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STEP
1. 
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Drawing a likeness
is not as difficult as you may think...
Lee Hammond's gridding and blending method
is a technique that can be used by anyone.
You can be drawing in hours and earning in
weeks... I'd sold 3 of my earliest portraits
within 3 months of starting and I can assure
you, I couldn't draw the proverbial 'straight
line' before reading Lee's book!!!
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Albrecht
Durer, Draughtsman making a perspective
Drawing of a Woman (1525)
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| Gridding,
to obtain correct linear perspective, is a
method that has been used for many hundreds
of years... Portrait artists often clamped
their subject's head into a fixed position
and then, peering through a wire framework,
would transfer the information onto the gridded
support... thus providing an accurate foundation
on which to build. This method, once regarded
as a trade secret, was employed by Leonardo
de Vinci himself as part of his apprenticeship...
so consider yourself in good company...
The most praisworthy form of painting is
the one that most resembles what it imitates.
~Leonardo da Vinci |
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This
method calls for a reasonably sized photograph,
preferably an 8" x 10"
or the cover of one of the many glossy magazines.
Try to choose one with good, strong shadows
and clearly defined detail... the better the
photograph, the better the drawing. |
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For
this particular demonstration I've selected
a black and white photograph of Matt Le Blanc
taken from one of my daughter's magazines.
A quick study of the face shows that the light
is quite high and slightly to the right of
the subject casting shadows beneath the brows,
nose, top lip, bottom lip, chin and jawline.
These shadows are actually defining the features
and shape of the face. You will notice that
there are no outlines around the lips, eyes
or nose. This is probably the most common
fault with peoples drawings, resulting in
a cartoon or caricature rather than a realistic
portrait. What I hope to demonstrate is, the
use of shapes and tones to produce the finished
drawing. |
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