Fixative

Is Grandma Holding a Moose Leg?

Brooklyn-based artist Allison Maletz doesn't want to use watercolor in a traditional way. Although her work is representational and often figure-based, exploring themes of human connection and the quirky, often dysfunctional, "average American family," she refuses be bound by any rules
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They Can Be Moody, Too

I'll admit that in the past I have been guilty of thinking of colored pencil art as colorful and bright and not necessarily able to be coupled with serious subjects or moody narratives. But that was my own bias. As I've spent time looking at sketchbooks
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And Don't You Ever Forget It

I'm an artistic omnivore to be sure, but there is really nothing I love more and respond to more than pencil drawings. I know, the humble pencil and paper seems so simple, so basic. But what some forego and forget as too elementary, I see as essential
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No One Said a Picture Needs to Be a Photo

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But no one said that picture needed to be a photograph. As an art director, I've found that sometimes pen and ink drawings or pencil drawing illustration is simply the best way to tell a story, particularly
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Don’t Be Camera Shy! Here’s Your Free eBook on Using a Photo Reference in Your Art

Almost every artist I know who depicts people or creates portraits has spent time painting from photographs or drawing from them. It may not be how they develop a work foremost, but it is a useful method, especially when you want to capture a likeness
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This Sci-Fi Guru Can Draw

I'm totally a sci-fi junkie and H.R. Giger is truly a master artist in the genre of fantastic realism. I first came across his work through his designs for Alien . Lately, with the release of Prometheus , his art came up on my radar again. Now, his
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Soft Lines and No Tension

I'm not a napping kind of person. When I'm up, I'm up and I want to be doing something or on the go. That's usually the kind of body drawing that I'm pulled to as well--muscles torqued, body indicating action, and an underlying sense
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You Could Use Some Color: New Free eBook on Colored Pencil Techniques

I don't care what anyone says, color is king. It makes everything better--more appealing and lively. Oftentimes in an artist's drawing practice, a sense of color takes a backseat to the black, white, and gray of charcoal or graphite. But that
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The Agony and the Ecstasy

A few weeks ago an artist friend of mine rotated his wrist and made a wincing face after he had finished working on a quick pencil drawing , and it made me realize that drawing isn't just fun and games. It can cause strain in the hand, wrist, elbow
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Will This Work Even If I Hate Geometry?

Cube figures allow me to focus on the basic shapes of the body. This can lead to a better understanding of the body's form and the creation of works that are incredibly natural, such as Lea Colie Wight's drawing, Kate , conte on paper, 17 x 23
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And At The End of 20 Weeks We Have...a Nose

You may recall that a few months ago I described my horror at learning from an instructor that we would be working on a small drawing of a facial feature for 20 weeks . Novice that I am, 20 weeks seemed an inordinate length of time to spend on a small
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Can You Outgrow Your Art?

Train Tracks by Valerio D'Ospina, 2011, oil on melamined MDF, 30 x 24. Some artists such as Jackson Pollock discover and use their own visual language to communicate with the world, and this singular voice takes them through an entire career of putting
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Colored Pencils and Exploding Heads: Welcome to the Fall Issue of Drawing

Kinder Love by Jason Bard Yarmosky, 2011, pencil drawing, 18 x 24. Frontal Study of Naked Man by Leonardo, 1503- 09, pen and ink drawing, 9 1/4 x 5 3/4. Looking East by Kerry Brooks, colored pencil drawing. I'm excited to report that the fall issue
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Can a Caricature Help My Portrait Painting? Plus Our Self-Portrait Contest!

The Grimaces by Louis-Leopold Boilly, 1823, lithograph, 13 1/8 x 10. A few weeks ago I was in the Met and saw "Infinite Jest," an exhibition of drawings and prints that explore satire and caricature from the Italian Renaissance to the present
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From Me to You: Free Drawing eBook on Pencil Shading Techniques

Drawing after the sculpture The Cylinder Man by Eliot Goldfinger by Jon deMartin, 2009, pencil drawing. Drawing for Epiphany by Michael Aviano, 2009, charcoal drawing, 39 x 32. Going from "the cylinder man" to a fully-realized figure is a matter
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Life Drawing Gymnastics

I combined not just artist and model (self-portraiture), but artist-model-athlete in my Life Drawing Gymnastics series. In my Life Drawing Gymnastics series, I attempted to do more than simply draw from life , but rather allowed life to be a large part
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I Want to Sculpt My Drawings

