2D MEDIA: DRAWING ART 121 Lecture 5
Media: Two Definitions 1. The material(s) from which a work of art is made. 2. A standard category of art such as drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, or architecture.
Tipping Point on 82 nd and Fifth
Drawing: The Basic Media Drawing: the result of running a marking tool over a surface to leave a line or mark. Drawings in the west were also traditionally associated with paper and/or the idea that the work was one of a kind. SO MUCH MORE!!! Drawing is where the creative act begins. Soul of the artist finds it way to paper.
Types of Drawings: 1. Plans or preparatory studies: the very act of creativity. Work out ideas for finished pieces. Michelangelo, Studies for the Libyan Sibyl.
Michelangelo, Studies for the Libyan Sibyl.
Types of Drawings: 1. Plans or preparatory studies: the very act of creativity. Work out ideas for finished pieces. 2. Illustrations: Sketches that record something seen, remembered, or imagined. Georges Seurat, At the Concert Europeen, ca. 1887-88.
Types of Drawings: 1. Plans or preparatory studies: the very act of creativity. Work out ideas for finished pieces. 2. Illustrations: Sketches that record something seen, remembered, or imagined. 3. Fully developed works of art: modern artists have embraced drawing as a means to an end in itself.
A Brief History of Drawing Drawing predates writing by at least 30,000 years. Earliest surviving drawings found on rocks/stones in Australia and Europe. Mimis and kangaroo in the X-ray style. Australia, art of the Oenpelli people. Older layer ca. 7000 BCE.
A Brief History of Drawing Drawing predates writing by at least 30,000 years. Earliest surviving drawings found on rocks/stones in Australia and Europe. Earliest surviving blueprints found on the buildings themselves! Lines scratched onto the Temple of Apollo at Didyma were used in the construction of the temple.
A Brief History of Drawing Drawing predates writing by at least 30,000 years. Earliest surviving drawings found on rocks/stones in Australia and Europe. Earliest surviving blueprints found on the buildings themselves! Paper was not introduced to Europe until the 13 th century! Papyrus (above) and vellum being prepared (right).
Drawing A work is considered a drawing (usually) if it is made with one of the following materials: Dry Media: Pencil Metalpoint Charcoal/Chalk Pastel Liquid Media Pen and ink Brush and ink Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing #146, September 1972. Blue crayon, Site- specific dimensions. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Dry Media: Pigments scratch their way onto the surface Pencil: made of graphite. Lines vary from silver to black. PROS: Cheap and easy to purchase today. No training required; just a surface to draw upon. Can be erased somewhat. Can create a variety of tones from light to dark. Can create a variety of lines from thick to thin. Study for Picasso s Guernica
Dry Media: Pigments scratch their way onto the surface Metalpoint: thin wire contained in a mechanical pencil type holder. PROS: Beautiful, delicate line CONS: Must be used on paper coated with bone. The line is the result of a chemical reaction. Can t be erased. Not practical today!!! Filippino Lippi, Figure Studies: Standing Nude and Seated Man Reading, ca. 1480.
Dry Media: Pigments scratch their way onto the surface Charcoal: made of burnt wood. Comes in stick or pencil form. PROS: Rich, dark velvety black Good for smudging Thick, expressive lines CONS: Messy Hard to completely erase Fixative spray needed to keep work from flaking off paper. Yvonne Jacquette, Three Mile Island, Night I, 1982.
Dry Media: Pigments scratch their way onto the surface Charcoal: made of burnt wood. Comes in stick or pencil form. PROS: Rich, dark velvety black Good for smudging Thick, expressive lines CONS: Messy Hard to completely erase Fixative spray needed to keep work from flaking off paper. The Unicorn from the Lascaux Caves, France. Ca. 15,000 BCE
Chalk Chalk: Pigment bound with a non-fat binder. Used on paper with a tooth. ***Considered a painting technique in the UK and France. PROS: Drawings that are beautifully colored. Can be blended together and overlaid. CONS: Chalk can be dry, crumbly. Usually needs some kind of fixative in order to preserve the artwork Edgar Degas, Woman Combing her Hair
Liquid Media: Pigment, usually ink, is suspended in fluid, allowing them to flow onto the surface. Ink: a liquid that has dye or pigments dissolved into it. (Ink will stain a surface, while paint sits on top of the surface). Pen and Ink: Traditional pens made with metal tips or feathers. Allowed for a variety of line; fast and expressive. Today ball point pens also used by artists. Cannot be erased. Barry McGee. Untitled, 2006.
Rembrandt, Cottage among Trees, 1648-1650.
Liquid Media: Pigment, usually ink, is suspended in fluid, allowing them to flow onto the surface. Wash and Brush: watered down ink applied to paper or silk with a brush. Brushes made of hair or synthetic fibers Lines of varied degrees of thickness and thinness. Cannot be erased Henri Matisse, Dahlias, Pomegranates, and Palm, 1947.
Brush and ink wash the favored medium of traditional Chinese artists. Focus on line as the visual arts and writing developed hand in hand. Expressive works on paper and silk. Liang Kai, The Poet Li Bo Walking and Chanting a Poem, ca. 1200.
Drawing: Pushing the Boundaries 21 isometric cubes of varying sizes, each with color ink washes superimposed. Christine Hiebert, Wall Drawing (detail), 2004. Blue adhesive tape. Sol LeWitt. Wall Drawing #766
Drawing, like any skill, takes practice! Anyone can learn. Look at the difference two years made in van Gogh s techniques.
Tipping Point on 82 nd and Fifth How did this work begin? (What type of drawing as discussed in lecture?) How does it become personal? Is this a study or a work of art? After the lecture, do you appreciate this work by Durer more? Why or why not?