Bristol Board

I was just made aware by a student that she was unable to find 18"x24" Bristol board. I just always thought that was the size the store sold. Don't search all around the world looking for it. Just get whatever size you can find. Maybe it's 16"x20". If you haven't already noticed, there are certain standard sizes for papers, and in this case I apparently got confused. Mea Culpa

YOUR Chance To Critique ME...

I thought this could be an interesting experiment. Below, I have images taken from old (very old in some cases) sketchbooks of mine when I was a student. Some are from undergrad classes and some are classes I took while attending grad school here at MCA (I won't say which are which). Some are from drawing classes and some are not. So, when you get your sketchbooks back from me, they will have a grade and a bunch of comments written on the first blank page after your work in them stops. Read through your comments and then feel free to browse through my old sketchbook pages here and see if I practiced then what I'm preaching to you now. Then, feel free to critique by posting a comment. It's your turn now. My feelings aren't going to be hurt. So, anything you see that needs to be criticized, praised, or taken out into the street and flogged, point it out without fear.

Artists To Look At When Thinking About Contour & Gesture Drawing

Alberto Giacometti

David Hockney (again)

Susan Rothenberg

Blind and Controlled Contour & Gesture Drawing

Here's what we'll be working on next week and a list of the supplies you'll need:

Line: Blind and controlled contour o Line quality (weight, width, value, space, thin/thick, dartk/light, fast/slow, push/pull) o Materials • Charcoal pencil, black conte, sharpened stick and ink (black India ink), bond paper & Bristol Gesture Drawings (Line and mass gesture and combination) o Materials • Charcoal pencil, black conte, sharpened stick and ink (black India ink), bond paper & Bristol

The bamboo brush I told you to get will be needed for your homework assignment you'll receive.

Examples done by past classes and other artists:

Another Cezanne

Here's another Cezanne painting I came across (not the one I mentioned in class) that I though you might enjoy analyzing as well.

SKETCHBOOKS ARE DUE TOMORROW!

DO NOT forget to bring your sketchbook to class tomorrow. I'll be taking them up for grading tomorrow, so blow my mind! Don't leave it at home because you're ashamed of it. Remember that your sketchbook counts as 20% of your grade. Therefore, ANY sketchbook grade is better than NO sketchbook grade at all. Also, remember that the "2-Point Perspective Interior" rework homework is due tomorrow as well. That means, should your rework result in a better grade, that will be factored into the mid-term grade as well.

So, to recap, here's what to bring tomorrow:

A sheet of 22"x30" white paper on which to do the in-class assignment.

Charcoal pencils (2B, 4B, 6B)

Conte (So you can at least give it a try. If it's not working for you, go back to the charcoal pencil.)

Hard eraser, kneaded eraser, sharpener

Ruler

All the new skills and new ways of thinking you have developed over the first half of the semester.

Mid-Term Week

Remember next week to come to class with your assignment and another sheet of 22"x30" good-quality white paper for your in-class work. Also, bring some conte in addition to the charcoal pencils and at least give it a try.

Since this is a studio class, there is not exactly a mid-term exam. However, the drawing you will be working on next week is in many ways a comprehesive test of all you have learned thusfar this semester. Consider it your mid-term project, if you will.

In the finished drawing I want to see that you are capable of planar analysis, but I will also be evaluating your skills with line variation, intuitive perspective, composition organization, and creating push-and-pull of the space within your picture plane.

What makes this drawing different from others you complete in the classroom is that I will take it up and it will be graded (without the posibility of reworking). So, this drawing essentially counts twice (you will receive both an in-class participation grade and an assignment grade). So it has the potential to be very beneficial to your mid-term grade for the course.

Please don't get overly stressed or worried. Don't panic. Just approach this drawing as an opportunity to really show what you can do.