Sketching is a form of art and can be labelled as a prelude to painting as it is never the exact image you planned to make but a rough sketch or outline of a portrait or landscape without the minute details.
While sketching in recent years has been imagined in terms of architecture and industries, there are three basic forms of sketching
- Croquis:
It is a template or outline drawn to help an artist or a person to identify an image at a later time. The sketch drawn isn’t accurate but keeps the basic and most necessary information in tow which helps in a detailed sketch. This technique is mostly used by fashion designers who sketch a live model to remember the shapes, attires, etc.
- Pochade:
It can be said to be an upgraded version to Croquis and involves colours to it. It basically is capturing a real life scene or event on a paper using colours and then detailing it on a later date indoors. Artists use this to capture the essence of particular scenes in nature and/or lighting of a particular object they are making to make it look more realistic.
- Portrait Sketch:
The last and the hardest known form of sketching, Portrait sketches are highly recognised as a piece of art as they do not need any further detailing and work on them. This technique helps in capturing the very minute details and subtle emotions and is generally drawn using various angles to find the most suitable angle to draw from.
Learning to Sketch
The best way to sketch something is to start with a rough outline and perfect it with multiple strokes rather than making a full shape in first attempt. This way the chance to err is minimum and you get the perfect shape in the least possible amount of time.
A ball drawn in one complete step.
Ball sketched using different strokes (multiple steps).
In order to draw or sketch anything, be it a portrait, a landscape, still life, etc. the first step is to break the very piece of art into basic shapes. For example- if you are to make a lighthouse, break it into its components, a trapezium (sort of) for the basic hull, and depending on the design, a rectangle, square and triangle. When attempted to draw in this way the art form becomes much easier and less complex to draw.
A rough and quick outline of lighthouse drawn in one step.
A lighthouse drawn by breaking it into its key shapes.
Final product of a sketched lighthouse.
In order to make something you drew look more effective, and detailed, try imagining its look in light and apply the necessary tones for darkened and light portions of the object.
A complete shaded ball giving it a realistic and 3-d look.
Finally, it’s best to practice sketches whenever possible, keep drawing shapes till you get accustomed to them.
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P.S. The next post will be about shading, Abouts and the techniques used.
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