making a graphic record, the seeing process is still incomplete. The action of the arm and hand make a recognizable contribution to the phenomenon. Thus, through collaboration of eye, brain, and muscle, we go beyond knowing about to the intimate experience of knowing, which is the basis of creation.
There is recipro- cal communication of viewer and object. It is a very real experience, this merging of oneself with the life of the object, even though it be an inanimate object. This may seem like a metaphysical concept, and it is, yet it is a very real phenomenon, and those of us who draw or paint creatively are well aware of this intercommuni- cation between artist and object.
Consider, for example, our comparative responses when drawing from a photo- graph and drawing directly from the object. There is a deeply sensed intimacy be-. Is that not why a sketch our sketch, however slight and lacking in detail has infinitely more meaning to us than a fine photo-. I think this explains in part the therapeutic value of drawing and painting for amateurs, although they doubtless are not consciously aware of it. The inspiration of "being with" tran- scends the mere ability to create a reasonable facsimile.
I have gone to some length in discussing this concept of creative seeing because I believe that a conscious awareness of its impact upon one's drawing experience js. One of the first decisions an artist must make concerns size.
How large shall he plan his sketch or his painting? The way he answers the question is important. It may mean the difference between success and failure; at least it will qualify his success. There is ust the right size for his work, whatever it may be. One is time. It would be folly for the painter to take along a large canvas when for one reason or another rapidly chang- ing light, for example he will have not over an hour for his sketch.
The necessity for quickly recording some moving action is another. The inconvenience of a large. Most painters confine their outdoor sketching to small panels that fit in their paint boxes, or to relatively small watercolor papers. It is technically possible to make a. A 20" x 30" canvas, on the other hand, presents a relatively small scale for a painter in oils, a medium that can manage a 20' x 30' mural gracefully.
Watercolors are kept within nar- rower space limits, as are pastels. When handled broadly, the pencil which, like. However, it is not a medium for large scale work. Architects, to be sure, do make pencil renderings four or five feet long to visualize proposed buildings for their clients.
But we are discussing sketching, and are not concerned with these elabo- rate drawings intended to illustrate details, suggest textures of building materials, and give an impression of the whole design.
Six Drawings of a Boathouse, Cornish Coast, England These six sketches are reproduced at exact size to suggest how the structure might be ren- dered when seen at varying distances. The and most detailed sketch is a largest close-up. The smallest drawing illustrates how the boathouse would appear at a distance of about a quarter of a mile. Detail disappears with distance. Do not make your pencil drawings too large. What is too large? The answer depends somewhat upon the subject. A castle or a skyscraper may suggest a larger drawing than a boathouse, but an 8" x 10" pencil drawing of a castle is as large as I would attempt.
I almost never work larger than that, and my preference is for an even smaller scale. The largest sketch of the boathouse Figure 14 is reproduced at exact. For beginners, I strongly recommend very small drawings; novices will thus escape the danger of becoming hypnotized by detail. It is by way of illustrating some of these size factors that I have made the six.
They are reproduced at exact size, and are intended to suggest how the structure might be rendered when seen at varying distances. The largest is obviously a close-up. It is, as I have said, as big as I would care to sketch it in pencil, and it has all the detail afforded by the subject. To draw it larger would force the pictorial details at the expense of general effect. The smallest sketch is the way the structure might appear at a distance of, say, a quarter of a mile.
As we come nearer, the darks appear. When we are close to the subject, we see its complete tonal gamut. But it is well to keep in mind the simplified light and dark pattern of that far distant effect when working on our close-ups; otherwise we run the risk of losing clarity and sense of volume.
In larger drawings, it is very easy to become so diverted by illustrative detail that the big pattern hence compositional power is sacrificed. It is fairly common practice among artists to preface their final drawings or paint- ings with thumbnail sketches which help them to see their subjects in simple and effective patterns. There should be no inactive areas.
Every part of the picture must have something to say. When a large area is devoid of illustrative interest, the drawing fails to convince; it looks empty. In this connection, refer to the various treatments of the boathouse roof. In the first four sketches, the roof is. In the fifth drawing we begin to feel the need for greater interest in the roof; and in the largest one, it was necessary to give a definite impression of an ancient patched roof that probably leaks during heavy rains.
The roof of the fifth sketch would look unfinished if duplicated in the sixth drawing. New York top was taken "way back when. They set themselves tasks that would worry even practiced artists. In large scale, it is so difficult to get what we call "quality. I should remind the reader that the foregoing remarks about size apply only to drawings that have no purpose beyond their own charm. Painters, accustomed to large scale work with the brush, often make sizeable pencil notes purely as records.
They do this with no thought of producing drawings to delight the eye. There is still another factor that must be considered in our discussion of size. That is. Some people naturally do their best work at small. They like to draw with arm movement rather than finger movement.
These individual, temperamental qualities ought to be considered; they are important. The large scale person probably will never be as effective with pen and pencil as with charcoal, pastel, or painting media. The scale which suits him is something each individual must discover for himself. To illustrate my discussion of composition, I am going to take you back to days that most of you were too young to remember, if indeed you had been born.
Look- ing through my picture file recently from days when took my camera on walks I. Here is a rather fascinating subject, which I probably would have sketched had there been time, that day, before the wagon pulled out from the curb.
All I. The tiny pencil sketch reproduced at exact size in Figure 16 demonstrates. Figures 17 and Photograph and Sketch of Theatre of Marcellus, Rome Here, the photograph at lower right and final drawing pose a problem of simplification and pattern similar to that in South Street, New York Figures 15 and Both subjects required an illustrative approach that would give the illusion of reality, yet create a pattern that would direct the eye to a desired focal point.
Ponte San Lorenzo, Venice In this drawing, the barges under the bridge constitute the compositional nucleus of the scene. Seeing activity around the barges, and expecting that they would soon depart, I made the quick study seen above and incorporated it into the final drawing at the right. In the rendering of these barges, it was urgent to depict them with the darkest tones the pencil is capable of producing. Obviously, this task is the work of very soft leads. The paper was Alexis, a surface with just enough tooth to accept very dark values.
