Links: The Magic Pencil
“Drawing is like playing the piano, it’s not a mechanical skill like bricklaying and you have to practise constantly to keep it fluent. Even after 40 years it doesn’t get any easier.”
“A dipping pen is good – the weight of the line alters with the amount of pressure you put on it, so you get a bit of variety.”
“I take a good look at anything that catches my eye – someone’s shoes or eyebrows say. Then I go home and get it down on paper”.
“I do a lot of drawing from reality. I like to travel and I always keep a sketchbook. I put aside all these ideas until I need them. I use the bits and pieces I have collected to create texture and interest.’”
“I might use a piece of paper, perhaps one with curious stains or marks on it, or a sweet wrapper or a piece of my Grandmother’s writing – a shopping list for example. “
I hope that I’m right when I say that none of the ideas above would look out of place in Draw Anyway’s posts or comments section. But in fact they are words from some of my favourite illustrators: John Burningham, Sara Fanelli, and Posy Simmonds (whose work I like so much I seriously considered naming my daughter Posy).
I was delighted to find that their illustrations, biographies and words of wisdom are collected together on The Magic Pencil website: it’s easy reading as there is not much on each illustrator, but there are outbound links and slideshows of their pictures if you hanker for more.
Posted: September 9th, 2007 under Inspiration, Links.
Comments: 2
2 Comments
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Drawing is something I’ve always fancied being able to do, and during my long holidays before I start uni I’ve started trying to draw from photos. I’m just using an HB pencil at the moment but I don’t get a very good range of shades, tips would be welcome.
Hi Wilfred,
My best tips are all here on the site, so dig in - you can access whatever appeals most via the ‘Categories’ menu on the right.
A couple of things I’d say initially: drawing from photos is ok, but you’ll learn a lot more drawing directly from life. Photos flatten everything, so you’re unlikely to get a good understanding of persepctive or depth if you only copy from them.
And secondly, HB pencils are best for writing and not much else! If you switch to a B, 2B, 3B or 4B you’ll immediately see that you can have a lot more control, varying the darkness of your line, and loosening up a bit. They also feel so much nicer, and for me, drawing is a lot about the tactile sensuousness of the materials.
Well, that’s my advice, but really the best advice is simply to go on drawing, and see where it takes you. Enjoy.