Transcripts
1. 1 Introduction: Welcome to my class. Hi. My name is Ivan. My background is based
in visual communication. I'm painting, and I'm also
interested in songwriting. I often go outside, write downloads into nature. I also like to draw
little stories as they allows us to express feelings and understand the
world around us. Having an art practice is free and helps the mind
to think better. In this class, we
will draw subjects in an academic style exclusively
in black and white. You observation skills
will be required, and we will draw two vegetables. Recently, I've been working
into gardens and I was very surprised to see how
similar a bean plant and a p plant looked. Of course, they are different, but their similarities may be confusing if you try to
identify which plant is which. Therefore, my wish is to choose these plans as the subject for my
skill share class. I will explain you
the differences, but most importantly,
we will draw them. If this kind of topic
inspires your desire to draw, you will see, join me and
2. 2 Class Project: Let's talk business now. What is your job and what
will you do in this class? After explaining which supplies you will need for this class, I will begin by talking about the differences between the
bean plant and the P plant. Then I have prepared
a short meditation, which is designed to slow down your mind and get you into the right mindset
for the practice. Then we will start to draw with two preparatory exercises. The first one is about
a scale of gray, and in the second one, you will draw a bubble with
the light reflections. Then we will continue
with the main part of the class focused on
two different drawings, peas and beans in
academic style. You will use a range of pencils
with different boldness. First, for a composition
of ps from a photo. For the second drawing, I will ask you to produce several elements
on the same page. So you have to be sure
to design a nice layout. For each drawing, I have
split the process into sections so you can follow
one step after the other. There are a little
animated title in between the section to help
distinguish each part. At the end of the section, you can stop the video and do what we have
seen at your own pace. This is the class project, the two drawings that you can share to me at
the end of the class. Either the first drawing
or the second one, the Ps or the beams. In order to share it to me
or to the other students, you can take a photo
of your work and share it on the
skill shares website in the projects and
resources section. And please, if you
have any questions, come to me and I will be
happy to answer them.
3. 3 Supplies: This class, we will only
work in black and white. So you will need a series of pencils with different
kind of boldness. Here I have a box of five
pencil from H B to eight B, but you can still follow
the class if you only have normal pencils or a
black color red pencil. You will need a notebook or about five pages of blank paper, and an additional blank
page of paper to put under your hand so you don't make your drawing dirty
while you are drawing. You will also need 60 beans
in a ball and you can also use the ball for one of the
exercises to draw a circle. Then you need an, an
architect eraser, but a normal one will fit to. A er and photos of Ps and beans. You can download them in the
project and resources tab. But you don't necessarily
need to print them. You can also follow the class by putting them on your device. Let's move on
4. 4 Differences between peas and beans: Firstly, we need to tell a bean plant and
the P plant apart. Due to the fact
that the bean plant bears a striking
resemblance to the P plant, let me explain you
a few differences. The bean plant is contained in a pud and is growing
during the warm season. They are a common
and a runner type. It means that some are
growing on the ground and some are climbing along a rope. The p plant is also
growing in a pud, but during the cool season, and they are also a low
growing and ny cultivar. I think that the confusion
comes from the fact that the pod of the P plant and
the B plant look similar. However, you can
distinguish them by looking at the
shape of the pods. The shape of the pod
of a plant is flatter. Here on that picture
you see a p plant and its pods and
also a bean plant. You can see that the pod of
a bean plant looks rounder. Another difference
is that the stem of a bean plant is different
to the stem of a p plant. The stem of a bean
plant is holllowed, while the stem of a
p plant is plain. Last of all is the
difference between the shape of the beans
and the peas themselves. The peas are green
and round in shape, whereas the beans looks like kidneys and come in
various colors like white, red, black, and green. I hope that those explanations
help you to create a better picture of those
two species in your mind, and I will see you in the next video for a short
meditation with beds.
