2 Minute Gestures
Drawing the figure in 2 mins is tough!! …. Actually, I would argue that you can’t “draw the figure” at all in 2 mins. So then…. why bother?
Well, my answer is: Setting a timer and trying to express what you see through your marks is the most powerful way that I know of to get good at drawing. The key is to let go of any idea of drawing the exact likeness of the reference image, or the model. And to try to draw the movement or impulse of the pose. This works best when drawing from life, but it’s definitely something you can practice with photo reference.
This week I managed to find some model reference images online that I really liked (finding good reference images for figure drawing is a whole other conversation we should have another time)
I thought I’d use these images to share my process for making quick gesture studies, by being able to display the image alongside the drawing.
You can watch the full process for three 2-minute gesture drawings in the latest Youtube video.
I think watching someone’s approach or process can be so helpful. I know for myself that’s how I finally learned to unlock drawing - through watching a teacher demonstrating. So, let me know if you find it useful.
Thanks for subscribing to this email, I hope I can share valuable advice or info with you.
Till next time…
Stay creative + always be drawing!
Siobhan.
xoxo
Love it. Turns out that 2 minutes is actually a lot of time to draw something. I struggle with how much time to give students when they do gesture drawings because 2 minutes is enough time to fall back into the familiar piece meal approach to figure drawing. To do good gestures, you must feel a bit desperate, out of breath perhaps. This is the 30-60 seconds range where you know that you do not have time to think about it and you must react to what you're seeing and trust your hand to connect with your eye.
Here is my vibe for a one minute approach:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BxTXHM3gML0/