Drawing heads from plaster models is not an end in itself, but only a preparation for drawing living things. In this work, as in previous lessons, it is necessary to follow the sequence, and this sequence depends on the tasks assigned to the drawing. First, to master the basic forms, one should draw the heads of the most generalized monumental character; they can include casts of works Greek sculpture, for example, such as "Dorifor" by Poly-clete (see issue I, fig. 64), "Hera", "Diadumen", etc. Complicating the tasks associated with the transfer of form and light and shade, you can proceed to drawing "Zeus" , "Hercules", "Laocoon", "Homer"; to convey a more accurate description, it is useful to draw the heads of "Apollo", "Hermes", "Apoxiomen".

The next, more difficult stage of drawing, which brings the student closer to drawing a living head, can serve as Roman sculptural portraits - Lucius Vera (Fig. 88), Seneca and others. As a model for drawing the head in a strong turn and with a bare neck, one can take the heads of the dying Alexander the Great, Laocoön, or other Hellenistic sculptures, for example, some of the heads of the relief of the altar of Zeus in Pergamon.

The head is very useful for studying individual parts. famous sculpture Michelangelo "David" - his eye, nose, lips, ear (Fig. 83, 84).

The drawing of plaster heads is expedient and necessary because in the works of the great masters forms taken from reality are found and generalized, and the painter has before him a ready description of nature. This simplifies the task for the beginner, giving him the opportunity to focus all his attention on building the head. In addition, the immobility of the model and clearly defined chiaroscuro make it easier to solve the problems facing the novice artist.

STATEMENT AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE PLASTER HEAD

(Fig. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

Starting to draw a head, you must first take care of its setting and lighting.

The surfaces forming the head and the nature of its volume are best revealed by an artificial light source illuminating the head from above at an angle of 45°. In the absence of artificial light, the model can be brought closer to the window, darkening its lower part, and thus also receiving overhead light. Too dark shadows on the head of the model should be softened by placing white paper or drapery nearby, which will give the necessary reflections.

Depending on the tasks set, the light source can be moved, illuminating the model from different sides and distances.

The background for the plaster head must be taken darker than its illuminated parts and lighter than the parts in the shade. For a brightly lit head, an even gray background is best: it will appear darker near its light surfaces, and lighten up near dark places. This optical law of contrast plays an important role in the transfer of form in space.

For the first drawings, it is customary to place the head at such a height that the eye level of the painter is in line with the eyes of the model.

One of the main conditions of work is the preservation of the position of nature and a constant point of view on it in the process of drawing. Therefore, make sure that the point of view or the horizon line does not change from the movement of the head or torso of the person drawing.

Do not sit too close or too far from the model. The best distance is three times the size of the model but the vertical. This distance will allow you to follow the overall construction and see the details well.

When starting to draw a plaster head, it must be borne in mind that, conventionally depicted without a torso, it does not have those external points of support that are usually used to build objects directly located on a plane (such as, for example, on a table, stand, ground). A stool standing on the floor, a vase on the table are drawn from the lower base, that is, from the outer points of support on the plane.

The head, depicted in space by itself, not in contact with any surface, needs a special method of construction - the use of its own internal points of support. These internal anchor points make it possible to build the head in any turn and tilt.

First, the position of the head and neck in the front, in the absence of external reference points, is determined using the vertical and horizontal lines: a line is drawn from the middle of the forehead to the middle of the chin, lines are also drawn that determine the directions of the eyes and other forms located parallel to them (Fig. 1). Having determined the ratio of the height and width of the model, one should designate its general oval and the position of the neck, then outline the main volume of the head, separating for this the front surface of the head from the surfaces going to the back of the head. On this total volume of the head, one can more accurately determine the position and proportions of individual parts (Fig. 2).

Outlining the main parts of the face: the location of the eyes, forehead, nose, mouth, chin, compare their sizes in relation not only to each other, but to the entire shape of the head. Otherwise, even if the correct proportions of individual parts are found, the overall shape of the head may turn out to be incorrect. With each newly introduced detail, the number of compared values ​​increases, and therefore it is very important that the original proportions of large forms are not violated. Inaccuracies in the basic proportions will lead to countless errors that will force the draftsman to redo the drawing again.

