Reading Assignment 2

The Mechanics of Visualizing

Pursue the original and investigate new lines of inquiry to understand the world that you inhabit. Experiment with tools to grasp the technical aspects of your trade and find your own voice or style. Do not over-emphasize technique because this is just your medium to convey your message. The message of the work is everything.

Drawing

There are many tools used in drawing and they all have their own unique properties. Papers can also be vital in the production of a drawing because it directly effects the quality of your mark making.
  • The Sketch: a valuable tool that is not intended to be a complete statement on its own, and allows the freedom to develop and refine ideas in a fluid and flexible way. It is also a great way to record the world around you and use as a reference point for later visual development
  • The Finished Drawing: a finished drawing can take many forms but it appears complete and without the need for anything to be added or subtracted. The audience will be convinced that the artist know their subject intimately. There are two main categories of finished drawings; the observed and the imagined.
The Observed: drawn from life in a specific environment, and recorded mainly in the time frame of the visit. The artist relates directly to the world around them which gives these types of drawings lots of dynamic energy and the choice of what things to add in or leave out the drawing gives the artist control in the creation of the image
The Imagined: the illustrator uses visuals from the outside world to compose an image. This is so much better than a photograph because they elucidate ideas, show us the future, take us to places we can never go, and visualize our interior worlds 

Painting, Printmaking and Assemblage

There are many options for adding colors to your illustrations. Gouache, watercolors, and acrylics are popular choices because of their versatility and easy of use. Using different papers and tools will yield different results so you will need to experiment with this.
  • Printmaking: Wood engravings, linocut, drypoint, etching, engraving, litography, screenprinting, monoprinting, digital printing
  • Assemblage: Using found imagery to create a collage
  • The Digital Environment: mixing traditional media with computer work has been around since the 1980 and there are a variety of software options for creating digital art

Traditions in Depicting Space

  • The Indian Tradition
  • The East Asian Tradition
  • The African Tradition
  • The Western Tradition

Perspective

  • Guiding Principles
  • Key Terms
  • One-Point Perspective
  • Two-Point Perspective
  • Three-Point Perspective

Form, Tone and Light


Composition

  • Format
  • Main Elements
  • Dominant Theories within Composition
  • The Golden Section
  • The Symmetrical Composition
  • The asymmetrical Composition
  • Cropping

Color within the Image

  • Guiding Principles
  • Key Terms