5. 5 Meditation: Before we dive into the
two preparatory exercises, let's do a short
meditation with the beans. We will remove the
beans from a cup and then bring them back into the cup during the
lapse of 5 minutes. First, put 60 beans
into the cup, and you will see it's
like meditation. L et me show you first, set your timer and then
remove the beans from the cup onto the table
for 2 minutes and a half. Then you will have to put them back into the cup during
the remainder of the time. You can also focus deeply
on your breathing, and you inhale while
you take the bean inside the cup and exhale
while you put it on the table. Inhale, take the bean and
exhale, put it on the table. And so on. If you see that
you have no more beams, but you arrive at
the end of the time, simply slow down or simply take a break before
the end of the time. And then you put the beans
back again inside the cup during the second half of
the time until 5 minutes. Repeat this exercise as
much time as you want, and you will find that
you feel more relaxed and have a more peaceful
mind than at the beginning. Now we are ready
for the practice.
6. 6 Preparatory exercise 1: So Let's start now a first
preparatory exercise, like in the next video. For those two
preparatory exercises, the scale of tones and the ball. I want tell you to
stop the video simply follow my instruction and feel free to stop it
whenever you want. Let's create a scale of tones. By creating a scale of tones, you will get used
to the pencils and also you will get to
know their tones well. For sure, you know already
that a pencil with a six b value is very bold, but a pencil with a two
b value is quite normal. You can change the tone of the surface you are feeling
by applying more pressure or by using a pencil with
a different boldness. We will create two
different scales. One with variations
of pressure and one with the use of pencils
with different boldness. So for the first scale, I will draw six squares with
a length of 2 centimeters, and then I will take
four B pencils, and I will create a
gradient from very light gray to very dark gray by
changing the pressure. So I let the first square white of the color of the paper. So I continue with the
second square square by drawing very lightly in order
to have a very light gray. I can either do strokes
or simple little circles, and you can see that where the strokes are
overlapping each other, it create a texture, which can be aesthetic
here and here. Then in the second square, I will press a little bit more to have a
gray a bit darker. You can also try to change the
direction of your strokes, so it will impact the texture. In the third square, I press a little bit harder, even more in the fifth square. And Lastly, I will press really
hard in the six square in order to have gray almost black. Now we will use
different pencils in order to produce
different grays, even if the pressure
remain the same. Explore the pencils in
every square of your scale. Now let's compare
the two scales, and you can see that the
gradient here is less obvious. Another observation is that a lightly sharpened
pencil creates more detailed texture due to the visibility
of the strokes, while a border pencil is
wars and smooth here, and here I use a very
light sharpened pencil. Also, I normally do strokes
with a light pencil. But with bold ones, we can create a
circular movement without removing the
pencil from the paper. Think about the texture of
your subject in reality in order to use the type of grade that matches
closely to it. Now you can use your favorite
way to create gradients and the appropriate texture you will need for the next exercise.