So, for example, if the lower half of the head is reduced in relation to the upper one, then it will be impossible to correctly place the corresponding parts on it, it is impossible to determine the distance between the nose, lips, chin, and establish their proportions.

The bridge of the nose, located in the center of all forms, is the most stable point, in relation to which are determined

places for orbital cavities, anterior and lateral surfaces of the nose, superciliary arches.

The shape of the head is limited to straight and curved surfaces. Perspectively contracting and touching each other, they are the voluminous basis of the drawing, without which any, even a perfectly shaded head, despite the correctly taken light-and-shadow ratios, will seem puffy or flat. The task of the painter is to find these surfaces, each of which occupies only its proper position. Their definition in kind and subsequent reproduction on paper - this is the construction of volume on the plane of the sheet (Fig. 3).

Revealing the main surfaces, one should not be afraid of some at first simplification and sharpness in their interpretation. A correct understanding of the volume of the head, the nature of its main form, the ability to see the relationship of all its parts is incomparably more important than the premature drawing of small details - eyebrows, pupils, nostrils, to which inexperienced draftsmen are so inclined. It must be remembered that in the volumetric construction of the head, one must follow the same path as the sculptor, who does not have the opportunity to start his work either with a contour or with details, but begins without fail with large surfaces that form a given volume. The totality of these surfaces, even in its extremely simplified form, already represents a real three-dimensionality, which is the basis for further development of details. These surfaces and their mutual arrangement are convincingly shown in the drawings of the heads of Apollo, made by V. E. Savinsky (Fig. 4 and 5). The entire volume of the head is sculpted with sharp definite planes, its front and lateral surfaces are shown, oval shapes of the eyes are firmly inserted into the sockets.

In Savinsky's drawings, one can observe the ratio of the sizes of the nearest lateral surfaces of the head to the lateral ones, more perspectively reduced. The same can be seen in the ratio of the lateral surfaces of the nose, forehead, in the location of the eyes.

When you outline the surface of the form, introduce a light chiaroscuro, leaving clean paper for the light areas and covering the shadows with a stroke. This will give the drawing its original three-dimensional expression.

The next stage of the head drawing is the transfer of its plastic form. To do this, you need to trace the transition from one surface to another, and it can be either gradual or abrupt. On fig. Figure 5 shows the border that separates the front illuminated surface of the head from the side, darkened ones, as well as sharper transitions from shadow to light on prominent cheekbones and relatively soft in the lower, rounded part of the face.

Approaching the outer edges of the head drawing, pay special attention to the contracting surfaces, the correct perspective and tonal construction of which is crucial in conveying the volume of the head.

In order not to divide the drawing of the head into separate artificial stages and to maintain a continuous sequence in solving the problems that arise in the process of work, the transition to drawing details should be gradual and almost imperceptible. Specifying, for example, the generalized initial shape of the nose, observing it in detail, the painter should note and show in the figure that four of its surfaces, different in tone and character, are the location of smaller forms - the wings of the nose, nostrils, the tip of the nose, which are very diverse in shape. : rounded, obtuse, sharp.

Considering the surface of the forehead, the painter should notice in nature and show in the figure that the lower part of the forehead is molded by five surfaces of different tone: the middle (frontal), two adjoining to it and two temporal or lateral surfaces extending from the latter, on which the auricles are located ( Fig. 3).

It is also necessary to show in the figure that the outlined five-sided scheme of the frontal part of the face at the top passes into the oval shape of the frontal bones.

The same gradual refinement of the initially outlined forms and filling them with subordinate forms should also take place in the drawing of all parts: eyes, lips, chin. The details introduced into the original form, in their totality, are, as it were, its verification and can contribute to mutual refinement.

For example, the lateral surface of the nose determines the location of its wing, and the detailed wings of the nose can correct the construction of its entire surface. It must be remembered that all paired head shapes should be outlined and drawn at the same time: it is easier to determine the degree of their perspective contraction in a given turn.

