Still life drawing for beginners
Do you love to doodle? If you enjoy sketching and scribbling in your spare time, have you ever thought about exploring it further? Drawing is not only enjoyable but a great form of artistic self-expression and, best of all, it is one of the few activities that doesn’t cost much money. In fact, all you need is a pencil, paper and an object to draw to create your very own artwork. This form of art, called still life drawing, is a great way for beginners to learn the basics and experiment. If you’d like to take your sketches up a notch and turn your drawing into a fun and fulfilling hobby, here are a few aspects to consider. First of all, though, banish all thoughts that you “can’t draw” because if you can write, you can certainly learn to draw. In fact, once the creative juices start to flow, you might be surprised at what you can achieve.
What you will need
To get your started you need to have a pencil, eraser, paper and some ideas. Pick a simple object without too much detail like a book, mug or a piece of fruit. An apple or a pear is a great subject as you’ll likely have one in the kitchen and they have an interesting and irregular shape that is perfect for drawing and working light and shade. If you are looking for a challenge, flowers in a vase, a pile of toys or even a pair of shoes can make excellent subjects.
Visualise basic shapes
It is common to feel overwhelmed by the detail of the object when you begin. Ignore all those details and concentrate on the outline of the object. Look for basic shapes such as circles and rectangles. All objects can be reduced to their shapes; an apple becomes a circle or a mug becomes a rectangle. Lightly sketch the outline so you can erase if there are any mistakes. Remember not to work on a particular part of your drawing until you have drawn the outline of all the objects first. This will help you see if the composition and proportions are right.
Think composition and proportion
Now that you have thought about the shape of your drawing, consider the size of your object and where it should be placed on your paper. You don’t want it to be too big as you might run out of space or too small as it might look like you chose the wrong sized paper. The proportion of your object is crucial in drawing as it determines the realism. If you have multiple objects, make sure they are in proportion to each other. If the mug is twice as big as your apple in real life, the drawing should reflect the differences.
Look from a different perspective
Perspective in art is about giving your artwork a sense of real-life depth. This means the buildings in the background look further away than the object at the front. It is one of the hardest aspects of drawing to master so don’t worry if you can’t master it at the beginning. It will come with practice but if you feel ready to incorporate perspective in your drawings, establish a horizon line and one vanishing point on that line. Your subjects should become smaller the closer it gets to the vanishing point. As your become better with practice, you can create multiple vanishing points which will give your drawing the illusion of depth in reality.
Shading in the texture
Once you are happy with the basic outline of your object it is time to add the detail. Observe your object and determine where the light and shadows falls. Lightly outline the shapes of any shadows and reflections on the object. Begin shading slowly building the dark and mid-tones shadows. Always shade with a light touch, as pressing heavily with your pencil will leave indentations that cannot be erased.
Practice makes perfect
Like any skill, if you want to improve your drawing you must practise, practise and then do more practice. There is a wealth of material out there such as books, magazines and even YouTube video tutorials, which will give you a great base. However, if you are looking to further your skills it might be beneficial to take a course. A qualified teacher can guide you through tried and tested techniques as well as identify any areas that need improvement.