Seeing (part 4)

 

Measuring, flattening space, and controlling left-brain memories are essential skills, but several additional concepts can greatly enhance your seeing capabilities.

 

Other Kinds of Relationships

Once you have developed some skill at seeing flat, other comparisons beyond simple spatial and size relationships become possible.  Parallel relationships and lines that flow into other lines are examples.

 It takes only a little practice to develop the skill of seeing parallel relationships or lines that extend into other lines once you understand the trick of perceiving gaps.  Try this: Look for parallel lines that stretch the limits of your perception.  Take Example 20.  You could use the angle of the student’s upper arm resting on the table.  It happens to be parallel to the receding edge of the desk beside him.  And that, in turn, is “lined up” with the lower edge of the box surrounding the shapes on the dry erase board. 

 

 To help you understand this you can make your own “relational” seeing exercises.  Try looking for parallel curves or other shapes that are similar to each other. (Look at Example 19 again and then look at examples 20-5 and 20-6.) 

So, you can begin to understand that flattening space (mentally) not only helps us improve the accuracy of our pictures, it also opens up other, more advanced ideas about the way in which we construct them. 

The possibilities are limitless.  This ability to notice and apply a subtext of consciously perceived relationships, which anyone can acquire with a little practice and imagination, lies at the heart of compositional structure that one discovers in the drawings and paintings of the Masters. See Examples 21, 22, and 23.

By looking at a group of objects without focusing on any one object within the group you can perceive relationships between objects, distances between objects, size comparisons of objects, parallel relationships, and other spatial information that is not available to you if you only let your left-brain take over and focus on individual objects.

 

Lose control early to gain control later

In my work with students, I have come to realize that in many cases the problem of getting lost in the details of objects could be alleviated by simply changing the way the pencil is held during the initial stages (the blocking-in stages) of the drawing.  Normally, whenever you find yourself gripping a writing instrument (Example #30), you’re getting ready to engage in some detail-oriented process like writing down a phone number or doing a math problem. So, your mind is trained to start focusing from the instant you pick up the pencil.

By gripping the pencil in a way that prevents you from drawing details, you have immediately taken away the ability to be in control—which can be scary.  When I encourage students to use a more relaxed grip as in Example 31, they are often uncomfortable at first.  They feel the loss of control.   But, losing control is exactly what you should do at the blocking-in stage of a drawing.  You are only interested in very loosely and lightly sketching out the size and location relationships of the objects anyway!  So, holding the pencil loosely will keep you out of the left-brain detail mode, and help you concentrate on getting the relationships in the drawing correct.

 

Example #30 Control position; working on details

Example #31  Allow the pencil to float—holding it loosely with thumb, index and middle fingers (not touching the fleshy web between index finger and thumb).  This prevents you from focusing on details, which inevitably happens if you are holding the pencil like an accountant (control mode, Example #30).

Remember, you only want to be setting up the image by drawing “blob” shapes very lightly but in the correct spatial and size relationships to the other “blob” designated objects.  So, no details.  Everything drawn very lightly.  The advantage of this technique—blocking-in marks drawn faintly—allows you to add the finishing details later without having to erase.

 

Use the same process on any subject.  Notice the torso of the nude is treated as a parallelogram.  You can simplify the thigh jutting forward as a plexiglass cylinder, correctly sized and placed to which you then add details. 

 

  See the next section.

 

Avoiding names for objects

In this process of translating 3-D information into a 2-D representation of that information, the more you can objectify the things you are trying to depict, the more successful you will be.  “Objectification,” in this context, is to see the object as a simple geometric shape. The blocking-in process uses this notion.

 

Look at the above example to see a problem that commonly comes up for students when they are drawing from live models.  A student, when confronted with a foreshortened view of a portion of the body—the thigh for example—may have a great deal of trouble trying to draw it correctly as seen.  Here again, that old left-brain dominance is the likely culprit. What may be happening is that the student’s left-brain has a mental picture of a thigh which it tries to impose on the drawing.  Since that mental picture has little to do with the actual scene the student is observing, the result is usually a very distorted or bent-down (differently angled) version of the thigh that has no resemblance to the actual image.  In cases like this, I suggest the student try to visualize the thigh not as a thigh but rather as a transparent section of Plexiglas pipe.  (Plexiglas pipe is a good substitute in this case.  Since it’s a visually neutral object, the student probably won’t have an existing mental picture of it.)  On seeing a piece of pipe, the student only needs to approximate the overlap between the openings at either end, and then refine the thigh shape-contours to that construct.  See Diagram F-1 and This, Not This diagram that follows.

