Observational Drawing & Mark-Making Project Evaluation

In this project I have learned a few mark-making techniques; most of which are new to me like sgraffito, continuous line and single lines. The drawing techniques I have learned were all familiar to me before college such as using coloured pencil on a black background, line drawing, colourless, detailed, sketching and painting with acrylics and using oil/soft pastels.

Media was used greatly in the mood boards project, cameras were used to take pictures of objects in the workshops and uploaded to laptops from which we would copy them onto paper. I have often used Pinterest and other websites to explore different drawing and mark making techniques also.

The four studies on different backgrounds, I think, are quite effective; the colour pencil on black card and newspaper is the most detailed and interesting due to the switch between black and white, the coloured pencil on inks is effective how it contrasts the colours with detail in the objects and background.The coloured pencil on white emulsion is effective because of the different directions and shapes of the strokes used of which also creates a good texture for the drawings. The bleach on brusho inks

When the sgraffito drawing was finished, I found that the different colours merged and flowed very well when scratched away of which was very effective, this I was skeptical of before I started scratching. Another way the drawing is effective is how the details are very intricate and the block colours are bold, there is a good contrast that works between them.

The homework studies I think were successful, I spent at least 3 hours on each and all turned out as good as I expected. In some ways they could be improved, for example the clothes pile could have included more detail and could have been bigger, and maybe they would be better if I challenged myself more.

I don't think I have improved my observational drawing skills because in some cases I felt the need to rush and most objects I have copied and drawn so far have been uninteresting ( in my opinion ). However, I feel that my observational drawing skills are already quite experienced and I don't think there is much in which I can improve.

Time management in the project wasn't amazing, but that particular factor of working is what I often need to concentrate on. I think that although I tried to speed up in some cases it had a negative effect in my drawing and when I work at my own pace I can always expect better results. Overall the time management was good considering I didn't have a massive amount to complete at home but I could have been quicker to help make time for improvements in some pieces and complete other with better quality.

Within the time frame I feel I have produced good drawing and mark making outcomes but there wasn't enough time on some pieces to allow me to finish them to the best outcome.

Other drawing techniques I would like to explore include sketching and surrealism to better my understanding of perspectives. I would also like to try comic style/cartoon techniques.

Overall, this project has challenged me, mostly because my interests were not in the drawings I was doing and I have often been uninterested by the things we have drawn/copied throughout. Some parts
 of the project, such as the sgraffito, I enjoyed, and have learned some new skills in the process. I
know that if something is boring it shouldn't be an excuse for me to not try, so I have the best I can.

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Ceramics

Observational studies in colour pencil

Mark-making

Sgraffito

Homework projects

SHOE PILE - LINE DRAWING

In this assignment we were meant to produce a simplistic line drawing of a pile of shoes (that we own) so that the picture hightlights the different perspectives very well.

CLOTHES PILE

Here I have drawn an assortment of used clothes in the middle of the room with detail and colour  to emphasize the creases and imperfections.

CUPBOARD INTERIOR - COLOURLESS

In slight detail and without colour.

Signs

Here are some of the signs I used as inspiration. They were taken by me around the workshops; I tried to include as many varied versions to link them to the different workshops, i.e. textiles, 3D, fine metal, fine art

Mood Boards

Here are the two mood boards fully completed. Around three weeks were spent on both
TEXTILES This is the best of my mood boards (in my opinion) because it features a greater attempt of surrealism, of which I was trying to achieve for both, and greater detail in the objects I copied. The background colours however are not as fitting as they could be.
3D WORKSHOP The objects I chose to copy are partly to blame why this board didn't go as planned. The detail was hard to replicate and lack of ideas for twists and arrangement at the time contributed to it looking worse. The centre wooden figure is the most detailed and the background is much better than the previous.
3D DESIGN PLANNING Here I have sketched and produced rough ideas to use for my 3D project. The far right image is the best in my opinion and will keep me interested the most if I were to produce it as a 3D model.