The execution of the drawing should not be sharply divided into contour drawing and subsequent shading. When drawing with lines, from the very beginning, remember the shape that they designate, outline with light chiaroscuro the surfaces that form the volume, leaving clean paper for the illuminated places and covering the shadows with a monochromatic shading. Then, giving the shadow the proper depth, carefully introduce reflexes into it, and halftones and highlights into the area of ​​​​light. Constantly comparing and subordinating their tonal relationships, achieve the transmission of the illuminated form.

In order not to blacken the drawing (which is very often the case with inexperienced draftsmen), you must first find the ultimate strength of the shadow on the plaster, in relation to which the general tone of the drawing can be maintained; while it is good to have before your eyes a piece of black velvet or blackened paper, in comparison with which the deepest shadow on the plaster will have to be taken lighter and more transparent.

In the academic drawing of the head of Alexander Sever, made by I. E. Repin (Fig. c), one can observe clearly worked out details, united by tone into a single whole. The light falling from above gradually weakens downward, losing its strength and contrast. The lateral surfaces of the face, decreasing in depth, highlight its front part, which is facilitated by the shapes of the eye sockets, lips and base of the nose emphasized by a deep shadow. The background taken correctly helps to convey the illuminated form in space.

When making plaster heads, shapeless smearing of shadows and wiping spots of light with an elastic band should be avoided. The stroke, as if embracing the form, is the best remedy her transmission. An excellent example is the drawing of the head of the "Laocoon" by Alexander Ivanov (Fig. 7).

Despite the fact that the forms of ancient heads are more generalized than the heads of living life, the depiction of plaster casts, the transfer of the integrity of the form, details, lighting and material require a large number of tonal shades, which usually presents difficulties for inexperienced draftsmen, is the cause of uneven tone and fragmentation. drawing. As a result, errors appear: reflexes are in the same strength as the light, blackened shadows “fall through”, sharp contrasts of distant plans “climb” forward.

First of all, these errors are due to excessive haste, lack of proper consistency and care in the work.

The ability to compare the image with nature, to find and correct errors is a necessary condition for the successful completion of the drawing. In order to make it easier to compare the drawing with nature, one should try to perceive them as homogeneous phenomena, that is, imagine a real plaster head as if drawn. Then, quickly shifting your gaze from nature to drawing, you can immediately feel the difference between them - either in construction or in lighting.

At the sight of a calm tone of nature, the tonal variegation in the drawing is very often striking. A correctly constructed, but “tortured” and off-tone drawing, with a certain amount of experience, can be corrected. By touching such a drawing with an elastic band, a photograph or a rag, the main light-and-shadow relations are restored, the “falling out of tone” details are facilitated, but not removed, and if necessary, the contrasts of the nearest plans are emphasized.

Well-thought-out, well-constructed and in tone, the drawing perfectly conveys the form, lighting, material and environment.

6. A lesson in drawing a plaster head.

Beginners to draw plaster models and those who want to seriously engage in head drawing should have a preliminary acquaintance with the rules of educational drawing. Without knowledge and experience, the most persistent work will not give positive results, since its success depends not only on the number of painted heads, but mainly on the correct understanding and study of nature and the ways of depicting it. There is enough material in the above lessons so that you can learn by adhering to these criteria.

At the drawing lessons at the drawing school New Art Intentions each student is explained that when depicting a head, one should pay attention to its structure, that is, to the combination and nature of the surfaces that form its volume. This is where the professional expression "to build a head" comes from.

When learning to draw models, beginners should keep in mind that the human head is one of the most difficult objects in the image. And therefore, preliminary preparation for drawing the head should be gradual. With the main principles underlying the image of a person, you met earlier, on pencil drawing lessons geometric shapes and still life.

Pencil drawing plaster models.

Learning to draw heads from plaster models is not an end in itself, but only a preparation for drawing living things.