 

 

 

The resulting drawing is close to the observed configuration because the left-brain “thigh” memory wasn’t required to create it.  

Converting familiar but difficult-to-draw objects into simplified forms, takes away their name/memory relationship and makes them much easier to draw correctly.  This is closely related to the concept of blocking in.  The main difference in this example is the addition of a 3-D component that comes into play when the student visualizes both ends of the transparent cylinder.  Most blocking in needs only flattened shapes to represent elements in the composition so that their relative placement and size are initially established.

 

Summary

I cannot stress enough the need to be able to see correctly.  If you bypass this step, it might derail all your subsequent efforts at improving.

 

The next step for you as a student is to practice these techniques for a week or two to ensure that you have mastered them and can use them in your future drawing.   To recap, here’s what you should be working on:

 

·                  ·     Measuring techniques:     Sight with your pencil to make relative size comparisons and to measure angles              for translation to a flat drawing surface

• Seeing flat, understand and use gaps:   Consciously visualize spaces between objects—get used to the idea that spaces and objects are coequal
 
• Looking for relationships between things:   revisit  Seeing (part two)   “Relationships”
• Control the tendency for the left side memories of things from taking over in the middle of a drawing.  Embrace “measuring” to help you to avoid overreliance on existing memories

You have now reached an important plateau.  You can correctly draw what you see.  This doesn’t mean that every drawing will come out as you want it, but with your newly acquired skills you will be able to identify and correct problems of spacing and relative size in your drawings.  Over time, as you continue to draw, the number of corrections you have to make will be fewer.

 

Once you understand the process of “artistic seeing” you will be able to correct your own drawings and the progress you make developing your skill should be much more rapid.

 

Next, the three kinds of memory.

 

Seeing (part 3) Fixing the problem

In Seeing 1 and 2 we discovered that the way our brain is wired can cause problems when we attempt to draw what we see accurately, and that being able to see accurately is essential to improving our drawing skills quickly.  Below I have listed several interrelated concepts that you can master in a very short time.  Once these simple ideas are understood, the perceptual difficulty of seeing can easily be overcome.  I’ll list them first and then we’ll take a closer look at each one.

Measuring relationships (three kinds of measuring)

Measuring proportions, angles and vertical/horizontal relationships.

Treating Objects and Spaces Equally

Artists see the spaces between things as well as the things themselves because on a flat surface both have equal weight.  You’ve heard the term “negative space” referring to the space around objects.  I like to think of it in terms of “gaps,” or the spaces between objects

Seeing Flat

Seeing flat is the ability to see the relative sizes and spatial relationships between multiple objects simultaneously. This ability comes from learning to treat objects and the gaps between objects equally.  Once mastered, it will be like having a photograph of any scene you wish to draw, and thus the sizing and spacing of the elements can be easily established.  This is the primary skill needed for seeing as an artist.

Other Kinds of Relationships

Once you begin to visually flatten space, other kinds of relationships become apparent.

 

Lose Control Early to Gain Control Later

 If you are very loose and light with the pencil to begin with (blocking in with no details), it will pay big dividends with your final drawing. This leads to a discussion of “touch.”

 

Avoiding Names for Objects

If we go with our instinct and think of what we are seeing by its object name (i.e. thigh, tree root, vase, etc.), our left brain will try to superimpose its stored symbol memory for the actual object.  If we think of the thing we are seeing as a simplified geometric form rather than a named object, it is easier for our right brain to guide the drawing function, and we will get a more accurate drawing. 

 

Measuring

I usually start a first class by explaining the separation between the right and left brain and left-brain dominance, followed by an exercise in which I have students draw a “vase face” to demonstrate how the separation of brain function works [Seeing (part 1)].  Then, I put a plain cardboard box on the model stand and tell students to make a line drawing of the box.  Everyone can draw a box, right?

Most of the drawings look like some version of Example #12. 

The student sees this (Example 13).

 

 

But, their previously held mental construct, causes them to make a drawing something like Example #12!

