Lights and Darks

Asian Woman with Cap, Charcoal and White Pencil on Gray Paper

In drawing sessions I've been lucky enough to attend over the years, there's been a wide variety of models. People of many different nationalities, races and backgrounds have posed for the class. 

Such variety is invaluable to improving drawing skills. Instead of thinking "this is how you draw eyes" or "this is how you draw noses" in rote manner, look to see what is there. Learning by seeing is a kind of exploration. Formulaic drawing risks stagnation.

It may sound annoyingly simplistic, but drawing can be boiled down to this: You put the lights where the lights go and the darks where the darks go. Done in proper relation to each other, lights and darks are what shape the face (or anything for that matter), not necessarily eyes, nose and mouth. Properly place the values on the paper or canvas, and everything else will take care of itself.

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."