7. 7 Prep exercise 2: In primitive art and particularly
in the Byzantine style, there were no sources of flight. But Ancient Greeks
created technique that were usually related
to one source of flight. Later, this was popularized and developed during
the renaissance. An arrangement of
light and dark shapes that create an effect
of a solid shape. We've just seen the gradient. Let's look at form. By using different tones, we will create the
illusion of a form. Let's set the limit of six different values for
this preparatory exercise. The white is the color of the paper where the
highlights are, and then we will use the gray tones to give the
three dimensional effect. A photo of a bubble will
be our image of reference. You can find the file in the project and
resources section. Now observe the subject. In the beginning, distinguish the different tones
can be heard. Let's change the picture to black and white mode so we
can see the tones better. Take a moment to associate
the six different tones from the first scale of
the previous exercise with each tone of this bubble? First, identify where
the highlights are by looking at the parts where
the light is the strongest. This should be number one according to the first
square of the scale. Then distinguish the other tones by using the numbers 2-6. The number six is
the darkest tone. I will give you 30 seconds to decide which number
fits into which are. Did I make myself clear? Erections. The highlights
are tone number one. Here we have six near the outline because
it's almost black. In the middle, we have
the tones in between, so I've added the number 2-5. The aim here is to
develop your ability to distinguish the
tones in a subject, as you will now have to draw
this photo in your notebook, but don't worry I will guide
you through this exercise. Let's start by
drawing the bubble. Put the photo on a
device so you can look at it while I explain
the next steps to you. First, make sure you have your pencil and a
white sheet of paper, also a cup to draw
a perfect circle. Begin by drawing the outline
of the ball with the cup. Include the outline of
the shadow on the ground. We are attempting to
draw a spherical ball. Start by lightly adding
the different tones so you can cover it afterward with
darker ones if necessary. It's not a perfect science. Remember the specific areas and the numbers
you match to them. Proceed slowly. You can also define
the brightest areas in advance to avoid covering
them with a shade of gray. Do it as confidently as you
can with a relaxed wit. As you know, the white
value gives the illusion of light and the darker areas will be used for the shadows. The middle of the circle
might be confusing because there is not much
difference between the grays. Keep in mind that you want
to draw a spherical ball and that it should convey a
three dimensional feeling. Also, take note that the
light come from the top and bounces on the table because the shadow is under the ball. Next, I will add
the darkest areas of gray near the
rim of the bubble, not too dark at first
so that you can come back and adjust them
later if necessary. Slowly and carefully, I will add the tones everywhere
on my bubble. Now you can start to
press a little bit more, especially on the outline. If you would like create some textures with
little strokes, keep in mind that your
strokes can follow the form in order to give an impression of three D effect. Or use a circular movement, find a way that makes you
feel the most comfortable. After a while, when you
are in the flow state, it will allow you to
release emotions. Be persistent until you can appreciate what you are doing. If you have added too
much pigment somewhere, you can use an eraser
afterward to brighten the area or a piece of
carton to blur the textures. For the shadow on the ground, you can see that
there is a gradient. I will begin from the outside and then continue to the middle, and then I press harder
where it is darker. Go slowly so you can discover the correct shape
with nice curves. The shadow has a
very dark gray tone. In the end, the bubble
should look spherical. To make sure the highlights
are really white, or if you want to
add more white dots, you can use the
architect eraser. Again, press harder in the areas where you want to
remove the gray pigments. There is a difference
depending on if the background behind the
ball is dark or white. Have a look here in
my examples where I have drawn the dark
background behind the ball. You can see that the subject is more important and stands out. If you want to, you can add an area of gray to
your background. I will use a polder
pencil for it, the six b one, and here it is, we have done the exercise. One more thing. The way
we perceive the value is directly related to the
value that surrounds them. This means next
to the dark area, your gray will appear
lighter and vice versa. Even if the grays are similar on a white background,
they appear darker. It means elements can be emphasized according to the
tone that surrounds them. In a nutshell, the
dark background can add some special depths
to your drawing. The shading we added also form and give the illusion
of the tree dimension. We will start the first exercise of the class project
in the next video. Are you ready?