In this lesson, as well as in the previous lessons, it is necessary to follow the sequence. Moreover, this sequence depends on the tasks assigned to the painters. First, in order to master the basic forms, one should learn how to draw heads of the most generalized, monumental nature; these include casts of works of Greek sculpture, for example, such as "Dorifor" by Poliklet, "Hera", "Diadumen". Complicating the tasks associated with the transfer of form and light and shade, you can move on to drawing "Zeus", "Hercules", "Laocoon", "Homer"; to convey a more accurate description, it is useful to draw the heads of "Apollo", "Hermes", "Apoxiomen".

The next, more difficult stage of drawing, which brings the student closer to the drawing of a living head, can serve as Roman sculptural portraits - Lucius Vera, Seneca and others.

As a model for drawing the head in a strong turn and with a bare neck, one can take the heads of the dying Alexander the Great, Laocoön, or other Hellenistic sculptures. For example, some heads of the relief of the altar of Zeus in Pergamon.

To study individual parts in our school New Art Intentions the head of Michelangelo's famous sculpture "David" and separate parts - the eye, nose, lips, ear are used.

Drawing plaster heads is expedient and necessary because in the works of the great masters, forms taken from reality are found and generalized, and the painter has before him a ready-made description of nature. This simplifies the task for beginners, giving them the opportunity to focus all their attention on building the head. In addition, the immobility of the model and clearly expressed chiaroscuro make it easier to solve the problems facing the novice artist.

Setting and construction of a plaster head in the drawing.

Starting to draw a head, you need, first of all, to take care of its setting and lighting.

The surfaces that form the head and the nature of its volume are best revealed by an artificial light source illuminating the head from above at an angle of 45 degrees. In the absence of artificial light, the model can be brought closer to the window, darkening its lower part, and thus receiving overhead light. Too dark shadows on the head of the model should be softened by placing white paper or drapery nearby, which will give the necessary reflections.

In the lessons, depending on the tasks, the light source can be moved, illuminating the model from different sides and distances.

The background for the plaster head must be taken darker than its illuminated parts and lighter than the parts in the shade. For a brightly lit head, an even gray background is best: it will appear darker near its light surfaces, and lighter near dark places. This optical law of contrast plays an important role in the transfer of form in space.

For the first drawings, it is customary to place the head at such a height that the level of the eyes of novice artists is in line with the eyes of the model.

One of the main conditions of work is the preservation in the process of drawing, the position of nature and a constant point of view on it. Therefore, make sure that the point of view or the horizon line does not change from the movement of the head or torso of the person drawing.

Do not sit too close or too far from the model. The best distance is three times the model's vertical distance. This distance will allow you to follow the overall construction and see the details well.

When starting to draw a plaster head, it must be borne in mind that, conventionally depicted without a torso, it does not have those external points of support, with the help of which objects are usually built directly located on a plane, for example, on a table or stand. A stool standing on the floor, or a vase on the table are drawn from the lower base, that is, from the outer points of support on the plane.

The head, depicted in space, by itself, not in contact with any surface, needs a special method of construction - the use of its own internal points of support. These internal anchor points make it possible to build the head in any turn and tilt.

Having determined the ratio of the height and width of the model, one should designate its general oval and the position of the neck, then outline the main volume of the head, separating for this the front surface of the head from the surfaces going to the back of the head. On this total volume of the head, it is possible to more accurately determine the position and proportions of individual parts (Fig. 2).

Outlining the main parts of the face: the location of the eyes, forehead, nose, mouth, chin, compare their sizes in relation not only to each other, but to the entire shape of the head. Otherwise, even if the correct proportions of individual parts are found, the overall shape of the head may turn out to be incorrect. With each newly introduced detail, the number of compared values ​​increases, so it is very important that the original proportions of large forms are not violated. Inaccuracies in basic proportions will lead to countless errors that will force the draftsman to redo the drawing again.

So, for example, if the lower half of the head is reduced in relation to the upper one, then it will be impossible to correctly place the corresponding parts on it, it is impossible to determine the distance between the nose, lips, chin, and to establish their proportions.

The bridge of the nose, located in the center of all forms, is the most stable point, in relation to which the places for the orbital cavities, the anterior and lateral surfaces of the nose, and the superciliary arches are determined.