In contrast to these darks, the tone which represents the bridge's fagade under the balustrade was kept very light just dark enough to display the lighter values of the balustrade and the gracefully arched member that appears to support the bridge.
The patch of very light pavement stones bordering the canal prevents the canal edge from leading the viewer's attention out of the picture at the right. Perhaps the indication of buildings beyond the canal might have been extended more completely, yet they are of little more than environ- mental use, without any architectural interest. Note how the darkened building mass on the right gradually is dissolved as it approaches the roof, receding from the center of interest; and how, with restrained suggestions, the now lighted building facades have been given a sense of completion.
The light gray shading at the far end helps to focus the light behind the team where we want it. In Venice, the artist is literally surfeited with sketchable subjects.
One is bewild- ered by the beauty which lies before him in the architecture of buildings; the splen- dor of its bridges, that span the myriad canals; its sculptured forms; and the pervad- ing sublimity of man's commitment to artistry in every detail of environment.
This dedication to the arts is the glory of all Europe, but Venice, the "Pearl of the Adri- atic," has a special kind of bewitchment for the artist who is confronted with the perfect subject at the turning of every corner.
The problem is one of selection, espe- cially if one's time is limited and the desire to draw or paint everything is distracting. One comes upon some subjects that are utterly compelling. Such was the Potite. Lorenzo Figure I say "was" because at that particular time when I first saw it, freight barges were tied up under the span.
Those barges were the dark shapely masses that made this sketch. I began to draw them at once Figure 19 , ignoring the structure of the bridge, because, seeing considerable activity on the barges, I sus-. I had scarcely fin-. This did not disturb me because the bridge remained and, I suspect, looks exactly the same many years later. I took my time drawing the bridge and indicating the buildings on the far side of the canal. In pencil sketching, simplification is a necessity because one does not reproduce the entirety of any subject in a photographic manner.
Always there is a core of interest which one wishes to isolate to some degree from its environment. I care- is. It is framed at the left by the old tree, and supported below by a mass of dark foliage. As in all architectural.
Although drawn with architectural accuracy, the shadow strokes are vigorous and direct, avoiding the fussiness and monotony of an unbroken technique. I wanted to attract as little attention as possible to the tree, so that it would not dnert attention from the tower.
The dark below the tower serves as a color contrast, thus enhancing the natural foliage delicacy of the tower. I kept the foliage mass as restricted in area as possible, completing its form below merely by white space with hints of its growth form. The light-toned tree. Photograph and Drawing of Brooklyn Coal Sheds This drawing, made in and reproduced in a book now out of print, is useful in illu-.
I refer to the way in which interest is focused at a central point by arbitrarily manipulating the shadows of the projecting coal sheds. These shaded sides of the structure appear in the photograph as uniform values above.
I modified these shadow tones in my drawing right , emphasiz- ing dark and light contrasts and concentrating the darkest values near the picture's center, which is the natural focal point. Interest is also concentrated at this point by the variety of detail. Notice the introduction of white elements, such as the flight of stairs, at the focal point. The shadowy tone that plays up the side of the pier is not actually a shadow; it is a tonal improvisation, a part of the all over compositional strategy.
The tower is the jewel in a setting which should be treated in such a. So the foliage mass was rendered with restraint, very dark against the structure and merely suggested below. Likewise, the tree that fans out about the tower provides an enclosing frame for it on that side, and the lightly indicated trees on the right serve a similar purpose on that side. The wall that runs along the path below is a supporting base for all. The drawing of Brooklyn Coal Sheds Figure 23 is accompanied by a photo- graph of the subject Figure 22 to illustrate how a drab scene can be brought to life by concentration of attention at a focal point, where interest is aroused by arbitrary manipulation of values and, shall we say, theatrical lighting.
In doing this, far from doing violence to natural vision, we are aiding it in what it seeks to do: focus attention upon a restricted area of interest. It is helpful to remember this phenomenon of seeing the inability of the eye to focus upon more than a very small point at one time. We cannot "take in" a. People are not aware of this limita- tion because the focal beam moves over a scene so rapidly, flitting unconsciously from point to point, that the phenomenon is not noticed.
The artist is well aware of it and he composes his picture, be it a painting or a sketch, in such a way as to. This purpose was accomplished in the sketch of Brooklyn Coal Sheds Figure 23 , by lightening all peripheral shadow values, by concentrating the darkest shadow values in a restricted area at the center, and by throwing theatrical lighting upon the area of action, thus bringing to life what, in the photograph, as in the scene itself, is drab monotony.
Figures of workers have been introduced, and miscellaneous white shapes and lines have been cut into the dark shadow to enliven the sense of activity. The spot-. Vesuvius from Sorrento Cliffs. In this drawing, difficult to give the effect of the smoking volcano in the dis- it was rather tance, while rendering just enough of the immediate foreground to illustrate the dramatic form of the limestone cliffs rising from the Bay of Saples and to have them serve as a frame or foil for the volcano.
It would be impossible to correctly represent the tone of the volcano in pencil. I might better have rendered it in outline. In my sketch, the volcano appears nearer than the fifteen miles away it actually is.
Nevertheless, the purpose of the sketch nas accomplished, since no one expects the same degree of literal ness from a pencil drawing as from a painting in which a far greater range of values in addition to color is possible. The indication of the cliffs, accomplished with little effort, is reasonably suc-.
I added a hint of the shoreline, and a few projecting rocks. The slanting, shadow-like. Another quite different situation might appropriately be included in this chapter. The panoramic view of Vesuvius from the Sorrento Cliffs Figure 24 was sketched from the garden of the Cocumela pension, perched atop the limestone cliffs abut- ting the Gulf of Naples. My view was along the side of those cliffs, which rise about one hundred sixty feet or more above the sea, and was intercepted by a prominence known as Montechiaro.
This prominence serves as a frame for the view of Vesuvius across the Bay of Naples. I wanted to render this rocky mass in dark tones and then gradually lighten it as it receded from the prominence, at the same time indicating the cliff formation with as little penciled tone as possible.