8. 8 Exercise 1 Peas: L et's begin the first
exercise with the piece. For the photo of the piece, you can either download it in the project and
resource section, or you can also take a photo of a packaging in a supermarket. Then you will need also a blank sheet of paper
or your notebook. In my case, a double page of my notebook will fit
perfectly for this subject. Then in addition, you
will need one ruler and also a eraser and two pencils
with different boldness, for example, H B and four B. So here are the steps
of the exercise. Firstly, we will roughly
sketch the subject and see how we can use
the geometrical shapes. Secondly, we will
add the tones and explore different textures
and also add the shadows. Then we will finish
off with the details. For instance, by adding more
contrasts where needed. Lastly, we will add the
background if you want, and this is just the
black rectangle. To begin, take a blank
page or your notebook. According to your
reference photo, arrange your page in
the right direction so that it fills the whole page. I will suggest drawing your subject as
wide as possible on your page so that you can draw each component of the
image big and freely. Then add the values. First piece of advice, observe your subject carefully. As we saw in the previous
exercise with the bubble. You can also write numbers according to the
tones that match to them. First, take the
lighter pencil HB. Before you start to draw, imagine how much space
your subject will take up on your page before you
draw the first strokes. It will be better
off to start slowly because you have to keep the right proportions
from the beginning. A light sketch will define the main lines
in your drawing. They are fundamentally useful in positioning the structure
using the right proportions. During this step, it is still easy to change the composition. Afterward, the general aspect of your drawing
will be much harder to change when adding the
tools or refining the outline. The structure can also be defined with geometrical shapes. Second piece of advice, small shapes are not
recommended here. Start with big and
broad shapes first. For example, you can draw this like very small shapes inside won't be useful at first. For example, you draw two
lines for the two pods, almost parallel, on which
you add the pes afterward. Instead of drawing the p
in detail along that line, simply start by drawing circles. That is the structure, so
you have the proportions, and then you add the details. Spending much time on a part of your drawing and
then realizing that it looks weird might mean
that you have to do it again. It's a waste of time. Here I will roughly define
all the components with the correct sizes. It's the first
attempt of the shape, so don't pay too much attention
to the exact details. When the first step
is successfully done, you will be able to complete every component
easily afterwards. According to the gesture, make sure that you keep
your hand relaxed. Feel free to rest your
wrist on the paper so that you are stable while
you are drawing the shapes. But be careful that your hand
doesn't blur your drawing. Put a paper under your
hand if necessary. Continue to draw all the elements according
to your photo. Here we will add the toads and what we've seen during the
preparatory exercises, so try to recall the exercise with the bowl
and the scale of toads. Firstly, add the tones onto each P. Pay attention to where
the light comes from, obviously from the top. The different tones
of gray are done by changing the amount
of pressure used. If I take a boulder pencil, I am able to have
better contrasts. For instance, you can first
add a layer of gray with a light pencil and then use a boulder pencil for
the darker shapes. You can also remove the gray
with the architect eraser, work that way until you
are satisfied with every P. Third piece of advice, blink your eyes so you can
see your picture a bit blurred and this
will help you to distinguish the
different shades. I will then continue
with the peel. Pay attention to where you put your hand as you could
fail your drawing. But in a way, having a blurred texture can also be something you
willingly chose to do. For instance, here on
the p and on the pod. I will press a little bit with my finger to add
a blurred effect. I will continue to cover
all the surfaces using variation of pressures as we saw in the
preparatory exercises. Either I cover my shapes with a circular movement or with horizontal and vertical strokes. Explore the textures
that you think will be suitable
for each component. I'm now adding a second layer with boulder pencil
where the shadows are. This will add contrast, spend as much time
as you want on this, but remember to leave the eliminated parts
completely white. The more you progress
in your drawing, the more you can refine
your outline and use the pressure with confidence in order to have a clean
and neat drawing. Continue to add tones
into your subject, so you have a nice and
contrasted result. Once you have covered
all the surfaces, remembering to avoid
the lightened one, you can add more details. You can use dots, little strokes, or
whatever you please. Draw the little
wrinkles, for example. Sharpen your pencil,
if necessary, remember the sharpened HP pencil will give a very
detailed texture. It depends on the
effect you want. It's a mix between the pressure, the space in between the strokes and the
boldness of the pencil, which will allow you to create an array of effects
in your drawing. For example, I will use very condensed strokes with a bold pencil to create a
shadow under my subject. Feel free to explore the different techniques
even in the same drawing. Finger blur, pressure,
eraser, and so on. Explore different directions
with your pencil. Look for what suits you best. After a while, you
should be able to feel and express your emotions. So carry on slowly
and at your own pace. Dive deeper into your work until you are
completely absorbed. You will see that your strokes
will drain your emotions. Around the lightest
part of your drawing, you can darken the background in order to make it stand out. I have a light area on the
top of my drawing so I can add a black background
to pull the subject forward. Last piece of advice, brighten up the highlights
with the architect eraser. Simply model a point with
the eraser and press on the highlights or the parts you feel
that are too dark. That's it. We are already
at the end of the exercise. Good job, and now we will see the key notions
of the class. Here we've learned how
to do the following, to create the structure, to add the tones, to give
the impression of a form, to create different textures according to the
strokes we use to explore ways to express our emotions and choose
the technique we prefer. To add a background to make
our subjects stand out, and finally to emphasize where the light is the strongest
using the eraser. This was the exercise with
the ps and in the next video, we will do the one
with the pins.