 

This happens because the typical, untrained student sees the box in front of them and then unconsciously allows his left brain to superimpose his previous memory of “a box” onto the drawing he is trying to make.  This causes the distortion.

The drawing becomes an interpretation of the student’s left-brain “A Box” memory with its suggestion of dimensions even though the student’s view of the actual box and its measurable dimensions are quite different!  In a left-brain sense, this interpretation is a sound approach; the left brain carries logical, manageable, simplified memories for everything—although most are not specific.  So, if the left brain takes over, its interpretation of the object will show a logical understanding of its properties, but not necessarily what it actually looks like in its current position.

But if we measure the various components of the box and set up a proportional relationship based on a dimension, we establish by sighting the closest vertical line (the nearest vertical corner of the box), we can then establish every other dimension in relation to that vertical edge as it actually exists rather than following the easier route of completing the drawing using our imperfect mental construct for the box (Example #14).     Initially this takes more work, especially when we are learning the process.  However, if we learn how to measure it will save many hours of frustration and disappointment.        

We will now look at the measuring process

 

Measuring  Relationships

Measure Proportional Length/Width/Height

 Let’s look at what has just happened and demonstrate something called “proportional and angular measuring.”  We’ve all seen the picture of the “artist” (usually wearing a beret and sporting a pointy little mustache) holding his pencil at arm’s length and “artfully” sighting the subject of his drawing.  What he’s doing is comparing the size of two objects in his line of sight; or, comparing the width of an object to its height; or, comparing the height or width of an object to the space between it and an adjacent object.  Like this archetypal sketcher, you too can compare anything to anything using this method—and the beret and mustache are optional.  Look at Example #15. 

 

 

Notice that the artist is sighting between the top of the pencil and his thumb where he’s grasped the pencil.  Although many teachers suggest that you do this with your arm fully extended, it’s not required. As long as the pencil stays at the same distance from your eye when making the comparisons (between two objects or object dimensions, etc.) the proportional relationship will be correct.  So, for example, you might determine an object’s height is a little over twice its width or that the object’s width is about a third the size of the gap between it and the next object.   This process of measuring sizes and relationships is something your right brain does a lot better than your left brain and by doing it, you’ll be ensuring that you are drawing the objects in front of you and not substituting a left-brain mental construct.   At first, for many students, this approach seems not “artistic,” when in fact, learning to measure objects and distances for yourself becomes routine, lets you see more quickly and clearly—and, in the long run, increases your confidence as an artist and your ability to interpret more “artistically.”

Measuring is probably the most important and effective method you can use to prevent left-brain memory takeover.  

 

In the box example (Example #13), if the student had made some simple measurements for locations of vertical corners and related all the measurements to the height of the nearest vertical, then the drawing would look more like Example 14.

Measure angles

You can also use the handheld pencil to measure angles.  Sight align it with the angle you wish to duplicate, hold your drawing up and then simply scribe the angle on your page while making a visual comparison with the original angle you sighted (in the case of example 16, the roofline across the street.) 

 

 

 

When doing this kind of measuring you should ensure that you keep your pencil vertical (perpendicular to your line of sight) as there is a tendency to point your pencil in the direction of a receding line you are trying to get the angle of.  Just remember that the angles you measure must be translated to a flat surface so your initial measurement should be made with this in mind.  Deborah Rockman in her book The Art of Teaching Drawing instructs students to think of the pencil as a clock hand and estimate the time (3 o’clock the small hand being horizontal.) You are translating three-dimensional information to a two-dimensional surface and this is why you need the imaginary flat surface, like a clock face, to reinforce the necessity that your pencil remain perpendicular to your sight line during the angle measuring process, to ensure an accurate translation of the 3D visual data to your 2D drawing surface. 

Vertical and Horizontal relationships

A third use of the pencil for measuring is in sighting vertical and horizontal relationships.  This is an aid to seeing relationships in a complex form (the human figure) or group of objects, and helps us to position them correctly. (Examples #19, 19a, 19b.)

 

Measuring   By measuring angles, proportions and vertical/horizontal relationships you avoid making errors caused by the tendency to rely on faulty mental constructs.  At the same time, you are transferring an accurate, flattened view of 3-D information onto a 2-D sheet of paper.  