One would seem to have little scope for composition in the drawing of the ogive, main entrance to Notre Dame Cathedral Figure Selection would appear to be involved here. It was necessary to select areas to receive an approxima- tion of the tonal darks and those in which the detail is brought out into the light,.
This arbitrary division of dark and light sections of the sculptured decoration resulted, I think, in a more striking presentation in the pencil rendering than in the photo- graph itself. The white is carried up with the dark areas by representing the lightest. The unknown creator of his magnificent sculpture is among the vast company of artists who, during the era of cathedral building, contributed anonymously to a great collaborative achievement for the glory of God. This drawing was made from a photograph.
I could not have been favored with a vantage point from which to make such a detailed rendering. Photographs are not likely to evoke the emotional incentive experienced in direct drawing from the subject.
Occasionally, however. I have been so stimulated by unusually fine pho- tographs of sculpture and architectural details, that I could not resist the temptation to draw them. One can readily see that my drawing is not a copy.
The forms, but not the tonality, are copied. Tone is interrupted even in the darkened upper area by white paper accents. Unless a drawing is being made exclusively with line without tonal mass, that is pattern becomes the essence of its structure. Even in line, we do not escape thedemand of pattern, as may be simply demonstrated by the comparison of Figures 27A and 27B.
In A, the drawing suffers from the absence of design interest pro- vided in B, where the massing of twigs in three different places provides a degree of excitement entirely lacking in A. Thus, tonal pattern is created through the con- junction of lines. You might say that you cannot make any drawing without pattern of some kind.
In a drawing of any two adjacent lines, the shape of the space they enclose, and indeed the conformation of the lines themselves, constitute pattern. In this chapter, however, I refer principally to pattern resulting from relationships of tonal masses their relative sizes and shapes, together with the white areas that are associated.
Color may be almost entirely responsible for pattern possibilities, as in my sketch Along the Beach, St. Ives Figure 28 , where the color tones of vines which decorate the wall of the principal building, and the color tones of the roofs, consti- tute the essence of pattern interest.
In such a situation, the designing of the foliage becomes the key to the interest of the entire sketch. Here the mass of the vine is. The effect may or may not have been just as I rendered it. That does not matter. The tonal variations of this foliage mass dark and light are of importance too, and one is impressed by the relationship of nearly black areas at the left to the light tones at the right, where the observer's interest is being gently led out of the picture.
Interesting value relationships are always a big factor in the creation of pattern. Consider, for example, the impact of the black accents of the windows in Along the Beach, St. These are as vital to pattern interest as seasoning is to food. In this. Old Jesuit Church in Sorrento, Italy. The point of interest in this sketch is the bell tower, where I concentrated my delineation of details. The palm tree is fortuitously placed to support the tower; and the shrubbc r the base serves as a terminating connection with the street.
Two Line Drawings of Twigs Even in line we do not escape the demand of pattern as a comparison of these two line drawings reveals.
Pattern is the very first consideration in the creation of almost every sketch. Analyze, for example, the sketch of Rocky Shore 3 Figure First we look for the essen- tial, basic pattern which will hold the entire structure together Figure 30A Next. Figure 30B , we attend to the prominent secondary pattern details and intend to keep these inviolate, proceeding to subdivide them without losing their identity and their importance in the allover pattern scheme. In Figure 30C, we work within the lighted area of the principal boulder, again seeking the most dominant shapes.
After that, we get down to rendering. We have established the framework, but that, however important, is only the beginning.
As we explore the tonal aspects, we get even deeper into pattern problems. Yet, if we have become expert and have "taught our pencil," it takes over very much as I have tried to illustrate in the detail of Rocky Shore 3 Figure Within that small shadow area, pattern continues to dominate our work. And pat- tern here, as you see, is involved with values and with technical niceties, where direc- tion and character of stroke conspire with white or light accents within the mass to portray the texture of the rock and to create an agreeable abstract expression.
Along the Beach, St. Ives, Cornwall On the shore of almost any harbor in Cornwall, the artist is treated to the delights of ancient towns created to serve the business that for centuries has been the occupation of this part of old England the sea. I made many drawings in St. Ives, Mousehole, Newhn. The group of masonry structures seen here is not perhaps dramatic typical its informality and meaningful presence. Pattern and value in itself, but, rather, colorful by relationships dominate the vine which clings to the main building of this group.
How vital to the effect are the two uncovered areas of the wall ami the contrasting dark window openings. Note the variety of tone in the greenery, graduating from the near black foliage mass that creeps over the wall, to the very light areas at the right, where solid tone gives way to open-line technique as interest trails off for exit at the right.
The dark mass of seaweed near the boats contributes an important balancing tonal note, and adds an appro- priate illustrative accessory as well. The rocky outcrops attract geologists and artists alike. A com- parison of the three studies discloses different rendering techniques, which are due, in large measure, to the drawing papers on which I worked.
The two other rock subjects Figures 32 and 34 were drawn on clay coated paper, which not only permitted scraping out of white shapes and accents, but also provided diversity of tonal character. However, there is considerable technical interest in the toned areas. If this rendering lacks some of the tonal character apparent in the other interpretations of the same subject, it emphasizes the pattern structure, as is pointed up in the accompanying analytical diagrams.
Pattern Structure of Rocky Shore 3 Figure 30 A top isolates the dominant compositional basis of the picture what I call. In 30B center , the secondary pattern units appear. And in 30C bottom , these secondary pattern units are subdivided into smaller light and shadow details. Figure 31 below , a pencil sketch, explores a detail of the same subject. Within that small shadow area, pattern continues to dominate, involving itself with values and technical niceties. Figures 32 and Rocks at Shore, Manor Park, Larchmont, New York In contrast to the simple compositional arrangement of Rocky Shore 3 Figure 29 , the light and dark shadow patterns of this rock mass might be described as jazzy.
The drawing is composed of many small, dark and light areas which keep the eye bouncing from one detail to another. The line analysis Figure 33 explores the dominant divisions of the rock formation.
The nearer rock mass forms a distinct unit silhouetted against the enfolding rocks behind. I remember insisting upon the cohesion of this group. The dark massing of clouds, cohering with the tree mass, is a stabilizing factor in the design. Figures All I had to do was follow my pencil. The niceties of technical rendering were spontaneous and effortless.
