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It is common to be too tight and focused on details early on. Ironically being LOOSE in the beginning will actually improve the final details in your drawing. You do not have to dread the blank sheet of paper in front of you. Here are some ways to help you relax and enjoy drawing.  Remember the starting lines will get covered upBe loose and very general with your beginning pencil lines, make a soft suggestion of where the eyes and face will be. Remember that all of these soft lines will be covered up with future mark making and shading. So don't worry about messing up. Use powdered graphite to block-in value shapesWhy? Sometimes a pencil point or line can be too restrictive. Powdered graphite is easier to put down broad, loose, value shapes of darks. Please don't be afraid to get your dark shadows in, because again future marks will go on top. No ... the second photo above isn't darker than the photos to the right. You may think I lightened some of the eye area, I didn't. What I did was go darker with the eyebrow, lidline, and lashline. It's just an optical illusion. Those darker marks make the values before it look lighter. Have fun and enjoy drawing. Are you interested in drawing tips and classes?
For more drawing tips, Sign up for my newsletter to get info sent to you. What a Fun Art Field Trip! Sketching the Portrait at the MuseumI love our amazing St. Louis Art Museum! It is so beautiful! A favorite thing is to bring my class to the museum to explore and sketch. We sketched from two masterwork paintings. Our emphasis was sketching the large shapes of the figure in the painting, creating a loose drawing in charcoal and pencil. With no pressure, our sketching is done as a form of personal journaling, for each of us to explore and to become more aware of this incredible painting.  Portrait of a Woman by Nicolas de Largilliere c. 1696 To sketch a masterwork, helps us all to really see it and maybe begin to think about all the decisions that the artist had to make in creating this painting, such as composition, lighting, how much of the sitter will be included and on and on.  We moved on to a second amazing painting by Robert Henri. Again our emphasis was on sketching, and getting the overall strong direction or angle of the subject's figure. Then we moved on to creating large shapes to small shapes, with minimal detail.  Betalo Rubino, Dramatic Dancer by Robert Henri 1916   To reward all our lovely sketches, we relax and enjoy a luxurious lunch together!  What a treat!! A super fun fantastic day was had by all!! Join the Fun--
If you are reading this and are interested in taking Art Classes with Marie Donato, check out Marie's Art Class Info Page for more information. Have a Great Day!  What a great class! Fantastic finished work by my Portrait Drawing Class at OA Gallery! The focus of this portrait class was drawing the portrait on toned paper using graphite and charcoal. It's great for students to have a connection to their subject, so students are encouraged to bring their own photos.  Demonstration Drawing where I begin by loosely laying in the large shapes of the head, face, hair and neckline and then I start the eye area.        My art class students are working hard and making beautiful progress!    What a great job they did! I have the best students! Thank you all for making it such a fun class!! If you are reading this and are interested in taking Art Classes with Marie Donato, check out Marie's Art Class Info Page for more information. Have a Great Day!  I love to sing the praises of my students! Classes offered are Pastel Painting, Oil Painting and Drawing. Here are progress photos of student's work in pastel, oil and charcoal/pencil. Great job!  Beautiful pastel paintings!    Oil painting in progress. Gorgeous color!  Here is a graphite & charcoal drawing getting some finishing touches. Lovely! I am so proud of all my students! Fantastic work! IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN TAKING ART CLASSES WITH MARIE DONATO
Check out Marie's Art Class Info Page Join the Fun! Wow! An art lesson at the Saint Louis Art Museum was a unique opportunity and treat for my drawing students! As an art teacher my hope is that my students have fun while learning! So I arranged a visit to the Prints and Drawings Study Room. Visiting the Study Room was a rare occasion to get a close look at Master work dating back to the 1700's! From there we went on to the main galleries to create sketches from two Zorn portraits. We all had a blast!  17 works on paper were chosen from the Art Museum's collection. Many of the works were unframed, matted only, and amazingly, not under glass. Magnifying glasses were supplied for closer inspection of the beautiful marks and details!  St. Louis Art Museum  The Prints and Study Room was a pure delight to us all! We saw works from Ingres, Renoir, Childe Hassam, Berthe Morisot and others.  Beautiful pastel by Mary Cassatt  Pastel painting created in 1753 by Maurice Quentin de la Tour  Etching by Anders Zorn  Questions answered by the Study Room Manager, Heather Hughes, were so helpful!  Great information!   From the Study Room we sketched from the Anders Zorn portraits.  We divided up between the Zorn portraits, Lucy Turner Joy and Halsey Cooley Ives. Mr Ives was the first director of the St. Louis Art Museum.   Sketching Lucy Turner Joy by Anders Zorn Great fun!  To top it off we gathered for a delicious relaxing lunch at the Museum's Panorama Restaurant!
What a perfect day! As an art instructor, it is my hope to share my excitement for drawing and to create fun learning experiences for my students. We definitely will be visiting the museum again!  New Art Class |
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