 Page Two Exercise 1: Value 'Value' is the level of darkness of the line you draw. This can be changed by pressing harder, or switching to a different grade of pencil. When I give out this assignment, I insist that everyone use an ordinary HB pencil so that they can gauge how hard they have to press, and can compare their work to others. In practical terms, this just means that the pure black starting point won't be as deeply black as pictured here.  Students must draw a rectangle with nine or ten segments. The goal is to start with pure black on the left, and end up with untouched white on the right. Each segment working from the left must be noticeably lighter than the one before it, gradually lightening in smooth increments. Compartments should be blended. Don't worry about going outside the lines. This is a difficult exercise the first time it's tried. Usually there won't be enough noticeable difference between adjacent compartments, or the sequence will get to almost white too soon. Encourage students to work from both directions, and to erase compartments that don't follow the sequence. Exercise 2: Sketching vs Drawing 
When beginning a drawing, very few artists can draw it perfectly, exactly the way they want it, the first time. They have to experiment, putting down lines and erasing them when they don't work, over and over again. The artist is making a rough sketch, with very very light pencil lines, until he or she decides it's right. Then all the extraneous lines get erased. In the picture at the right you can see some of the sketch lines that haven't yet been erased completely. Sketch lines need to be very light so they can be completely erased if they're wrong. 
The exercise here is to draw a perfect 10 cm diameter circle, again using an HB pencil, without any aids. Ideally the students will sketch and resketch, over and over again, until they get the desired result. That result can be gone over darker, and then all the sketch lines are erased, leaving a drawing of a perfect circle. Students find this very difficult. They've never done it before. You will need to have them start over when they discover they've been pressing too hard and the lines can't be thoroughly erased. If a student holds up their paper, the sketch lines should be invisible from across the room! Once students master this exercise, they're ready for the first major assignment. We're going to convince them that even if they think they can't draw, spending a lot of time, applying the principles we've covered (and a few more) will result in a fantastic drawing! |