Object, Three Views

This is the object study we did prior to the silverpoint drawings from my "Everything Book." Not much to say about it really - it was done in ballpoint pen using hatching and scumbling to develop the values. I think it's some sort of a nutshell.

I think drawing from observation is an extremely important skill to teach to all students. It is a foundational skill upon which other skills can be built, and without it student artwork suffers. Too many of my students see the abstract and nonobjective artwork of master artists and say "Hey, I could do that - it looks easy." What I try to make them understand is that almost all of those artists studied in and mastered realism/representational art before gaining the understanding of technique, media, concept, and elements and principles of design necessary to create successful abstract art.