9. 9 Exercise 2 Beans: Now let's start the second
exercise by drawing beads, and here is the
image of reference. Now let me explain you
the different steps. Firstly, we will
divide our page in three parts with
margins on the side, and then we will
sketch the subject with vals using an HB pencil, and then we will
create samples of the texture on the margin. And then we will
do the texture and the shadows on the main subject. Afterward, we will
create attempts of the dark shapes
in the margins. Then we will add
the dark shapes on the subject with six
B or eight B pencil. Finally, we will draw
a free line drawing of some beans where you
still have space around it. Now let me explain you the directives for this exercise
before we start to draw. Let's begin with your page in the landscape
format and then put the photo of the
beans on device. We all have a smartphone
on its last leg in a drawer that you can use
for an additional screen. I'll simply wait until the end
of the section where I ask you to stop the video and I show you the image of reference. For this exercise, you
will need your notebook, an additional page of
blank paper not to blur your drawing and your
image of reference. You will need also pencil
H B for the sketch, four B pencil for the texture, and eight B pencil for
the very black shapes. Then an eraser and the
amount of the exercise in time should be about 30
minutes plus 20 minutes for the additional drawings. Listen carefully here. In this exercise, we will pay special attention to the whole composition
of the page. As we have several elements. Our aim here is to draw a nice composition with
the main subject in the middle and the attempts
nicely distributed around it. Pay attention to
the white spaces in between the elements, so it looks harmonious. And here is an example of how a page should looks
like, approximately. For the divisions,
I suggest we create two margins about five
to 8 centimeters. And here we will have the
main subject with the beams. And then here we will create
the attempts here and there, and where you still have
plays here and there, we will do the free
line drawing exercise. Now it's time to
prepare your material, maybe create the three
divisions inside your page. Start in the middle of your page and begin with the outline. Use an HB pencil first. Remember my advice during the previous exercise
we did with pes. Observe your subject carefully and draw with
geometrical shapes. For instance, use big
ovals for the beds and make it as big as possible so you can easily
add the details, and especially those
types of wrinkles. My first piece of advice
is to press lightly, and then you press
harder when you have found the right
line for the outline. Go slowly so you can really draw the curves
as you see them. Erase some parts and
try again if necessary. Because it's rare we have the right shape during
the first attempt. In addition, it would be a good idea to look at
the negative spaces in between the beans
so you can see if the positive shape of
the beans is correct. A negative shape is the
shape in between the shapes. They define the positive shapes which are the beans themselves. When you look at the
negative shapes, you change the perception
you have on your drawing, and it helps to find the outline
for the positive shapes. So I then continue
with the shapes inside a bit worsely because
we will study them first. For the moment, just
add a small overall inside the first one or a half over, according
to what you see. Now it's your turn.
You can stop the video and start to draw the main
shapes of your subject. In order to get used to
the texture, for example, those kinds of
wrinkles are where the peel of the bean is ripped, you can do a first attempt like a preparatory exercise on
the side of your page. And here observation
is even more important because there
are a lot of details. I recommend you first zoom in on an interesting
part of your picture. Then in the lower right
corner of your page, draw a rectangle and reproduce
the exact texture inside. According to the composition
of the whole page, you may be able to add a second rectangle for another
attempt of the texture. Enlarge the photo
and first try to understand how the
wrinkles are drawn, then draw a part of
them in a rectangle. It's not too difficult.
