How Did You Learn To Draw?

Drawing was the first thing I learned for art, when I was around 5 years old a lady that was an art teacher taught me how to draw (her husband took English Equestrian Riding lessons from my dad and while her husband had his class she sat down with me and taught me) and I drew pictures up until I was a late teenager and then put it down and now into photography. But Abbie's sketch challenges have motivated me to start up up again although I need so much practice. I might do as you are doing and look at the great artists of old in order to get the feeling into the paper again.

I chose to be alone a lot when I was young and started to try to copy photographs of people. By high school I had gotten pretty proficient at that. After that I studied art all the way up through grad school and learned , amongst other things , that good drawing has little to do with mere representation. You can draw an image to look very much like a photograph and it can suck. Conversely a drawing can be completely abstract and be awesome. Been a long road and have a long ways to go, with any luck!

I always drew as a child but I also took an art class in my senior year of High School and then took drawing in college before I decided to major in art. I think drawing is more about learning to see than learning to draw though. In class one basically learns about the different media and the students critique each other's work. My best advice: practice, practice, practice. It really does make a difference when you draw frequently. Not everything has to be a finished work. Get a sketchpad and draw whatever takes your fancy.

I think all artists are (initially) self-taught. So many, like me, began drawing at an early age of 4 and 5. At age 4 I was (trying) to reproduce the Sunday comics. As with most of us, I never stopped but kept drawing on my own. I had no art classes until high school. Today at age 65 I am not a skilled draftsman but can draw well enough to suit me. Good question.

Yes, self taught. I started by wandering around with a small sketchbook and a pencil sketching from life. I studied some books too, the most useful of which for getting the basics down was "Your Artist Brain" by Carl Purcell. It's mostly just practicing, training your eye to see accurately and your hand to make marks to match what your eye sees. I use to sketch a lot at car shows, I need to get back to do that again this year.

Ha ha ! Remember the Tommy the turtle or the Pirate Face in the back of the magazines for contests or an Art school scholarship ?

I was probably about in 2nd grade when my father handed me the newspaper and said : " Here - draw this. "

When my father told us to do something, you did it - & you did it well.

He was my first and biggest supporter - my worst critic too. But I do know that he would be proud.

Some days I would like to go back to charcoal sketches - just for the sheer rawness of it.
My Sketches are scratchy and rough.

I too always drew as a child and took some elective drawing classes in high school. When I started nursing school, I took 2 drawing classes as electives and found drawing to be a nice way to wind down after my 2 hour nursing lectures. I would spend 5 min after lecture drawing to process what I absorbed, then I would recopy my notes and the relaxation part of drawing always helped my mind absorb better I feel. I went on to become a nurse and took watercolor classes from a local artist for about a year many years ago. The rest has been a lot of trial and error over the years, self-teaching, experimenting with different mediums, but it still does for me what it did then. It is a wonderful way to clear the mind, like meditation. My favorite medium while I was in nursing school was charcoal. I am still learning and learning.

Robert,

I learned to draw age 25 at UCONN.

The basic first lesson was taking a white sheet and placing it over boxes on a table. Then taking to our large paper pads to look, and finding the nuance, shape, line, light and shadow.

I think if you find a book with some exercises like that in a quick secession, you would be well down the road in no time.

Dave

Janine, you made me smile. In high school, I "took" the art test in the magazines and won a course at the Minneapolis School of Art (I think it was). It was fun and it encouraged me.

Thanks all...Very helpful and fun to read your comments.

As of now, I am using art pencils and ink pens. Also, doing lots of research on YouTube.

I know I will never be another Rembrandt but what the heck one step at a time.

I agree with what MM said: "drawing is more about learning to see than learning to draw" It is kind of like seeing how a thing actually looks rather than what your brain tells you it looks like.

A good practice is to take an ordinary object and turn the thing upside down , doesn't really matter what, a teapot, a lamp, something that is all wrong upside down helps to force the brain to see....

Robert,

An early assignment was to draw like a great master, again using the sheets. I picked Albrecht Durer and used one of his old lady drawings. The sheets using the cross hatch patterns for the shape came out extremely well. Easy A.

Dave

Robert learning to draw came sort of natural for me lol

Good for you Robert, to be pro-active, take charge, and be creative at a sharp turn in your life road.

How did I learn to Draw? Not yet. Probably not ever. I SUCK at drawing.

However, because there are printers and carbon paper for tracing, my painting hobby/career was able to take off.

Thank goodness, cuz I LOVE to paint :)

High fives Kevin Callahan !
I think I got the letter that said I " showed potential ". I do recall being a bit miffed over that.
Minneapolis is cold anyhow.


No Charcoals Robert ? You must treat yourself. And the very large pad of charcoal paper.
Full range of movement drawing from the shoulder. I think you will enjoy that.

Robert, exactly I'm self taught. I learned to draw by drawing and I learned to sculpt by sculpting and I learned to paint by painting, seems everything I have learned is by doing it, is there a better way?

What wonderful comments.

Carlin wrote..."be creative at a sharp turn in your life road."

Yes, exactly. What little energy I have left, I can at least draw.

Mario, if we were neighbors, we would have been friends.

Robert, I consider you my friend now, your right though, we would be friends. :-)