Lines of the Day: July 2, 2015.

Michael Whynot. Figure study. Red chalk.

A thirty minute figure study, done this morning from imagination. Fitting form into form; trying to envision the foreshortening of the thigh and the manner in which it fits into the hip.

The Poetry of Movement.

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, 2013. Red chalk.

Michael Whynot. Torso Studies, 2013. Red chalk.

I'm posting two studies taken from my sketchbook from yesterday. There is such beauty in the movement of the human form, rhythm serpentining through the figure, uniting the parts; reminiscent of poetry or music, yet perceived by the eye, instead of the ear. I suspect that some rhythms may be uplifting, while others appear depressing, joyous or sad.

Just as music or poetry can touch us in spiritual ways - which we have all felt, yet, ultimately, been unable to explain - so too, movement of form has the same power to inspire. Such is the mystery of great art, in all its forms.

The figure is capable of conveying a multitude of emotion through its movements. I continue to explore its limits with constant wonder and awe.

Life Drawing Figure Study

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, 2013. Red chalk.

This is a figure study, from life (5 minutes), done earlier in the spring in red chalk. Not much more than a gesture originally, and I went back over it this morning and added a light source and some modelling, maybe twenty minutes in all.

I normally use a cream coloured paper and this drawing is on bright, white paper. Looking at the photo, now that I've uploaded it, the colour looks very cold and blue compared to my regular paper. The warm, red chalk really calls out for a warmer paper to achieve a nice, warm middle tone. It also allows you to use white chalk to accent the highlights. Oh, well.

Life Drawing Session, January 20.

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, 2013. Red chalk with white highlights.

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, 2013. Red chalk with white highlights.

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, 2013. Red chalk with white highlights.

I'm posting three figure studies from this mornings life drawing session. All were done in red chalk with white conte highlights and all were thirty minute poses.

The model was a circus performer who was not only able to hold her poses well, but understood what a good pose looked like and was very aware of her body. She had that poise and grace that you so often see with dancers and performers.

A good draftsman should be able to draw any model in any pose, but a good model makes everything much easier. When you discover a good model, you will wish to draw him or her again and again. Especially the ones who put a lot of themselves into the pose; the ones who seem to be able to recreate themselves with every twist and turn of their form.

Clay Torso Sketch, November 26.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Clay torso study.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Clay torso study.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Clay torso study.

Here is a torso sketch done in water-based clay that I was working on this morning. I spent about one hour on it.

When sketching in water-based clay, there is a limit to how large you can go (this sketch is about 8 1/2 inches tall) and the complexity of the pose, without resorting to an internal armature. As you can see, I had to prop up one side of the figure, as it wanted to collapse under its own weight. Water-based clay is fairly heavy and standing poses and outstretched limbs require an armature to support the weight of the clay.

But, for me, this defeats the purpose of the sketch. I use clay sketches in much the same way as sketches done on paper, to explore variations in a pose. I rarely spend more than an hour on one and there is little detail; the surface is left fairly rough.

A wonderful exercise, though, in understanding form, whether sculpting, drawing or painting.

Life Drawing Session November 25

Michael Whynot, 2012. Figure study. Red chalk, white highlights.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Figure study. Red chalk, white highlights.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Leg study. Red chalk.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Leg study. Red chalk.

Michael Whynot, 2012. Leg study. Red chalk.

Thought I would post a couple of 10 minute figure studies done at yesterdays life drawing session. Also  three leg studies done earlier this month.

Focusing on individual body parts is a great way to learn their form (specially when just starting out), without the added pressure of getting the proportion right for the entire body. The problems remain the same, but on a smaller scale. Try to focus on one problem at a time: gesture, proportion, tone, line weight, how one form fits into another. Don't get overwhelmed. You can put all the pieces together once you have conquered them individually.

The Act of Drawing Well.

Michelangelo. Studies for Haman, c. 1511-12. Red chalk. The Teyler Museum.

Michelangelo. Studies for Haman, c. 1511-12. Red chalk. The British Museum.

Michael Whynot. Figure Study, c. 2012. Collection of the artist.

"The eye cannot see what the mind does not know"  Anonymous.

"The whole essence of good drawing - and of good thinking, perhaps - is to work a subject down to the simplest form possible and still have it believable for what it is meant to be."  Chuck Jones.

"Drawing is not the form; it is the way of seeing the form." Degas.

"There is nothing like drawing a thing to make you really see it."  Margaret Atwood.




The act of drawing well takes time; there are no shortcuts, no free lunches. The amount of time this process takes will vary by individual and can happen gradually or suddenly or not at all, but will always involve a fundamental shift in perception.

Nature is populated by an infinite variety of forms - they define our reality. Every moment of every day we interact with them; handle them; embrace them. We humans are engaged in an intimate relationship with forms.

So why is it that when we sit down to draw these forms in all their three-dimensional wonder, that our minds collapse into a two-dimensional perception of sorts? Since we are drawing on a two-dimensional surface, we mistakenly believe that we are locked into only those two dimensions: width and height. We know we cannot draw into the paper, cannot see around and behind a form, trapped as we are in a single point of view. We believe we cannot draw depth, so our mind ignores it.

This is a problem not of visual perception, but of mental perception.

The basis of drawing well is knowledge. Our mind must understand a given form before we can draw it well. You must be able to imagine a three-dimensional form occupying space before you can hope to draw it with any sense of depth or volume.

Ironically, the process of understanding a form involves the drawing of that form over and over again. Each time you draw a given form, you will see in it something new, something that allows you to understand the form a little better. You begin to internalize the form which will, in turn, allow you to draw it even better the next time around, until one fine day...

How many times did Michelangelo draw studies of Haman to achieve the effects displayed in his two studies I have include above? How many studies of torsos and limbs were drawn to coax them into thrusting out into space with such vivid life?

Nature is complex and deceptive, so copying nature without understanding nature, while widely practiced, will never lead to drawing well. Knowledge of form will allow you to select those elements that can simplify and clarify a drawing, bringing emphasis to those aspects of your choosing, which is the true domain of art.

Michelangelo understood form and it elevated his draftsmanship to pinnacles rarely witnessed since.

The act of drawing well is advanced through the act of understanding form, while the act of understanding form is advanced through the act of drawing well. Understanding and drawing, each dependant upon the other, so intertwined that when I examine them closely they appear, to my eye, as one.

Life Drawing Session

Michael Whynot c. 2012. Figure Study

Michael Whynot c. 2012. Figure Study

Here are two figure studies from this morning's life drawing session. They were fifteen and twenty minutes in length. The model's poses were very expressive; subtle twists and turns of the major masses made for an interesting couple of hours. Never discount the value of a good model to the quality of your work.