The shape of the head is limited to straight and curved surfaces. Perspectively shrinking and touching each other, they are the voluminous basis of the drawing, without which any, even a perfectly shaded head, despite the correctly taken light-and-shadow ratios, will seem puffy or flat. The task of the painter is to find these surfaces, each of which occupies only its proper position. Their definition in kind and subsequent reproduction on paper - this is the construction of volume on the plane of the sheet.

Revealing the main surfaces, one should not be afraid of some, at first, simplification and sharpness in their interpretation. When learning to draw, understanding the correct volume of the head, the nature of its main shape, the ability to see the relationship of all its parts, is incomparably more important than the premature drawing of small details - eyebrows, pupils, nostrils, to which beginners are so inclined to draw. It must be remembered that in the volumetric construction of the head, one must follow the same path as the sculptor does, who does not have the opportunity to start his work either with a contour or with details, but without fail begins with large surfaces that form a given volume. The totality of these surfaces, even in its extremely simplified form, already represents a real three-dimensionality, which is the basis for further development of details. These surfaces and their mutual arrangement are convincingly shown in the drawings of the Apollo heads made by V.E. Savinsky (Fig. 4 and Fig. 5). The entire volume of the head is molded with sharp definite planes, its facial and lateral surfaces are shown, oval shapes of the eyes are firmly inserted into the orbits.

In Savinsky's drawings, one can observe the ratio of the sizes of the nearest lateral surfaces of the head to the lateral, more perspectively reduced ones. The same can be seen in the ratio of the lateral surfaces of the nose, forehead, in the location of the eyes.

When you outline the surface of the form, introduce a light chiaroscuro with a pencil, leaving clean paper for the light places and covering the shadows with a stroke. This will give the drawing its original three-dimensional expression.

The next stage of the head drawing is the transfer of its plastic form. To do this, you need to trace the transition from one surface to another, and it can be either gradual or abrupt. Figure 5 shows the boundary that separates the front, illuminated surface of the head, from the side, darkened surfaces, as well as sharper transitions from shadow to light on prominent cheekbones and relatively soft in the lower, rounded part of the face.

Approaching the outer edges of the head drawing, pay special attention to the contracting surfaces, the correct perspective and tonal construction of which is crucial in conveying the volume of the head.

In order not to divide the drawing of the head into separate artificial stages and to maintain a continuous sequence in solving problems that arise in the process of work, the transition to drawing details with a pencil should be gradual and almost imperceptible. Specifying, for example, the generalized initial shape of the nose, observing it in detail, the painter should note and show in the figure that four of its surfaces, different in tone and character, are the location of smaller forms - the wings of the nose, nostrils, the tip of the nose - very diverse in shape: rounded, obtuse, acute.

When examining the surface of the forehead, the painter must notice in nature and show in the figure that the lower part of the forehead is molded by five surfaces of different tone: the middle (frontal), two in contact with it and two coming from the latter, temporal or lateral surfaces, on which the ear shells (Fig. 3).

It is also necessary to show in the figure that the outlined five-sided scheme of the frontal part of the face at the top passes into the oval shape of the frontal bones.

The same gradual refinement of the originally outlined forms and filling them with subordinate forms should also take place in the drawing of all parts: eyes, lips, chin. The details introduced into the original form, in their totality, are, as it were, its verification and can be mutually refined in the future.

For example, the lateral surface of the nose determines the location of its wing, and the detailed wings of the nose can correct the construction of its entire surface. It must be remembered that all paired head shapes should be outlined and drawn at the same time: it is easier to determine the degree of their perspective contraction in a given turn.

The execution of the drawing should not be sharply divided into contour drawing and subsequent shading. When drawing with lines, from the very beginning, remember the shape that they indicate, outline with light chiaroscuro the surfaces that form the volume, leaving clean paper for the illuminated places and covering the shadows with a monochromatic shading. Then, giving the shadow the proper depth, carefully introduce reflexes into it, and halftones and highlights into the light area. Endlessly comparing and subordinating their tonal relationships, achieve the transmission of the illuminated form.

