Contour Shoe Drawing

The artwork depicted above is my contour drawing of a Sperry.

My drawing greatly improved with the addition of the contour drawing skill. For starters, my original premise of drawing largely depended on my ability to recreate stored images, ideas of how I felt an object or idea should look. As a result, I often drew objects how I wanted them to look, or how I felt they should look based on my memory. The contour drawing unit forced me (difficultly so) to draw exactly what I saw, and ignore what I "thought" I saw. In the end, this style of drawing allowed me to create much more realistic-looking artwork, and include details that I would normally overlook. Additionally, the fact that I was unable to lift my pen when drawing encouraged me to draw as I saw, and not simply draw a complete outline and fill in the details. When I drew my shoe contour, I started from the bottom left, working my way to the right and upper ends of the shoe. As such, I drew details involving the laces and patchwork of the shoe as my pen came to that portion of the shoe, instead of simply drawing all of the shoe and all of the laces separately. On another note, my steadiness and fluidity with the pen greatly improved with the unit, and I am now able to produce smoother lines and well-defined edges.

The contour line drawing unit has improved my drawing more than any other unit thus far. I am now able to view an object and draw an accurate representation of it, which is a skill that I have never previously possessed. I am proud of the improvement I have made, and have already applied it in other subjects requiring artwork or sketches. Personally, the unit was very enjoyable, and I value my products for the amount of detail and time I put into them.

iPad Value Study

Depicted above is a piece of artwork I created using the Layers Pro app from the iPad. I blended different colors to illustrate the range of values of a basic cone.

There are many similarities and differences between the Layers Pro app and the oil pastels when used for value. With both items, I can lay down different colors and blend them with one another. In Layers Pro, I use the smudger tool; with pastels, I gradually blend the two colors together. With both items, I can provide a variety of colors and emphasize value which would normally be black and white. The unique aspect of Layers Pro is that I can readily adjust the shade of the color and its opacity, allowing me to easily achieve any range of value I want for a specific color. I can also readily adjust the amount and size of smudging I do, which makes blending colors much easier, and allows me to better tailor my artwork to my desire. With pastels, it is more difficult to achieve a color shade by blending with black and white, and meshing multiple colors together can be a difficult task. However, the pastels have a vibrant and unique appearance, providing a texture that no electronic artwork can replicate. Additionally, due to the larger differences in colors, the change in value is much more emphasized in pastel artwork.

Following the iPad value study, I successfully learned how to use the Layers Pro app. More importantly, I learned how to better manipulate the value in my artwork. The ability to fix a mistake or attempt a new mixture of colors allowed me to explore different possibilities in creating value, and figure out what works best and what I prefer. I created my first electronic art, and am proud of my artwork and achievement. Through the iPad value study, I learned how to blend colors better by dragging one color into another, and how to emphasize the light and dark regions of my figures. I also learned what colors blend well with other colors, and how to add texture to my background with the addition of more colors.

Technology is useful and important in art for many reasons. Technology helps artists spread there work, and allows people to connect with one another and share ideas. Technology like the internet provides a source where art can be viewed and admired, similar to the purpose of creating the ApexHS Art Blog. Additionally, technology allows people to experiment in art in ways never before. Tools like Layers Pro allow beginning artists to experiment with basic learning, as I did with value study. They also allow artists to create artwork otherwise difficult or impossible to create, and overall create new possibilities for artists of all levels. Technology may never replace the beauty and nature of handmade artwork, but it allows artists to experiment and discover new ways to express themselves.