The drawing is on clay coated paper, so it was probably rendered with two or three leads. The treatment is so direct that I did not need to take advantage of the paper's scraping out possibilities.
On a clay coated paper like Video, one can create the blackest tones of which any pencil is capable. The intrusion of white accents throughout adds immeasurable sparkle to this sketch. The sky needed only the barest linear cloud indication. Indeed, as you examine most of my drawings, you will note that the sky seldom goes beyond line suggestion. It is not often that I venture into tonal modeling of clouds.
V snail , white paper with a few linear cloud suggestions suffices. Though tone does most of the work in this drawing, line accenting of contours is very important. Collection, Mrs. Frederic C. Detail of the Chain Gate, Wells Cathedral The tonal patterning on the narrow wall is a typical technique used for rendering masonry.
The white shapes which break into the tonal mass serve a two-fold purpose: they create pattern, and they act as a transition to the adjacent wall. Note the diversity of values within the individual stones a purely arbitary variation of tonal reality.
A Canal in Venice Sauntering along the canals of Venice, one comes upon dramatic compositional effects that vary with the time of day. At a time other than that chosen for this sketch, the light and dark effect of this scene would be quite different. The sunlit wall would be in shadow, and the impact of that dark shadow Here I solved the problem of leading into or missing. Reference might also be made to the wall of the distant building, which combines an area of smooth tone with sharply pointed pencil strokes above.
There was no need to indicate the structural composition of the wall as I did in the narrow vertical wall at the end of the walk. Here the indication of a few blocks of stone within a broad tonal mass a Inch tapers off to white paper suffices to give an impression of solid structure.
Collection and courtesy, Mr. Donald Holden. Compare the other rock studies there are three in the book in Figures. In these, the basic pattern structure may not be so obvious. In Figure 32 you will have to search for it. Figure 32 indicates two main divisions in the rock. I call this drawing a jazzy render- ing, being so intrigued with the jumble of broken elements. But look herein for the. I now call attention to a kind of patterning we commonly use in rendering masonry. I have already written at some length about various technical aspects of this drawing, but I want to refer here to the tonal patterning upon the narrow wall that is isolated.
We have, first, the intrusion of white stone shapes which break into the tonal mass. These white shapes not only create pattern, they also serve as an agreeable transition to the adjacent wall, which is indicated only in outline.
This avoids an emphatic and undesirable separation of the two walls. Then, looking within the tones themselves, we note great diversity of values in individual stone members some dark, some light a purely arbitrary variation of tonal reality. All presumably were of equal value.
This effect of patterning of masonry structure is evident in many of the draw- ings, among which I shall point out one other: the paving of the sidewalk in A Canal in Venice Figure To illustrate this, I refer to my sketch of Germain, France Figure With it I show an analysis Figure 38 , in a rough sketch, which I have made to illustrate how a drawing develops upon a positive and felicitous pattern which is.
Figures 37 and Germain, France The little pattern sketch right was done in a minute or two, as a preliminary for the drawing of St. In it, I organized the design, planned the values, and simplified the tonal scheme.
In starting the drawing itself above , I began with the black notes under the awnings, then rendered the dark shaded sides of the buildings and the cast shadow. The roofs came next, then the lightest tones. Last, I drew in the clouds and the curb. I happened upon this scene at a very oppor- tune time.
The tall buildings at the left were casting a dramatic shadow upon those on the opposite side of the street. Had the day been cloudy and the scene devoid of this ready made skeleton pattern, I would have been obliged to create my own. In any event, I would not have left this place without a sketch, which, by the way, is dated by the horse drawn carts.
It was made in A similar pattern situation is seen in the sketch and pattern analysis of Old Swiss Chalet, Zermatt Figures 39 and 40 , which were made on one of the few brilliant days I spent in that stimulating town. In A View of Zermatt Figure 41 , there is no unifying pattern of dark and light; the sketch is nothing more than a factual record of a scene I wished to remem- ber because of the hotel where I put up during my visit there, and to remind me of the rather tortuous approach among the small houses of monotonous similarity.
I have included it as an example of the failure to produce an exciting drawing without strong pattern interest. On many occasions, we make purely factual draw- ings of things that we thus want to remember. Refer to the tree silhouettes Figure The pattern of these trees, so differ- ent from one another in form, is the first aspect with which we are concerned.
We are attracted to trees which are most appealing in their silhouette patterns, and we are insistent upon correctly portraying their silhouette aspect before breaking their. Often there is little more than a silhouette to be done, especially if the trees are relatively distant in the landscape. But when the trees are viewed at closer range,. Often the foliage is confusing in its monotonous repetition of many unrelated details.
Even in rendering distant tree groups those not near enough for focus upon structural details there is the need for textural refinement of the masses in a man-. Figures 39 and Old Swiss Chalet, Zermatt The chalet makes a picturesque subject for any medium. It is a particularly delightful motif for the pencil artist because its construction deep roof overhang and butt ends of timbers which support the horizontal wall timbers gives the sketcher something very tangible to get hold of.
This sketch was made in a favorable light; the sun was falling directlyon the gable end, creating deep shadows of great interest. Actually, the tone of the gable facade was uniform, but the pencil rendering shows great tonal variety, lightening up the facade by the use of white areas, within which the horizontal timbering is indicated by line. The accompanying analysis Figure 40 explores the confining light and shade pattern of the chalet.
A View in Zermatt This sketch was made principally to record a picture of the hotel where I lived for a few days in The mountain rising abruptly behind the hotel is dotted with simple huts or chalets. The stream which flows in the foreground seemed as white as milk the mineral deposits from the surrounding mountains. The crazy cluster of little huts which lines the path to the hotel makes little sense esthetically, so I did not try to make a studied composi- tion of them.
This sketch is a realistic report of what was there no more, no less. Cheddar was. It was. Water is always a problem to render in pencil. My usual way of suggesting water is to accent the light tonal strokes with sharp line as I characteristically did in this sketch. I also call attention to the treatment of the banked trees the employment here of accenting lines to give a sense of solidity to the mass and to add technical These line accents variation. Line accents are used around some of the lighter areas of tone within the tree masses.