In order not to blacken the drawing (which is very often the case when teaching drawing to beginners), you need to find the ultimate strength of the shadow on the plaster, in relation to which the overall tone of the drawing can be maintained. At the same time, it is good to have a piece of black velvet or blackened paper in front of your eyes, in comparison with which, the deepest shadow on the plaster will have to be taken lighter and more transparent.

In the academic drawing of the head of Alexander Sever, made by I.E. Repin (Fig. 6), one can observe clearly worked out details, united by tone into a single whole. The light falling from above gradually weakens towards the bottom, losing strength and contrast. The lateral surfaces of the face, decreasing in depth, highlight its front part, which is facilitated by the shapes of the eye sockets, lips and base of the nose, emphasized by a deep shadow. Taken correctly, the background helps to convey the illuminated form in space.

When learning to draw plaster heads, shapeless smearing of shadows and wiping spots of light with an elastic band should be avoided. A pencil stroke, as if embracing the form, is the best means of conveying it. An excellent example is the drawing of the head of the "Laocoon" by Alexander Ivanov (Fig. 7).

Despite the fact that the forms of ancient heads are more generalized than the heads of living life, the image of plaster casts, the transfer of the integrity of the form, details, lighting and material require a large number of tonal shades, which usually presents difficulties for beginners to draw, causes uneven tone and fragmentation drawing. As a result, beginners' drawings are full of errors: reflexes turn out to be in the same strength as light, blackened shadows "fall through", sharp contrasts of distant plans "climb" forward.

First of all, these errors are due to excessive haste, lack of proper consistency and care in the work.

In our school New Art Intentions in the process of learning to draw, beginners develop the ability to compare the image with nature, find and correct errors. This is a necessary condition for the successful execution of the drawing. In order to more easily compare the drawing with nature, one should try to perceive them as homogeneous phenomena, that is, imagine a real plaster head, as if drawn. Then, quickly shifting your gaze from nature to drawing, you can immediately feel the difference between them - either in construction or in lighting. At the sight of a calm tone of nature, the tonal variegation in the drawing is very often striking. A correctly constructed, but "tortured" and off-tone drawing, with some experience, can be corrected. By touching such a drawing with an elastic band, a nag or a sponge, the main light-and-shadow relations are restored, the “falling out of tone” details are facilitated, but not removed, and if necessary, the contrasts of the nearest plans are emphasized.

A well-thought-out, well-constructed and well-tone drawing - perfectly conveys the form, lighting, material and environment.

Structural drawing - this is the discipline academic drawing- drawing of the external contours of objects, both visible and invisible, made using construction lines. You create a "skeleton" of the object that you are going to draw. And in order to create such a frame, you need to analyze the depicted object. A constructive drawing begins with analysis.

Take a closer look, think about what the object consists of? From what geometric bodies? What are the simplest geometric bodies? This is a cube, ball, cylinder, cone, prism, etc. If you learn to see geometric bodies in the objects around you, then you can easily create a frame, or, more precisely, a constructive pattern.

For example, let's take an ordinary bottle. It contains a cylinder, maybe a cone (truncated), also maybe a truncated ball or torus. Or, for example, a wardrobe or a table - consists of a tetrahedral prism or, perhaps, of cubes and parallelepipeds.

Therefore, the first step is to learn to find geometric bodies in everything that surrounds us. This will help develop spatial thinking.

The second step is the image of the "framework". You need to learn how to correctly place the geometric bodies that make up the depicted object in space. This requires knowledge of linear perspective.

That is, you need to know what the horizon line is, the vanishing points and how to use this knowledge. For example, when we draw an ordinary cube, we draw lines of parallel faces of the cube so that they converge at one point or two points on the horizon line.

The second point is the center line.

It helps to create the design correctly. For example, we need to draw two cylinders of different thickness, that is, different diameters. And one cylinder is located above the other. We make, for example, the design of a bottle. For this we need a centerline. If the bottle is standing, then this line will be vertical.