Minerva by Auguste Rodin simultaneously shows the centered grounding of the human body's core and the fluidity of its limbs. Painting is closer to three-dimensionality than drawing simply by way of the medium. You can build up sculpted areas and thick
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Make It Come Alive, But Not Like Frankenstein

Stacy in Chalk by Rob Liberace, chalk pencil drawing, 14 x 22. I wholeheartedly believe that a drawing of a human figure should look like it has the potential for physical movement and action. Not a creepy, unnatural animation, but more of a direct relation
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Sketch Away: Our Newest Free eBook of Pencil Drawing Lessons

The drama of this charcoal and pencil drawing by Lilian Wescott Hale is in the bold contrast of value of the figure's skin, dress, and hair. I love all kinds of art: super complicated installations, amazing marble sculptures, and virtuosic canvases
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Drawing Basics: Look at John Singer Sargent's Swirls and Squiggles

Sketch of a Man by John Singer Sargent, charcoal drawing. Adapted from an article by Mark G. Mitchell. Looking at a John Singer Sargent's drawings, I really can't mistake them for anything but the work of his hand. His line work is so thin, firm
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I Need a GPS for Drawing Faces

Drawing a face is a little like reading a map. And no, not the cool Indiana Jones map where the red line draws itself to the destination and ‘X’ marks the spot. I wish! It is more that when learning how to draw people , there are a few “signposts” on the face and rules of thumb
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Drawing Basics: How I Start My Pencil Drawings

From the time I started drawing, I have had a constant battle with myself over how to start. For years I have been looking for the one right way to sketch in a composition or block-in an underpainting. Lately, and with the help of my Studio Incamminati instructors, I have learned that there are several
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Drawing Basics: To Tone or Not to Tone

I have found that toning my support, whether canvas or paper or board, is something I often do now. I’m showing two works to illustrate the difference between toning and not toning.
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May I Introduce Anthony Ryder?

Twilight by Tony Ryder, 1998, pencil drawing, 25 x 19. Tony Ryder: Weekend With the Masters Instructor Anthony Ryder studied at the Art Students League of New York, the New York Academy of Art, and the Ecole Albert Defois, in France, with oil painter
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And the Award Goes to...

I've been waiting all my life to have a red-carpet moment, but who knows when the Academy will get around to remembering my searing director's debut at the age of 14, when I put on a musical version of Hamlet to the theme song of The Beatles' "Obladi Oblada." (Maybe you had to be
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Drawing Basics: On Midtone Paper by New Blogger Daniel Maidman

My pencil drawing, Alley , was the result of a 40-minute pose that I did a few weeks ago. Hello, all, and thanks for having me as part of the Artist Daily community. I’m an artist working in New York, and I’ll be offering thoughts on the art
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How to Make a Drawing Look 3-D

It's always with a bit of anxiety that I do a pencil drawing. I want the form to look as if the paper doesn't exist--as if the image is coming right off the page, and that is a challenging task. I caught Scott Waddell's second installment
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An Artist Tells All

No apologies from me for that attempt at sensationalism (I would have written tabloid headlines in another life). The truth is I was lucky enough to sit down and chat with artist and instructor C.W. Mundy, who is generous with both his time and his talents. He has a new DVD— Mastering the Dramatic
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The Best Gift I Ever Received

It was a collection of drawings, of course. My good friend from grad school, Amanda, made me a handmade miniature book filled with calligraphy and fun sketches of our time together in school. The cover is light blue and the pages are accordion-style, one folding over the next. The book is made from basic
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Drawing Basics: Drawing People Using Perspective Lines

While thumbing through Burne Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy the other day, I came across an interesting section on foreshortening that I wanted to share ...
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Drawing Basics: In Praise of Sparseness When Drawing

I caught the Whistler exhibition at The Frick last week and was initially concerned about its size — it hangs in that smallish room in between the place where you pay admission and the hallway to the restrooms — but I suppose at some point
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Drawing Basics: Drawing Day Results

I can't speak for anyone else, but I sure enjoyed Drawing Day 2009 ! I went to Central Park with a friend, loaded down with drawing pencils, drawing sketchbooks, painting supplies, and Gatorade. Several scenes screamed out to be captured in a quick
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Minimal Means, Maximum Impact

Using subtle washes and minimal detail, Keiko Tanabe creates a powerful sense of time and place.
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Draw Everything Like a Pro

Steve Doherty offers readers six tips on how to draw anything accurately.
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Drawing Basics: Anatomy Drawing Like No Other

