Today it was the last session of the 5 weeks drawing class I took with Erick Budovitch in Toronto. though before taking this class, I had done lots of drawing, sketches and paintings, he simply showed me that for a fundamental drawing, it is better to start from the very beginning. Through some hard and sometimes boring training he demontrated that for a good drawing I should forget the details for a while and just try to see the shapes in big masses and geometrically , eather in figures , lanscapes or still life . Seeing the values and contrast of lightness and darkness of the model come in the next stage.The following is taken from the article : "In praise of drawing " by robert Genne in " Painter's Keys , published : Aug. 1st. 06 http://www.painterskeys.com
Did you know that between 1820 and 1860 there were more than 145,000 "How to Draw" books ublished in the USA? In those pre-camera days, gentlemen and ladies kept memories alive by drawing them. A book by J. Liberty Tadd instructed young women to sketch pigs while standing in a pigsty--"in order to more accurately reflect nature." Many of these books are now on the trash heaps of history, but they nevertheless remind us of other times and other values. This is being made clear in a current exhibition in New York's Grolier Club. "Teaching America to Draw" is worth taking a look at if you happen to be in the area.
Show reviewer Michael Kimmelman says, "Drawing used to be a civilized thing to do, like reading and writing. It was taught in elementary schools. It was democratic. It was a boon to happiness." He notes that these days we have acquiesced to playing a passive role as receivers. We consume drawings rather than make them. There are easier ways to collect images than to draw them.
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