Tips on Pencil Portrait Sketching - Blocking-in Large Masses of Value

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In this article we will discuss the blocking-in of large masses of tone or value.

Tone is commonly thought of as shadow. Beginners commonly first sketch an outline of the shadow and then fill in the shadows little by little. They usually begin with an eye and then grow out the shadows. Inevitably, the outcome is a chaos of non-cohesive darks and lights.

There are two different ways of viewing tone: in Western culture we see tone as shadow; in Eastern culture tone is seen as color.

A Western spectator seeing a Chinese drawing will be struck by its flatness. Conversely, Chinese connoisseurs in the 17-hundreds seeing for the first time Western portraits were perplexed by the "dark scuff-marks" under the nose.

Applying, or more correctly, constructing tone should be done with a sculptural sensibility. That is, think of your drawing as a block of clay that is to be carved. Once roughly carved, you then model the surface shapes with varying intensities of tone while working their edges thus defining the shapes present in the head.

A portrait sketching from life or (photo) begins with the striking of the arabesque. Two things must be correctly drawn: 1. the shape of the entire head; and 2. the proportions (i.e., length and angle relationships). This is a learned ability that no one is born with.

Once the arabesque has been struck, the entire head is then broken down into two parts: a large light and a large dark. No more than that. At this point, do not concern yourself with whether or not one area is darker than another. Only the large light/dark pattern counts.

Observe that squinting is a good idea to more clearly see the value patterns because you are not distracted by details.

A good rule of thumb is to divide an area in 2. For instance, if an observed dark area is not totally uniform in value divide it in 2 and block-in the 2 somewhat differing values. Before long a complex but cohesive array of values will appear.

From the blocking-in of the primary darks you can then easily sketch the features. Over time you should try to remember the total anatomy and "feel" the shape three-dimensionally. This, too, is an acquired ability.

You must know your anatomy to be successful in sketching portraits even at the most fundamental level. Learn the anatomy in small portions as you sketch along.

A good way to sketch is to toggle back and forth between line sketching and tonal sketching or hatching. Another way is to first do a total line sketching of the subject. That is, to sketch a "map" of the head that encompasses all planes and scores the boundaries of the various tonal areas. As a second phase you can then hatch-in the right values.

While you shade be constantly aware of the planes of the head and the direction of the light source.

Another ablity to be acquired is the ablity to cross-hatch patches in a flat and even manner. There is nothing more distracting than scratchy looking cross-hatching.

Lastly, take note of a curious optical phenomenon called "simultaneous disparity". It takes place when light and dark values lie next to each other. In general, white is extroverted while black is contractive. The effect is that the white area looks larger than it is while the black area will look smaller.

In closing, keep the blocking-in process uncomplicated. Look for large masses first and then for the smaller ones. It is always better to sketch from the general to the specific. And, at this point, ignore the details.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Do you want to learn the secrets of pencil portrait drawing? Download my brand new free pencil portrait tutorial here: www.remipencilportraits.com/PPDT/pencil_portrait_tutorial.html target="_blank">Pencil Portrait Course Tutorial. Remi Engels is a pencil portrait artist and oil painter and expert drawing teacher. See his work at Pencil Portraits by Remi: www.remipencilportraits.com Visit Guidelines for Pencil Portrait Sketching - Blocking-in Large Masses of Value.

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