"Bodies ... The Exhibition," currently housed in New York City's South Street Seaport, offers draftsmen the chance to draw from human specimens after hours. It's an opportunity New York City area artists shouldn't miss.
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Drawing Basics: 10 Favorite Articles from Drawing Magazine's Archives

Sure, we have our favorites, even if we aren't supposed to. Here are 10 of the best articles published in Drawing magazine over the last seven years, in no particular order.
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Drawing Basics: Pencil Drawing & the Pull of Black and White

One reason people pursue pencil drawing is that they like the drama and look of black-and-white images. Drawing magazine is a great place to see the best of what artists working in black and white are doing. Two examples are within...
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Drawing Basics: One Man's Sketchbook

Michael Mentler's pencil drawings from his sketchbook. David Jon Kassan, a friend and an excellent painter and draftsman here in NYC, recently sent me these words about an artist he met during his travels. Here are some images from the artist's
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Drawing Basics: The Cube

Learn to draw the cube and you have a good introduction to basic perspective and drawing essentials , plus the cube is one of the geometric building blocks of all objects—including the human figure. The Three Graces by Jon deMartin, 2002, burnt
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Drawing Basics: A New Series of Articles by Jon deMartin

I'm excited that we've started a new series in Drawing magazine around drawing basics , authored by noted artist Jon deMartin. We'd been puzzling for some time on how to offer more basic instruction to beginners while simultaneously making
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Kurt Long Wins Drawing BODIES Competition

Pennsylvania artist Kurt Long won the top prize in the contest, which required draftsmen to depict one of the specimens in "BODIES...The Exhibition," at New York City's South Street Seaport. Long poses beside the specimen he sketched for
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Beginner Drawing: Printmaking: An Introduction

Those daunted by the skills and money needed to operate a large, bulky printing press can still explore a variety of printmaking techniques without the use of a press. by Naomi Ekperigin Winged Horse by Gail Ayres, 2003, monotype, 30 x 22. Collection
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Drawing Basics: Looking at Antonio Lopez Garcia's "Portrait of Maria"

Anthony Panzera comments on Antonio López García's Portrait of Maria . by Anthony Panzera Portrait of Maria by Antonio López García, 1972, graphite drawing, 28 x 21. Collection the artist. I first saw this drawing some
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Drawing Basics: Kent Bellows' Figures With Backgrounds

In the summer 2008 issue of Drawing magazine, we discussed how Omaha artist Kent Bellows was a masterful draftsman who took the time to contemplate a vision and complete works that would endure past his untimely death. We offer more examples of his pencil
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Drawing Basics: David Jon Kassan on "Cellini Revisted" by Sam Ivie

David Jon Kassan discusses Sam Ivie's Cellini Revisited. Cellini Revisited by Sam Ivie, 2000, colored pencil drawing, 8 x 10. Collection the artist. Looking at Drawings: Cellini Revisited by Sam Ivie by David Jon Kassan In this small colored pencil
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Drawing Basics: Kitty Teerling pencil portraits

David Kassan comments on Kitty Teerling's Louisa and Connie. Connie by Kitty Teerling, 2007, pencil drawing, 4½ x 5½. Louisa by Kitty Teerling, 2007, pencil drawing, 4 x 5. by David Jon Kassan These portrait drawings by Kitty Teerling
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Drawing Basics: Arlene Steinberg on Colored Pencil

Read the transcript from yesterday's live online chat and drawing tutorial with colored pencil artist Arlene Steinberg. Be sure to attend our next live chat with pastel artist Janet Monafo on Monday, June 9 at 2pm EST. 2008-05-12 11:00:03.0 Administrator
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Drawing Basics: Dee Overly's Colored Pencil and Graphite Drawings

In her colored pencil and graphite drawings, Dee Overly invites viewers to admire the unique details of natural objects. by Lynne Moss Perricelli Raindrops 2007, colored pencil drawing, 8½ x 7. This piece won second place in American Artist’s
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"Drawing" Magazine 2006 Cover Competition

It was tough, but we chose 10 finalists who best showcase the skill level and imagination of our readers and named Noel A. Carmack the Drawing Magazine Cover Competition Winner for 2006. Noel A. Carmack Shannon by Noel A. Carmack, 2006, black colored
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Drawing Basics: Values Create Dramatic Drawings

Careful use of darks and lights within and around the figure can give your drawings more power and dramatic force. by Dan Gheno Laocoön by Baccio Bandinelli, red and black chalk, 21 x 15¾. Collection the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy. Some
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Drawing Basics: Arlene Steinberg on How Colored Pencil Techniques Relate to Painting