The tree tones were kept very dark at their bases to contrast dramatically with the buildings silhouetted against them. There, I did intro- duce some light and shadow effects and, as you will see, I have added accents with a sharp point and directional lines within the silhouette mass, which serve to give considerable textural and tonal attraction to what might otherwise have been a. While referring to that Cheddar sketch, I might speak also of the function of pattern in suggesting water.
This combines arbitrary pattern with more than a hint of reflections from the white buildings. I have found that the use of sharp, thin line. But in speaking of non-color. Tone is more appropriate than value in such use, since value has other connotations not involved in black and white drawing. In conclusion, I would say that pattern is the artist's first consideration in the analysis of any subject he chooses to draw.
It is an anchor for every detail of his. Other shapes are tied to the dominant pattern core. I my when drew the tulip repro- lawn chair within reach of our full-blown was wholly preoccupied with of relaxation, I fell a serious problem. In tulips. I lazily gamut of on their long stems color on an in gentle breezes, and tremble with seeming disapproval when agitated by gusty winds.
Yes, looked at innumerable tulips in I could remember; yet, until a a had never before long succession of springtimes and hid their colors blazoned like the had watched tulips sway I tulip detached and agreeable kind of way for this occasion, I had never as I had long as really seen one. V Suddenly, at reached out to me. I was seeing went to moment I began this I a tulip!
I was as though they had bloom in full sunlight. It found myself focusing upon was drawn into a single an urge to sketch the flower and I felt it. I my studio for paper and pencil.
I like what William Saroyan once wrote about as creative seeing. You and What You make see the object, Now its You see it again. You relate its reality to such is a thing survival and you love its look steadily and clearly. And he made a mighty good job of it. Clarity, intelligence, imagination point of looking at the object. You admire a seeing: its individuality. The artist employs even more than eyes and brain; his muscles creatively enter into the seeing process.
Without making a graphic record, the seeing process the arm and hand make through collaboration of a eye, brain, communication of viewer and of oneself with the may seem like a life The incomplete.
Thus, the intimate experience of knowing, cal is still and muscle, we go beyond knowing about to which the basis of creation. There is object. It is a very of the object, even though metaphysical concept, and it is, real experience, this recipro- merging be an inanimate object. This it yet is it is a very and those of us who draw or paint creatively are well aware of real this phenomenon, intercommuni- cation between artist and object.
Consider, for example, our comparative responses graph and drawing directly from the object. There tween artist 32 a photo- a deeply sensed intimacy be- and object when both are parts of the same scene, both immersed the same atmosphere, as slight is when drawing from and lacking it in detail were.
I think this explains drawing and painting for amateurs, although they doubtless are not consciously aware of scends the mere ability to create it a it. The inspiration of "being with" tran- reasonable facsimile. It is will qualify his be. One painter to take along a large canvas ing light, for example —he will when is would be time. It for one reason or another have not over an hour for for quickly recording some moving action canvas on a windy day or in a is is still confine their outdoor sketching to small panels that —rapidly changThe his sketch.
Most painters fit in their paint boxes, or to relatively small watercolor papers. It is —inherent pen sketch 20" by 30", but no one would think of doing on the other hand, presents manage that can rower space the pen, is However, a a relatively small scale for a a 20' x 30' it. A make a 20" x 30" canvas, painter in oils, a medium mural gracefully.
Watercolors are kept within nar- limits, as are pastels. When handled broadly, the pencil — —which, like medium will produce a stroke many times as broad as a pen line. Architects, to be sure, do make point it is in the various technically possible to pencil renderings four or five feet long to visualize proposed buildings for their clients.
But we are discussing sketching, and are not concerned with these elabo- rate drawings intended to illustrate details, suggest textures of building materials, and give an impression of the whole design. Figure Six Drawings These six sketches are dered when The of a Boathouse, Cornish Coast, reproduced at exact size to suggest how the structure might be ren- and most detailed sketch is a how the boathouse would appear at a distance seen at varying distances.
Detail disappears with distance. The answer depends too large? It by way of is illustrating some of these size factors that I have made the six drawings in Figure 14 of the boathouse originally sketched on the Cornish coast of England. They are reproduced at exact structure might be rendered The sketch it largest in pencil, would force the is the is way when has it all and are intended to suggest how the seen at varying distances.
In larger drawings, illustrative detail that the big pattern is To draw complete tonal gamut. As we come nearer, the darks appear. Seen at a distance, light and shadow show But by the big pictorial details at the expense of general effect. There should be no inactive of the picture must have something to say.
Every part devoid of illustrative looks empty. In this connection, refer to the various treatments of the boathouse roof. In the first four sketches, the roof so small that the textural interest of the pencil strokes themselves satisfies the is need for detail.
In the fifth drawing and in the largest one, it we begin to feel the need for greater interest in the roof; was necessary to give patched roof that probably leaks during heavy would look unfinished 36 if a definite impression of rains. The duplicated in the sixth drawing. They In large scale, artists. They do their make own charm. Painters, accustomed to sizeable pencil notes purely as records with no thought of producing drawings this to delight the eye.
These are important. Look- recently — from days when took my camera on walks — pulled out photograph of team and loaded my picture file New York streets ing through through to I I I this cart a standing on South Street Figure Here is a rather fascinating subject, which I probably would have sketched had there been time, that day, before the wagon pulled out from the curb. All could do was make this photo record, but now it is useful to demonstrate I how one upon the center of interest by removing the camouflage of its environment.
The wagon and cargo are clearly silhouetted against the shadowed background, but focuses the horses are lost in the confusion of the darkened buildings. The tiny pencil sketch reproduced at exact size in Figure 16 demonstrates Figures 17 and Photograph and Sketch of Theatre of Marcellus, Rome Here, the photograph at lower right and final drawing pose a problem of simplification and pattern similar to that in South Street, New York Figures 15 and Both subjects required an illustrative approach that would give the illusion of reality, yet create a pattern that would direct the eye to a desired focal point.
