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When I was an artists’ model (sitting on dusty velvet curtains, heated on one side by a sleep-inducing oil heater, and with goosebumps on the other side, one leg and one arm gradually going numb) I used to really enjoy the one-minute, two-minute and five-minute poses that a class would often begin with.

This wasn’t just because I didn’t have to stay in position for so long that I would gradually topple over. Yes, your model will be grateful for the break, but there are other advantages too. Let’s look at reasons why artists often begin drawing sessions this way:

- It loosens you up. You don’t labour or overwork any part of the picture.

- If you’re coming to drawing from the rest of your busy day, you might need this bridge to get you in the right frame of mind.

- You don’t expect anything from yourself. The chances are that this drawing will not be one you show anyone, so its perceived value – and therefore the chance of failure – is low. Oddly, this removal of pressure often leads to some better pictures – ones that you will show people.

- You’re moving fast over the page, and so you make different marks than when every line is considered. That can make a picture dynamic and exciting.

- It’s excellent practice: the more you draw, the better you get. The faster you draw, the more practice you get.

- Learning to draw fast allows you access to subjects that typically scare beginners – for example, people. As mentioned in yesterday’s post, people don’t naturally stay still for long, and such skills will enable you to sit in a public place and sketch people without them realising it.

- You can focus on just one or two key aspects of your drawing. For example, you might decide that the pose is interesting. In a quick drawing you can concentrate on the shape of the model and not bother to add details of clothing, hair, colour. Or you might only concentrate on those things.

Those are the first few reasons for fast drawing that come to my mind. Can anyone add any more?

I’ve talked about life drawing, but of course this method has advantages for any kind of drawing.

Your task for today is, then, pretty obvious:

Choose one thing or person to draw. If you have time, go to the street or a public area, but if you don’t, simply choose an object that interests you, at your home or place of work. Set yourself a time limit of two minutes. Draw.

Repeat as often as you like and post the results here if you’d like to.

Note: You might not believe this until you try it, but two minutes is a really long time. One minute is even better. Five minutes and you start fiddling with needless detail.

You might want to think about how you are going to time yourself. Egg-timer? Mobile phone alarm? One hippopotamus?