| This
was one of the last and more successful studio drawings
I produced in college. This was probably a two or two-and-a-half
hour pose, and my primary objectives were the usual: accurately
render the light and shadow of the model's hair and musculature,
dramatizing the contrast if need be. Less obvious was my
closer attention to the overal composition, by which I mean
the strategic placement of the subject matter and negative
space such that the eyes don't get led astray (i.e., off
the drawing).
While
my attention to detail (hair, musculature) are obvious,
less subtle are the diagnol marks in the upper lefthand
corner (guiding the eye down and toward the model, at least
in theory), the careful allotment of negative space (you
don't want too much or too little), and the shading of the
platform in the bottom lefthand corner (giving just enough
suggestion of volume). An additional, pleasant (but purely
unintended) surprise is the prevalence of elements that
jut out toward the right (a stray strand of hair, the right
elbow, the left thumb, the right hip). |