Ponte San Lorenzo, Venice In this drawing, the barges under the bridge constitute the compositional nucleus of the scene. Seeing activity made around the barges, and expecting that they would soon depart, I and incorporated it into the final drawing at the right.
Obviously, this task is the work of very soft leads. The paper was Alexis, a surface with just enough tooth to accept very dark values. In contrast which represents the bridge's fagade under the balustrade was kept very light just dark enough to display the lighter values of the balustrade and the to these darks, the tone — gracefully arched member that appears to support the bridge.
The patch of very light pavement stones bordering the canal prevents the canal edge from leading the viewer's attention out of the picture at the right. Perhaps the indication of buildings beyond the canal might have been extended more completely, yet they are of little more than environmental use, without any architectural interest. In Venice, the artist dor of interest; end helps to focus the at the far The photograph and drawing of Rome gradually on the it lighted building facades have been given a sense of completion.
This all Europe, but Venice, the "Pearl of the Adri- kind of bewitchment for the atic," has a special is in the architecture of buildings; the splen- myriad canals; bridges, that span the ing sublimity of man's him One with sketchable subjects.
I made Such was the say "was" because at that particular time freight barges were tied masses that subjects that are utterly compelling. I when Potite I first the span. Those barges were the dark shapely began to draw them at once Figure 19 , ignoring the structure of the bridge, because, seeing considerable activity on the barges, pected that they were about to be ished saw moved — as indeed they were.
I I sus- had scarcely fin- drawing the boats when two boatmen with poles pushed them out into the canal and out of the picture entirely. This did not disturb remained and, I suspect, looks exactly the same many me because the bridge years later. Wells Cathedral Tower one of the many drawings I made in that lovely Somerset cathedral town. I careselected a view of the tower that would display its upper reaches. It is framed at the fully tree, and supported below by a mass of dark foliage.
As in all architectural old left by the This is drew the tower meticulously, keeping its shadow tones in a silvery middle gray. Although drawn with architectural accuracy, the shadow strokes are vigorous and direct, avoiding the fussiness and monotony of an unbroken technique. I wanted to attract as little attention as possible to the tree, so that it would not dnert attention from the tower.
I kept the foliage mass as restricted in area as possible, completing its form below merely by white space with hints of its growth form. The light-toned tree The dark foliage delicately rendered at the right is very important as an enclosing element. Photograph and Drawing of Brooklyn Coal Sheds This drawing, made in and reproduced in a book strating a kind of compositional strategy that has which interest is wide now out of print, is useful in application.
I refer to the illu- way in focused at a central point by arbitrarily manipulating the shadows of the projecting coal sheds. These shaded sides of the structure appear in the photograph uniform values above.
I modified these shadow tones in my drawing right , emphasizing dark and light contrasts and concentrating the darkest values near the picture's center, as which is the natural focal point. Interest is also concentrated at this point by the variety of detail. Notice the introduction of white elements, such as the flight of stairs, at the focal The shadowy tone that plays up the side of the pier is not actually a shadow; tonal improvisation, a part of the all over compositional strategy.
The tower manner as to much too is focus interest a vine covered wall the jewel in a setting upon it which should be treated in such a agreeably, without allowing the setting to absorb of the viewer's attention. So the foliage mass was rendered with restraint, very dark against the structure and merely suggested below.
Likewise, the tree that fans out about the tower provides an enclosing frame for lightly indicated trees on the right serve that runs along the path below The drawing is a arbitrary manipulation of values and, shall far from doing violence focus attention upon It is to natural vision, a restricted area remember helpful to to focus upon more than whole scene, or a a this how illustrate a at a focal point, we say, we are side, and the The side.
In doing this, aiding what seeks to do: it in — the inability of the eye it of interest. We cannot "take in" a picture of a scene, at a glance. People are not aware of this limita- beam moves over a that the phenomenon tion because the focal scene so rapidly, flitting unconsciously from point is of to point, and he composes it his picture, be it a not noticed. The artist from point well aware painting or a sketch, in such a direct attention to a chosen center of interest, and to prevent the eye indiscriminately is way as to from roaming to point over the entire field of vision.
This purpose was accomplished in the sketch of Brooklyn Coal Sheds Figure 23 , by lightening shadow values upon all peripheral shadow in a restricted area at the center, the area of action, thus bringing to itself, is values, life by concentrating the darkest and by throwing theatrical lighting what, in the photograph, as in the scene drab monotony.
Figures of workers have been introduced, and miscellaneous white shapes and lines have been cut into the dark shadow to enliven the sense of activity. The spot- Figure Vesuvius from Sorrento Cliffs difficult to give the effect of the smoking volcano in the disenough of the immediate foreground to illustrate the dramatic form of the limestone cliffs rising from the Bay of Saples and to have them serve as a frame or foil for the volcano.
It would be impossible to correctly represent the tone of the volcano in pencil. I might better have rendered it in outline. In my sketch, the volcano appears nearer than the fifteen miles away it actually is. Nevertheless, the purpose of the sketch nas accomplished, since no one expects the same degree of literal ness from a pencil In this drawing, it was rather tance, while rendering just drawing is as possible. I from a painting The — in — — which a far greater range of values in addition to color cliffs, accomplished with little effort, is reasonably suc- indication of the added a hint of the shoreline, and a few projecting rocks.
The panoramic view of Vesuvius from the Sorrento Cliffs Figure 24 was sketched from the garden of the Cocumela pension, perched atop the limestone cliffs abut- My view was along ting the Gulf of Naples.
This prominence serves as gradually lighten the the side of those as little penciled tone as possible. Selection would to have little scope for composition in the Notre to appear to be involved here. It Dame was necessary to select areas to receive tion of the tonal darks and those in which the detail is an approxima- brought out into the light, tone being restricted to that which was essential for the expression of forms.
This arbitrary division of dark and light sections of the sculptured decoration resulted, I think, in a graph itself. Detail of Ogive Sculptures, Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris The unknown creator of his magnificent sculpture is among the vast company of artists who, during the era of cathedral building, contributed anonymously to a great collaborative achievement for the glory of God. This drawing was made from a photograph.