Arlene Steinberg develops her detailed colored pencil drawings in much the same way as an oil painter would proceed. She carefully determines a composition, builds from dark shadows to bright highlights, and underpaints complementary colors to enrich
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Drawing Basics: Janvier Rollande's Portraits of Self-Expression

In the spring 2008 issue of Drawing magazine, we discussed how Maine artist Janvier Rollande found that a bit of herself always came through in her pencil drawings of others. We offer more of her graphite portraits in this online exclusive gallery. Tapestry
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Drawing Basics: Colored Pencil Drawings of Natural Objects

In this online exclusive gallery, we offer more colored pencil drawings by spring 2008 featured artist Dee Overly. Hiding 2006, colored pencil, 7 x 6. Collection Cathy Barry. Rain Beads 2007, colored pencil, 8½ x 7. Collection the artist. Peaches
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Drawing Basics: Arlene Steinberg's Colored Pencil Drawings

In the May 2008 issue of American Artist, we explored how Arlene Steinberg developed her detailed colored pencil drawings in much the same way as an oil painter would proceed. We present more of her drawings in this online exclusive gallery. All Paired
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Hudson River School for Landscape: Reviving an American Tradition

This past summer, 30 outstanding young artists were invited to spend three weeks studying the landscape in upstate New York, where they applied their figure-drawing skills to rendering nature. The intention of the four instructors was to revive the approach
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Drawing Basics: Julia Randall's Colored Pencil Mouths

In the winter 2008 issue of Drawing magazine, we discussed how New York City artist Julia Randall's colored pencil drawings incorporated depictions of her mouth. We present more of her voyeuristic, suggestive, slightly grotesque, and humorous drawings
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Technique: Watercolor Pencils: Bridging the Gap Between Painting and Drawing

Water-soluble colored pencils offer the perfect solution for artists who want to create watercolor effects without the hassle of watercolor paints. by Stephanie Kaplan Plumeria 2006, watercolor pencil, 8 x 10. Watercolorist Kristy Ann Kutch owned a set
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Drawing Basics: 70th Anniversary Competition Grand Prize Winner

John P. Smolko won the Grand Prize—a new MetroShed, furnished by Blick Art Materials, for use as a stand-alone studio—for his imaginative colored pencil piece, Homage to Klimt (The Virgin). Read more about the artist, and view five online
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Drawing Basics: Colored Pencil 70th Anniversary Competition Winners

We present the semifinalists in the colored pencil category. by Karen Stanger Johnston Ya Reckin by Rosemarie Rush, 2006, colored pencil, 16 x 20. First Place: Rosemarie Rush Like most of the images of Western life by California artist Rosemarie Rush
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Masters: Ingres’ Materials

In the winter 2007 issue of Drawing magazine, we explored how Ingres taught us much about contours and portraiture. Here, we offer an excerpt from the feature about how the artist's use of graphite on smooth white paper was ahead of his time. by Mark
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Masters: Whistler's Mark

This expatriate American turned away from realism to create an art of stylish and ethereal beauty, ably represented in his drawings. by John A. Parks Crouching Figure in The White Symphony: Three Girls 1869-1870, chalk on brown paper, 10 5/8 x 10¾
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Drawing Basics: Painterly Effects With Colored Pencil

California artist Alyona Nickelsen uses odorless mineral spirits to dissolve some of the pigment in her colored pencil drawings, eliminating the pencil strokes and creating rich, luminous color. by Lynne Moss Perricelli Sincerely Yours 2006, colored pencil
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Drawing Basics: Preserving the Landscape in Colored Pencil

Ohio artist Linda Wesner depicts American scenes that are quickly disappearing because she feels it is important that the viewer recognize the universal theme of change. by Bob Bahr Light Along the Hudson 2006, colored pencil, 25 x 12¾. All artwork
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Drawing Basics: Linda Wesner's Colored Pencil Landscapes

In the January 2007 issue of American Artist , Ohio artist Linda Wesner depicted American scenes that were quickly disappearing because she felt it was important that the viewer recognized the universal theme of change. We offer 16 more of her colored
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Drawing Basics: When It Hurts to Draw

Drawing can cause a repetitive strain injury (RSI), but with a few precautions and the right equipment, this risk can be minimized. by Edith Zimmerman Drawing is not usually thought of as a high-risk occupation. Calluses, dirty fingernails, stained clothes
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