LESSON TWO
DRAWING, LINE and SIMPLIFICATION
Drawing and Line in Matisse’s Work
“One must always search for the desire of the line, where it wishes to enter or where to die away.”
Daily Drawing
When we talk about Matisse, we have to include a lesson on line as it was essential to his work.
Matisse loved to draw and did so every day. He aimed for efficiency and how to describe something with the fewest and the most expressive lines. This can readily be seen in the gallery of images below.
In the drawing on the right we see his process in finding the form and shape of the figure. Lines are drawn, rubbed out and drawn again until he was satisfied with the overall expression. He perfectly captures the woman’s lean into the pillow (sofa?) and shoulder turn as she glances backwards. Her hands are both resting and active. You can feel how she moved and adjusted into this pose.
CONTOUR DRAWING GALLERY
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CONTOUR DRAWING GALLERY ▫
THINGS TO NOTICE
▪ The drawings are not “perfect,” yet they describe the essence of the subject. ▪
▪ There is an efficiency of line. Only essential lines were drawn. ▪
▪ Quality of Line: the images with heavier lines show a focus on the quality of the line. Thin, thick, narrow to wide, etc. ▪
⇣ Click on any image to view larger ⇣
Project
Contour Drawing
Let’s have some fun with playful contour drawings. No pressure to be perfect. It’s actually better if you are not perfect at all (and my drawing is very good proof of that)! Just express yourself and the object you are drawing with line.
The reference photos from Lesson One can also be used for this project.
Video Password: Line
Video Length: 11:51 minutes
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Use a dark ink or paint (whether a pen or brush) so that you can see the line.
This project is not for a pencil. It is perfectly OK to make mistakes and be inaccurate. I used a fine line Sharpie and a black watercolor brush.
Painting from life is the best way to do this but using a photo is fine if that is your option.
Look at your source as much as possible while drawing.
Keep a playful mood.
It’s OK to add elements to create an interesting design/composition.
It’s OK to exaggerate.
Remember, Matisse threw away thousands of drawings. You are only seeing the ones he kept.
Here is the image I used for the first drawing. Feel free to use this or use one of your own. Even better work from observation of the real objects instead of a photo. ⇨
