Tutor feedback Assignment 3

Assignment 3 produced a lot to talk about and I had quite a few drawings to change. My tutor said this...

"Do try to make sure that every part of each picture has an artistic quality, a reason to exist and makes a contribution to the overall scene. I should be able to look at portion and be able to decide at least if it is near, mid or far. It should have some working by you. There need not be a white background just left."

This has been my most common fault so far and the most difficult for me to shake. Thankfully I think I'm getting better but sometimes still forget and leave the background.  

The first drawing was in Observation in Nature

A4 black pen

 This study of a branch just appeared to be floating in space so my tutor suggested that I gave it a "non-detracting minimal setting".

A4 Black pen

   The shadows on this were a bit confusing due to the way the bark had come away from the wood but the light seemed to be coming from the left side. I decided that I would use hatching at the edge of the branch at the front and a small amount at the back.

This has improved it a lot. It seems so obvious to me now that a background is needed but I previously thought backgrounds were bad and would distract from the object.


The next drawing I wasn't happy with at all. I realised that it was lop-sided but I didn't know what to do to make it more balanced. My tutor suggested that I cut 2" from the left side of the paper and "add a touch of wall or distance of some sort behind the table".

A3 Black Pen

 I decided to draw in the top of a chair behind the table and then I indicated a doorway before I cut the edge off the drawing.

I'm much happier with the end result. I'm beginning to understand that it's OK to use a bit of artistic licence and to add things that are not actually there. I just didn't have the confidence to do this before.

Similar story below. My tutor commented that she liked this coloured ink drawing of roses and honeysuckle in a glass vase and I should include it in my assessment but first I needed to finish it.

This immediately put the fear of god in me in case I ruined what I had. Also I didn't have any roses or honeysuckle to draw from and the lighting and positioning would be different if I did. I gave it a go however. I managed to find some pictures of roses on the net and used them to help. My favourite addition is the fallen honeysuckle petals I put on the mat. As is usual with these things, they were done in 2 seconds and with not much thought.

 I'm happy with the final drawing and I enjoyed this medium. It's perfect for the subject.

My tutor then asked that I colour in the background wall of the pencil drawing of the flowers and tea-set.

Original A2 coloured pencil

Changed A2 pencil

This was easy enough to do and has given the drawing a properly finished look. My tutor also commented about this drawing....

"Your drawing of the plants with the still life tea set is like two drawings in one. Both very well planned and drawn. It reminds me of Patrick Caulfield’s work. This is a good work. Would you like to see if you can develop this and combine both capable techniques on or with each other in future works?"

I wasn't sure what she meant by this but thought that it was due to the 2 quite different styles for drawing the dense foliage and flowers and for drawing the teapot and vase. The bottom half of the drawing is actually at quite an odd and exaggerated angle I think due to the mat. 

This made me think about the composition and I had a look at Patrick Caulfield. 

Patrick Caulfield Still life with dagger 1963 121 x121cm

 What I would normally think of as a mistake has turned out to be quite interesting for future ideas for still life compositions. The angles of the mat have given the composition a quirky look. It is interesting that such a simple thing can do this. As for the plant half of the drawing, I would certainly like to have a go at more botanical pieces. 

Drawing Animals

About my drawing of the dog sleeping, my tutor had this to say....

"You’ve made a good attempt to draw the dog. There are lots of good aspects such as the shapes and features. However much more attention is needed to the tonal shading. Are the black fur lines showing black fur – which would sit on dark tones – or are you showing pale fur with black lines?- which would need the shadows to be tonally drawn. I think probably only the long tail feathers fur should be drawn as individual furry lines. The remainder need extensive tonal observation. You have more of the correct idea on the front leg shading."

I knew something was wrong with the fur but I didn't know how to correct this before. I looked at the drawing again and took a piece of charcoal to it...

Original A2 charcoal

Changed A2 charcoal

The changed version of this drawing is much better and it's given the dog depth and shape where before she looked half bald in parts. I'm much happier with this.