I could not have been favored with a vantage point from which to make such a detailed rendering. Photographs are not likely to evoke the emotional incentive experienced in direct drawing from the subject.
Occasionally, however. I have been so stimulated by unusually fine photographs of sculpture and architectural details, that I could not resist the temptation to draw them.
One can readily see that my drawing is not a copy. The forms, but not the tonality, are copied. Tone is interrupted even in the darkened upper area by white paper accents.
Even in line, tonal mass, we do not escape demand of pattern, as may be simply demonstrated by the comparison of Figures 27A and 27B. In A, the drawing suffers from the absence of design interest pro- the vided in B, where the massing of twigs in three different places provides excitement entirely lacking in A.
In this chapter, however, — I from refer principally to pattern resulting relationships of tonal masses and shapes, together with the white their relative sizes areas that are associated with them. Color may be almost entirely responsible for pattern sketch Along the Beach, St. Ives Figure 28 , possibilities, as in my where the color tones of vines which decorate the wall of the principal building, and the color tones of the roofs, constitute the essence of pattern interest.
In such a situation, the designing of the foliage becomes the key to the interest of the entire sketch. The effect That does not matter. The tonal are of importance too, and one is may is or variations impressed relationship of nearly black areas at the left to the light tones at the right, where the observer's interest is being gently led out of the picture.
Interesting value relationships are always a big factor in the creation of pattern. Consider, for example, the impact of the black accents of the Beach, St. These are pattern interest as vital to as windows seasoning is in Along the to food. In this sketch, also do not overlook the function of line both in line width and line value, in its assertiveness Figure The and Jesuit Church point of interest in this sketch of details.
The palm tree is in Sorrento, Italy is the bell tower, where I concentrated fortuitously placed to support the tower; the base serves as a terminating connection with the my delineation and the shrubbc r street. Analyze, for example, the sketch of tial, basic pattern Figure 30B , which we Rocky Shore 3 Figure First we look for the essen- will hold the entire structure together Figure 30A Next. In Figure 30C, we work within the lighted area of the principal boulder, again seeking the most After that, we get down to rendering.
We dominant shapes. As we explore the tonal aspects, we get even deeper into pattern problems. Yet, if we have become expert and have "taught our pencil," it takes over very much as I have tried to illustrate in the detail of Rocky Shore 3 Figure Within that small shadow area, pattern continues to dominate our work. And pattern here, as you see, is involved with values and with technical niceties, where directhat, tion and character of stroke conspire with white or light accents within the mass to portray the texture of the rock 52 and to create an agreeable abstract expression.
W -A L JI8. Along the Beach, St. Ives, Cornwall On the shore of almost any harbor in Cornwall, the artist is treated to the delights of ancient towns created to serve the business that for centuries has been the occupation of — this part of old England the sea.
Ives, Mousehole, seaports that have been sketched Newhn. Pattern and value relationships dominate the vine which clings to the main building of this group.
How vital to the effect are the two uncovered areas of the wall ami the contrasting dark window sands of artists. Note the variety of tone in the greenery, graduating mass that creeps over the wall, from the near black foliage where solid tone gives to the very light areas at the right, way to open-line technique as interest trails off for exit at the right.
The dark mass of seaweed near the boats contributes an important balancing tonal note, and adds an appro- priate illustrative accessory as well.
The rocky outcrops attract geologists and artists alike. A com- shore of parison of the three studies discloses different rendering techniques, which are due, in The two other rock subjects and 34 were drawn on clay coated paper, which not only permitted scraping out of white shapes and accents, but also provided diversity of tonal character. However, there is considerable technical interest in the toned areas. If this rendering lacks some of the tonal character apparent in the other interpretations of the same subject, it emphasizes the pattern structure, as is pointed up in the accompanying analytical diagrams.
Figures 32 54 Figures 30 and Pattern Structure of Rocky Shore 3 Figure 30 A top isolates the dominant compositional basis of the picture the anchor pattern. In 30B center , the secondary pattern units appear. Figure 31 below , a pencil sketch, explores a detail of the same subject.
Within that small shadow area, pattern continues to dominate, involving itself with values and technical niceties. Rocks at Shore, Manor Park, Larchmont, In contrast to the simple compositional arrangement of Rocky Shore the light and dark drawing is from one shadow of the rock formation. The enfolding rocks behind. I The light areas line analysis Figure Figure 29 , The which keep the eye bouncing 33 explores the dominant divisions nearer rock mass forms a distinct unit silhouetted against the remember insisting upon the cohesion dark massing of clouds, cohering with the tree mass, 56 3 patterns of this rock mass might be described as jazzy.
New York is of this group. The a stabilizing factor in the design. All I had to do was follow my pencil. The niceties of technical rendering were spontaneous and effortless. The drawing is on clay coated paper, so it was probably rendered with two or three leads. On a clay coated paper like Video, one can create the blackest tones of which any pencil is capable.
The intrusion of white accents throughout adds immeasurable sparkle to this sketch. The sky needed only the barest linear cloud indication. Indeed, as you examine most of note that the sky seldom goes beyond line suggestion. It tonal modeling of clouds. Though tone does most V snail , of the is my drawings, you will not often that I venture into white paper with a few linear cloud suggestions work in this drawing, line accenting of contours suffices. Collection, Mrs.
Frederic C. Detail of the Chain Gate, Wells Cathedral The tonal patterning on the narrow wall is a typical technique used for rendering masonry. The white shapes which break into the tonal mass serve a two-fold purpose: they create pattern, and they act as a transition to the adjacent wall. Note the diversity of values within the individual stones Figure A Canal in Venice Sauntering along the canals of Venice, one comes upon dramatic compositional effects that vary with the time of day.
At a time other than that chosen for this sketch, the light and dark effect of this scene would be quite different. The sunlit wall would be in shadow, and shadow Here I solved the problem of leading into or retreating from the sketch by creating an arbitrary pattern in my treatment of the paving the impact of that dark missing. Reference might also be made to the wall of the distant building, which combines an area of smooth tone with sharply pointed pencil strokes above.