 

When students do the “draw the box” exercise, it is amazing how many cannot see the correct version of the box until they use the measuring technique to actually compare the dimensions – by measuring, they are disproving their incorrect mental assumptions!

 

Objects and spaces are equal

Let’s revisit the bottle, the basket, and the box. (See example #6)

 

 In this example, notice that there is a gap between the bottle and the basket and between the bottle and the box.   This gap is called a negative space.  As we have seen, the left-brain cares about focusing on objects and lining them up in a logical progression.   But it doesn’t care at all about empty spaces.  So, try this: draw the shape of the space between the bottle and the bowl.  When you do this, you are seeing both of the surrounding objects simultaneously and to do that are using the right side of your brain.  Because your left brain has no ready-made symbolic memory available for a negative space, and therefore cannot impose an image on your drawing.  As a result, your rendering should be very true to the actual shape and dimension of the space in between objects which happens to be shaped exactly like the edges of the objects themselves. 

Another way to understand this is by thinking about the “Gap” or space between two objects.  The only way you can perceive the size or shape of a space between two objects is by staring in the direction of the objects and not focusing on either object but rather allowing your peripheral vision to gage the distance between them!  You didn’t focus on either object but allowed your mind to flatten the space enabling you to see the gap accurately.  With a little practice it becomes easy for you to flip the mental switch, stare in a direction, out of focus and determine the correct relationships between multiple objects or elements of a scene and thus letting you   

Block In all of the elements before turning your attention to drawing the details of each element. 

 

 

 

Seeing Flat  

When I use this term, I am referring to the acquired ability to look at a three-dimensional scene and see its various components as if they were on a flat surface (as though you were looking at a photographic print of the scene).  You will recall that we have a very small cone of focus and that our visual depth of field is very limited, so the untrained eye tends to focus on individual parts of a scene (first the praying mantis, then the rooftop, then the mountains, and so on).  The artist’s eye can do that too, but the artist’s eye is also able to look in the general direction of this group of objects (without focusing on any single element) and see all three simultaneously!  Of course, they will not all be in focus, in fact, none of them will be in focus, (remember Example 10-11), but in this case, they don’t need to be in focus because what the artist wants (at least initially) is not a sharp image of any one object, but rather the size and placement relationships among all the objects.  

By looking at all the objects simultaneously (focusing on none), the artist can see how far apart they are (the Gaps) as well as the various linear and shape relationships that would never be apparent by looking at the objects in focus and one at a time!   This is why artists can draw a group of objects in a still life and get them all the right size and in the correct place.

And finally, remember the example of the roof line angle and drawing pad?  Take a look at example 16-17) If you tried that and compared the roofline angle with the one you scribed on the paper, then you were “seeing flat.”  The pad is three feet away, and the roofline is forty yards away.  To be able to see them both simultaneously, you had to look in the general direction, but not focus on either.  In fact, if you compared the angle of your drawn line with the angle of the mountainside you are comparing two things that are forty miles apart (in depth)!  Seeing out of focus allows you to do this.  The dominant left-brain wants to focus on individual objects and proceed logically from one to the next to the next . . . and in doing so prevents the right side of your brain from seeing the “relationships” between things.

We’ll complete the list of Artistic Seeing aides in the next installment.

Exercises

1.       Draw some vase faces.  Refer to the Examples 1 and 2 as you do it, but imagine your own unique profile.  Draw the first part from memory, and then draw the second, facing part.  Think about the different process your brain uses to draw each version of the facial silhouette.

2.      Draw some gaps.  Look at the shape of the space between two buildings or objects and make a line drawing just of the gap or space between them.  In perceiving the gap you are requiring yourself to see more than one object even while you’re seeing a relationship between objects!  A relationship you might never have noticed before.  Some call this negative space, which it is, but I think the term “gap” helps you understand the concept on a more basic level.

3.      Practice proportional and angular measuring.  To get used to the idea, set up a chair in your room facing objects on the other side.  How wide is the bookcase when compared to its height? The same?  Three quarters of the height?  How far is the wall clock from the window?  Two times the width (diameter) of the clock?   And so on . . .  If you have trouble with the pencil sighting just pinch the distance between your thumb and forefinger to make the comparisons.  With a bit of practice this becomes a part of your approach to drawing a scene or objects.