Draw a vertical line. Draw a rectangle (the main part of the bottle) so that this line runs in the middle. Draw another rectangle (neck) smaller so that the center line runs in the middle. Now you need to draw (construct) 4 ellipses - below and above each of the rectangles.

Already becomes something more like a bottle. Or here's another version of the constructive drawing. If you are drawing a bottle in perspective, look at it from the side and a little from above. How do we create a constructive drawing in this case? First, we draw not two rectangles, but two tetrahedral prisms, from which we will then get two cylinders.

It is clear that at first one prism is the main one. Further, we draw diagonals on the lower and upper planes of this prism, we get two points. We connect these points - we get the middle axis. This axis will help us build another prism correctly, from which we will create a bottle neck cylinder.

Putting one prism on top of another, we build two cylinders. After that, we round the corners, we give this design the credibility of the bottle. You can create not only designs of such simple objects as dishes, furniture, but also animals and even humans.

Despite the complexity of the structure of a person or animal, we can find simple geometric bodies in them - cylinders, prisms, cubes, balls, etc. Just to master a constructive drawing, you need to see, as if through and through, what consists of what we are draw.

Start developing volumetric thinking with an ordinary cube. Draw it on a piece of paper, this is, whatever one may say, the basis. This is where construction begins. The cube represents the three dimensions of space - width, height and depth.

The latter, that is, depth, is an illusion, since we cannot have depth on the plane of the sheet. Here are some examples of constructive construction.

It is in this way that a frame or wrapping surface is created for the future object. This is the constructive structure.

Now let's look at examples of constructive step by step drawing from simple geometric shapes to the human figure

Step by step drawing methodology...

Constructive analysis of the shape of household items.

Study of perspective on the example of cubes of various sizes.

Still life of geometric bodies.

Subject still life at the stage of shaping.

Finished subject still life.

Simple table still life.

Drawing of a complex subject.

Gypsum palette drawing.

Drawing of the capital of an Ionic order column.

Drapery pattern.

Perspective interior drawing.

Constructive analysis of the shape of the skull with hatching.

Drawing of the stump of a human head.

Ecorche drawing of a human head.

Drawing the eye of David is an exercise in understanding the shape of the parts of the human head.

Constructive construction of the human head (front part).

Constructive analysis of a human head with weak shading.

Drawing of the plaster head of the condatiere Gattamelata.

Analysis of the form of the plaster head of Apollo Belvedere from several angles.

Drawing of the head of Zeus in two angles.

Drawing of the head of the emperor Hadrian's favorite - Antinous.

The whole complex of work on a long drawing of the head should follow the methodical principle - from the general to the particular and from the particular again to the general, in other words, from the general, through a detailed analysis of nature, to a general figurative expression. This principle is incorporated in all drawing curricula and is the leading one in our art school. It is presented to all students, regardless of their degree of preparation, when performing each long drawing.

To make it easier for students to master it and understand its content, a complex set of work on a drawing is divided into separate stages, which enables the student, following the methodological sequence, to clearly understand each stage separately and their relationship.

The process of creating a long drawing is very complicated, and a student who does not have enough work experience often finds himself in great difficulty. He does not know what to pay attention to first of all, how to use his capabilities more rationally, he does not know how to properly organize his work. Such a student usually begins to conscientiously copy everything he sees, carefully copies the details of the external form, gets carried away with the details, thinking that they will give a resemblance to nature.

Many students, when drawing a human head, do not follow the methodical sequence in their work, they immediately take on the solution of complex problems, which leads them to failure. Such students believe that since they have mastered the methodical sequence of working on a drawing of a vase, a still life, then it is no longer necessary to repeat all this using the head drawing as an example. Meanwhile, the methodical sequence of work on the drawing of the head has its own characteristics and nuances, which the painter should be aware of. For assimilation educational material the painter needs to clearly understand what exactly he should do at this stage of work, on what moments of the image construction he needs to focus special attention.

Such students need a clear system both in observations and in the process of drawing. To understand all the subtleties of the methodical sequence of working on a drawing, let's consider them using the example of drawing the plaster head of Antinous. Revealing the methodical sequence of work on the drawing, we will simultaneously continue to reveal the patterns of the structure of the shape of the human head and image methods, including technical methods of work.