There was no need to indicate the structural composition of the wall as I did in the narrow vertical wall at the end of the walk. Here the indication of a few blocks of stone within a broad tonal mass stones. Donald Holden. Collection ' J r I Now study other drawings Compare operates. In these, the basic pattern structure you in as I drew. In Figure 32 two main I call this divisions in the rock drawing a jazzy render- ing, being so intrigued with the jumble of broken elements.
But look herein for the kind of pattern effects I've pointed out in Figure The Chain Gate, Wells Cathedral have already written at some length about various technical aspects I of this drawing, but wall that we commonly I want to refer here to the tonal patterning upon the narrow isolated. These white shapes not only create pattern, they also serve as an agreeable transition to the adjacent wall, which is indicated only in outline.
This avoids an emphatic and undesirable separation of the two we tones themselves, some dark, some light walls. Then, looking within the note great diversity of values in individual stone members — a purely arbitrary variation of tonal reality. All presumably were of equal value.
To With illustrate this, I refer to it I illustrate show an how a little St. In in a St. Germain, France Figure The my it, I was done in a minute or two, as a preliminary for the organized the design, planned the values, and simplified the tonal scheme.
In starting the drawing itself above , I began with the black notes under the awnings, then rendered the dark shaded sides of the buildings The 60 roofs came next, then the lightest tones. Last, I drew and the cast shadow.
The begun. It is without A those to create a sketch, my own. In which, by the way, in Old which were made on one of the few spent in that stimulating town.
View of Zermatt Figure 41 light; the sketch is nothing more than ber because of the hotel where I have included it as we is no unifying pattern of dark and record of put up during my a scene visit there, I wished to remem- and to remind monotonous the small houses of me similarity.
Refer to the tree silhouettes Figure 82 ent from one another in form, are attracted to trees is the first The pattern aspect with which are most appealing upon correctly portraying are insistent. Often there is little more than are relatively distant in the landscape. Even in rendering distant tree groups structural details — there Figures 39 and It is a particularly delightful motif for the pencil artist because its construction deep roof overhang and butt ends of timbers which support the horizontal wall timbers gives the sketcher something very — — tangible to get hold of.
This sketch was made in a favorable light; the sun was falling on the gable end, creating deep shadows of great interest. Actually, the tone of the gable facade was uniform, but the pencil rendering shows great tonal variety, lightening up the facade by the use of white areas, within which the horizontal timbering is indicated directly by line.
The accompanying pattern of the chalet. A View in Zermatt made principally to record a picture The mountain rising abruptly behind This sketch was of the hotel where days in The crazy cluster of little huts which lines the path to the hotel makes little sense esthetically, so I did not try to make a studied composition of them. This sketch is a realistic report of what was there no more, no less.
View of Cheddar, England Cheddar was. Water is of suggesting water is to accent as I characteristically did in this sketch. I also treatment of the banked trees mass and — the employment here add technical of accenting These line accents help give this scumbled sketch more assertiieness. Line accents are used around some of the lighter areas of tone within the tree masses.
The tree tones were kept very dark at their lines to give a sense of solidity to the to variation. There, I did intro- have added accents with sharp point and directional lines within the silhouette mass, which serve to give what might otherwise have been considerable textural and tonal attraction to a relatively flat tonal shape.
While referring to that Cheddar sketch, might speak I also of the function of pattern in suggesting water. This combines arbitrary pattern with more than of reflections from the white buildings. Tone is more appropriate than value in such use, since value has other connotations not involved and white drawing. Other shapes are tied to the dominant pattern core. Making rapid analytical pattern aspects of any subject — — similar to those I made for the St.
Germain drawing Figure 37 is certainly good practice, at least until the time when such an analysis can be purely visual in the artist's head, rather than sketched out. This tonal conspicuous in the shadow of the roof overhang, which tapers from very dark to very light at the right; and it is true of all the tones on the facing facade that gradually scale is lighten in value as they recede from the central the building, like the timbers themselves, strokes which is offer contrast, but are not insistent characteristic.
Distant hills or mountains are one use tone, or merely suggest line, to interest. Should them? As I write our garden, which is enclosed on one side by an have never I lost brick built by an Italian craftsman in an arched Now, head. In the wall, set I sculptured head. It is a copy of an original Mayan moment, the early October sun brings it to life. It casts a delightfalls upon the unevenness of the textured wall.
Overhead, the ivy at this shadow that vine that drapes the wall hangs slightly over the arched curve of the recess and adds its serrated shadow to that of the sculpture. Sometimes seems it we are vouchsafed an unexpected awareness of the beauty of simple things. This has been one of those moments when, in meditation, I recall the words of William Saroyan, quoted in Chapter 2.
Read them again. At the first reading you may have overlooked their profundity, perhaps considering them no more than a poetic reference to a common experience rather than a practical prescription Shadow may be wholly many sketches.
A much as indeed they are. Without shadows, form object uniform in color and value, illuminate an identical amount of pure outline light, and it disappears it is so that each of from sight. There are no outlines in appearance, though outline has a useful and an esthetic function in representation to have been conditioned from childhood Figure Assisi Street have included a number of Assisi street sketches because of their unusual architectural This sketch was made when the sun played upon the buildings with a delightful tonal consonance, which left little need for improvisation in designing the shadow pattern.
The tones of the foreground, which lead the eye to the center of interest, are the only Note the arbitrary patterning of gray and white on the sunlit walls. The figures exception. Hence, the their details in turn define the character of the upon the relative accuracy of their Shadows cast by invisible forms hence of no artist insists shapes as they appear in nature. In both of these scenes the shadows upon sunlit walls give no hint of the shapes which cast them, so the artist free to manipulate is them without obligation esthetically, to objective reality.
Sometimes, however, the cast shadow upon which it falls. In shadow on the near end of the bridge has a descriptive defines the sculptured convolutions of this structure that spans the This shadow is the most important feature of the entire drawing. I function; Grand Canal. But shadows thus rendered with emphasis on the edge give the sketch a positive character and enliven its general aspect.
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