A Beginner’s Guide to Drawing | Lesson 5: Core Principles

[New Masters Academy]

The New Masters Academy Beginner Series helps aspiring artists start their artistic journey on the right foot. Your expert instructors will gently guide you to an understanding of drawing fundamentals. In this fifth lesson of the series, New Masters Academy instructor Heather Lenefsky and Disney art director, Bill Perkins, will teach you about the core principles of drawing. You will learn about Gesture and Rhythm, and how to control your composition’s values using Major and Minor Keys. You will also be taken through the process of how to set up and draw a still life.

 

Materials

• General Charcoal Pencil
• Conté a Paris Sketching Pencil – Brown, Black
• Kneaded Eraser
• Copic Sketch Marker – W6, W10
• Adhesive Note Pad (“Sticky Notes”)

[ChrisTate]

Hi there,

In the last example of the major/minor key drawing, the one with the shaded spheres, there is a high-major, low-minor key sphere in the lower left corner of the grid. Would this quality of light, a dreamlike lightness, only occur in objects that are far away or in a literal haze, where smoke, mist, or some sort of 3rd element is obscuring the scene? Or can we also assume that this would happen with objects that have a little volume or depth, such as a subtle fold in clothing, bump on the body, or something like that?

Thanks

[piercy.leslie]

I didn’t hear a definition of “local” values. Can you explain? Thank you.

[elizarevitt]

Hey, Just wondering what is the three value matrix that is spoken about at the end of video 7? I seem to have missed that bit?

Thanks

[Katherine Johnson]

I am confused on this as well. Not sure what I missed but I am not sure what exactly a value matrix is. Is it the thumbnail version of an image to plan out values?

• This reply was modified 4 years, 11 months ago by Katherine Johnson.

[matthew Villa]

I believe they are referring to the gradient scale value group breakdown as the ‘value matrix’.

[matthew Villa]

Sorry, I just realized that they don’t cover value matrix in this lesson. it is not covered until Lesson seven, that is why it is confusing us at this point.

[Daniel Mauricio Gracia Castillo]

Hello all! Been trying to find the “Dean Cornwell image attached to this page”, any idea where I can find it? Thanks in advance!

[cerulean]

Hey there @Daniel. I was asking myself the same question actually… By inspecting the URL of the Reference material, I found out these are probably the images they were referring to:

https://www.nma.art/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dean_Cornwell_01.png

https://www.nma.art/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dean_Cornwell_02.png

Cheers :).

[cerulean]

Hey there @Daniel. I was asking myself the same question actually. But, by inspecting the URL of the Reference material, I’d say these are the images they were referring to:

https://www.nma.art/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dean_Cornwell_01.png

https://www.nma.art/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Dean_Cornwell_02.png

[Vera Coberley]

I’ve been pondering the dark-light sketches versus the 3 value sketches (the same is done in the last lesson of the course, landscape drawing). I’m missing the bridge between these two approaches. How do you translate the two-value thumbnail into a 3 value thumbnail? I know you can just start from scratch and think about 3 values instead of 2, but that seems to defeat the purpose of the notan exercise. Do you pick one of the sections and partition off a mid-tone range, or do you draw from both sides, ensuring that the overall rhythm of dark/light is still in tact?

[Ozge Kaptan]

Hi There, wanted to share new sketch from my new journey. At least I’m learning new terms 🙂

Cheers

Ozge

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by Ozge Kaptan.

[Haidar]

Hello

 

In Using and Controlling Value: Demonstration 2 exercise “a three value matrix” is mentioned. What’s that? I know about value scale, range, groups mentioned though

[Daniel Daigle]

Hi Haider, I couldn’t find where “three value matrix” was mentioned, but I would assume this simply means 3 values. Light, mid-tone and dark
I hope this helps 🙂

[Haidar]

Hi Daniel

It’s right at the end of the video when the exercise is presented.

[Author]

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