First stage- compositional placement of the image on a sheet of paper (Fig. 46).

The work begins with the compositional placement of the image on a sheet of paper. First, it is necessary to examine nature from all sides in order to determine how it is more profitable (more spectacular) to place the image on a plane, from what point of view the structural features of the form will be better expressed. The choice of the point of view from which the object of the image looks the most expressive helps the artist to successfully solve the compositional problem. The painter must learn how to beautifully fill the plane of a sheet of paper. However, one should not think that in the composition you need to adhere to some special rule.

Figure No. 46 - The first stage of work on the drawing of the head

For example, some people think that when drawing a head in a three-quarter turn or in profile, it is imperative to leave a larger margin in front of the front. In the works of the great masters, we will not find examples of compliance with such a rule. Most portraits are arranged in the middle of the picture plane. Renaissance artists have a number of portraits where, in front of the front of the head, the edge of the picture is very close to the head. An example of such a composition is the portrait of Beatrice D "Este, made by Leonardo da Vinci, the portrait of a young girl Piero della Francesca.

In an educational drawing, the composition should help to solve the educational problem, but not complicate it. For example, a student needs to draw a head against a neutral background (i.e. no background) that is lit from the front. According to the above advice, he should leave more space in front of the front of the head. Starting the tonal study of the form, he will see that the shadows on the head have disturbed the composition, the balance (in tone) has disappeared. To avoid this, the painter will have to enter near the front part dark background, which will complicate the work and violate the target setting (figure without background). Therefore, before proceeding to the drawing, it is necessary to make a number of small sketches, where the compositional problem will be solved.

The student needs to choose the most successful point of view, and not sit down on the first place that comes across, which we often see in many students. Moreover, the student needs to clearly imagine how his drawing will end up looking. Only after that you can take up a pencil and start placing a drawing on a piece of paper.

So a prerequisite for drawing is a consistent planned course of work on the drawing. It is absolutely wrong to work in parts, drawing first, for example, then, etc., or “jumping” from part to part. As a result of this method, there will be no complete image.

The integrity of the vision of the model and the integrity of its image is one of the main tasks of the drawing, and this task must be set at all stages of work, starting with the first sketch.

Therefore, it is first necessary, without paying attention to details, to concentrate attention on the large shape of the head and find out its characteristic features.

Thus, at this stage there is a clarification general form heads and the main details are outlined, but always in relation to the whole and to each other. Therefore, you need to look at the entire volume as a whole and, outlining one detail, “keep in the eye” and the rest, especially paired ones, are symmetrical. The entire volume at this stage is outlined by several main surfaces.

Third stage (Fig. 3). Further, more in-depth analysis of the form continues. More precisely, the shape of the brain skull is built, its main surfaces are delimited. The same is done with the rest of the head: zygomatic arches, orbital cavities, etc.

No detail should be drawn more carefully than others. Drawing at any stage should be equally worked out in all parts. If the skull has only the main surfaces that form the shape, then the nose at this stage should be refined only in relation to overall dimensions and main surfaces; let its shape be somewhat geometric for the time being, but it should already have an individual character.

Now timely determine the height of the hump and the width of the nose at the base and tip, the size of the wings. At the lips, the main directions of surfaces are also outlined (including thickness); as for the eye, the shape of the orbital cavity is now more accurately constructed, the thickness and position of the eyelids are outlined. At the lower jaw, the main turns of the form are determined and built ... The main attention should be paid to the construction of the edge of the jaw with its angles and chin elevation.

When constructing a volume, it is expedient to divide its surface into main directions close to planes. This helps a lot in understanding the constructive form. Having understood the direction of these surfaces, it will be easier to determine which of them is darker, which is lighter, which is more turned towards the light source, which is smaller.

This should also be followed when laying chiaroscuro - not just copy the brightening and darkening observed in nature, but be consistent with the direction of the surface of each section of the volume; only in this case the process of shaping the form by means of chiaroscuro will be conscious.