Simply draw what you see, try to create a
tre d impression, postry the cavities,
holes, and humps. Second piece of advice, use the shadows to give
an impression of relief. Now it's your turn
to do this sample. Stop the video drawer, please. Then include the wrinkles into the main subject and try
to add them everywhere. When you have an
asper t or a tear, try to understand it and give the correct
impression of it. The more time you
spend on the drawing, the more realistic it will look. At the same time,
it doesn't have to be perfect or hyper realistic. Here, simply try to practice
your observation skills. Now it's your turn,
stop the video, and I will see you
for the next step. Now we will draw the almost
black shapes of the beans, and they have a
very special shape. That's why I suggest we draw them in the left
margin before hand. They express something
in themselves. They have a certain
beauty inside of them. Single them out independent
of the main subject. As you can see, there are six different black
shapes in the photo. Simply choose the
ones you like and draw them in a row
in the left margin. And this will help you to
become more familiar with them. And now we should have
a better understanding of those black shapes, so you can include them
inside the main subject. I suggest you copy them
from the attempts, but you can also start
again from the photo. And my third piece of advice
is to start the outline with an HB pencil and then
feed the shapes with a six or eight pencil
if you have one. Otherwise, use whatever pencil you have to create
a very dark gray. Make sure that the black isn't black everywhere
and that there is a gray tone inside around the central yellow
pipe, for instance. And now you can
complete the wrinkles around the black shapes on your main subject if necessary. You can also add
more details and more contrast everywhere
you feel like. I suggest also you define your outline a
little bit better, and we are almost done. Now we have a look
to the main shape of the beans and add maybe
a shadow underneath. Think about the background and which textures you want for it. Again, think about the
possible contrast. You could have to make
your subject stand out. Now it's your turn, stop the video and finish
off your drawing. Usually, when you spend a lot of time concentrating on one thing, you can also do something
very free at the end. Here at the top of your page, where you still have space, you can draw a one line
drawing version of each beans, including the black shape. Like this. Remember
that we should try to have a nice
composition on our page. It's necessary to distribute
all the elements evenly, so draw five, six
bins horizontally lined up without removing
your hand from the paper. That's a free line drawing. It will help you to
release your mind. What we have learned
here is how to sketch, how to single out a
part of a subject and get used to
drawing it to add textures and shadows
and to organize different elements
harmoniously on a page.
10. 10 Conclusion: While done, you've
completed the class. We did four exercises in all. I hope you really enjoyed it. Let's sum up what
we have done here. Firstly, we've studied
the variation of grays, and we also did an exercise with the ball to see how we can
give the illusion of a form. Then by drawing the
ps and the beans, we've seen how to add the tones, the shadows, and the textures. We've also seen how to
emphasize the subject with a background and we did a nice layout in the last
exercise with the beans. Remember, you can always
share your drawings in the project and
resources section of the website and ask me
there are some questions. I recommend you to continue using the pencil
with other subjects because those techniques can
be applied to all things. Now, do you know how to
eat the ps and the beans? I thought you might
be interested to know that sometimes we eat the peas with the pods and sometimes we prefer
them without it. The green beans are eaten with the pud and the white
and red ones without it. As I appreciate Greek food, there is a dish called Faslakia, and which use the green beans. It's like a healthy
vergetarian stew with very soft beans. It's a sufficient way to eat a large amount
of vegetables. It's made up potatoes, tomatoes, and aromatic herbs like
meant, nets, and parsley. Here, you have a pod of green beans before
it has been cooked. Do you know the expression
to be full of beans? It means when someone
is very energetic. I really appreciated to do this class and I hope to
see you in another one.
Yvan Mermod, Illustrator
