{"id":6248,"date":"2016-09-06T20:42:38","date_gmt":"2016-09-07T00:42:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/?p=6248"},"modified":"2020-06-22T09:18:03","modified_gmt":"2020-06-22T13:18:03","slug":"drawing-drawing-drawing-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2016\/09\/drawing-drawing-drawing-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Drawing, drawing, drawing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Drawing is the heart and soul of art.  If the drawing is strong, you have to work hard to screw up a painting.  If the drawing is weak, you have to work hard to just produce mediocrity.<\/p>\n

I’ve gone through periods during which I did more drawing than painting, especially when I was young and painting supplies were sometimes beyond my modest budget.  These days, most of my drawings are in preparation for paintings.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/span>In the Studio Oct. 14 2012<\/span><\/a><\/div>

Here’s a drawing that was done for the joy of drawing.  It isn’t a study for a painting.  It’s charcoal and chalk on a toned paper.  The paper is really nice with a deep rich texture.<\/p>\n

\"nude-raised-arms\"<\/p>\n

Read more<\/span>Smooth Move—Smooth Painting Surfaces<\/span><\/a><\/div>

When I start a drawing, I loosely sketch until I have the figure or tableaux positioned where I want it.  The initial sketching is loose and flowing.  Then, I define the touchstone<\/em>.  The touchstone is a form or a relationship between several forms (usually two) that defines the scale and proportions used throughout.  Once the touchstone–the key–is established, the rest flows easily.<\/p>\n

In this drawing of the bathing girl, you can see where I positioned her right hand during the initial sketching before moving it into its final position.  The touchstone in this drawing is her left breast and left arm and the relationship between them (the negative space; I am always conscious of the negative space).<\/p>\n

Read more<\/span>In the Studio—10\/28\/12<\/span><\/a><\/div>

I have always drawn using parallel lines–hatching.  This was a reinforced by one of my early teachers, Robert Smith<\/a>, who taught his apprentices this method.   You can see it in the drawing of the bathing girl.  For example, the light area where the water meets the bank is a series of vertical lines (hatchings) arranged in a horizontal strip.<\/p>\n

Hatching and cross-hatching were the foundation of French Academic drawing training.  Beginning students were tasked with copying engravings of simple forms such as ears, noses, and hands.  Students were instructed to mimic the parallel lines and hatchings exhibited in the engravings.  In addition to training the eye, a good thing in itself, the practice helps students appreciate the formal and abstract (small ‘a’) nature of drawing.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/span>Hurricane Sandy<\/span><\/a><\/div>

Parallel lines and hatchings are capable of the most astonishing realism (small ‘r’), as anyone who has examined the engraving on a US banknote can attest.  Here is a 19th Century French Academic sanguine drawing that uses the standard technique of parallel lines and hatchings.<\/p>\n

\"sanguine\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Read more<\/span>Thumbs-up: van Ruisdael; Thumbs-down: Renoir<\/span><\/a><\/div>

Sanguine<\/a> is chalk or clay containing some form of iron oxide.  Sanguine is still widely used but it’s not as popular as it once was.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Drawing is the heart and soul of art.  If the drawing is strong, you have to work hard to screw up a painting.  If the drawing is weak, you have to work hard to just produce mediocrity. I’ve gone through periods during which I did more drawing than painting, especially when I was young and painting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":6249,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,208,24,113,1],"tags":[276],"class_list":["post-6248","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drawings","category-materials","category-shop_talk","category-tips_tricks","category-uncategorized","tag-drawing"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/ngg_featured\/nude-raised-arms.jpg?fit=400%2C549&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":14147,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2026\/02\/turpentine-diaries-2-4-26-drawing\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":0},"title":"Turpentine diaries 2\/4\/26 drawing","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"February 4, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"What have I been up to lately? Drawing. I've spent the last three days drawing. The shift from painting started when I began preparing drawings for a large (5' x 6') painting. Today, I'm drawing just for drawing; drawings that are not studies for painting. The white-paper drawing is pen\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drawings"","block_context":{"text":"Drawings","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/drawings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/20260204_153200.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/20260204_153200.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/20260204_153200.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/20260204_153200.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14222,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/new-study\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":1},"title":"New study","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"April 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"I enjoyed this drawing paper so much that I completed the drawing instead of leaving it as a sketch for a painting. I'll still make a painting of the subject, but I love this Fabriano drawing paper. It's wonderful for all dy mediums, like this lead-only example. I like the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drawings"","block_context":{"text":"Drawings","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/drawings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/20260415_164340.jpg?fit=895%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/20260415_164340.jpg?fit=895%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/20260415_164340.jpg?fit=895%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/20260415_164340.jpg?fit=895%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2026,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2013\/06\/drawing-drawing-drawing\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":2},"title":"Drawing, Drawing, Drawing","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"June 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Lately, I've spent nearly all my time drawing. The accompanying photo shows three canvases prepared and ready for painting. The finished ink drawings were covered by a thin varnish-based ground.\u00a0 After the neutral-gray grounds are thoroughly dry (about a week), I will start painting them. The two larger paintings are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bio"","block_context":{"text":"Bio","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/bio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Three Canvases With Finished Drawings and Grounds","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/draw-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13719,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2024\/10\/activity-spurts\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":3},"title":"Activity spurts","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"October 5, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"During a recent activity spurt, I put the drawings on 7 new paintings and 4 large drawings. This photo shows two of the paintings. The drawing on the smaller canvas, \"Painted Pony,\" is done and ready for me to start painting. The larger canvas is 54\" x 42\" and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drawings"","block_context":{"text":"Drawings","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/drawings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/PAINTED-PONY.jpg?fit=1000%2C688&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/PAINTED-PONY.jpg?fit=1000%2C688&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/PAINTED-PONY.jpg?fit=1000%2C688&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/PAINTED-PONY.jpg?fit=1000%2C688&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4183,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2014\/10\/drawing-session-on-the-painting-titled-the-photographer\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":4},"title":"Drawing session on the painting titled The Photographer","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"October 2, 2014","format":"status","excerpt":"I had a good drawing session on the painting titled The Photographer this morning. This painting of a single figure is 32\" x 48.\" I think one more session will be enough. When I mentioned this painting the other day, I didn't show it, and I won't show it here.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bio"","block_context":{"text":"Bio","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/bio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6233,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2016\/07\/starting-a-painting\/","url_meta":{"origin":6248,"position":5},"title":"Starting a painting","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"July 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"After completing the cartoon for this painting, I transferred\u00a0it to a\u00a0canvas, as you can see in the photo. \u00a0A cartoon, I remind you, is a drawing used as a template for a painting. \u00a0Cartoons are made to the exact dimension of the target surface. \u00a0Typically, they are used for large\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Drawings"","block_context":{"text":"Drawings","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/drawings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/canv2.jpg?fit=800%2C1070&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/canv2.jpg?fit=800%2C1070&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/canv2.jpg?fit=800%2C1070&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/canv2.jpg?fit=800%2C1070&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Gw6F-1CM","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6248","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6248"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6248\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}