HOMEWORK 4: SHADING

So far this quarter we have focused on contour line drawings, and it's finally time to start SHADING! One of the most challenging things to do in drawing is make subtle changes in value from light to dark that are believable, that make the object look round. There is a fancy word for this subtle shading: chiaroscuro.

The "chiaroscuro sphere" is a quintessential lesson in most basic drawing classes. You start with a perfect circle, then slowly add value to that circle until the flat circle looks like a round ball. That's your homework for next week... look at the chiaroscuro ball below and copy it as closely as possible. Start by tracing something round that fills up most of your sketchbook page (a big cup? a saucer?) Use your graphite pencils for this -- play with them on a scrap piece of paper to figure out the difference between 2B, HB, 4H, etc. Then apply the graphite to the page very carefully. You can blend with your finger or a smudger if you need to, but try to do most of the blending with the pencil only. You can also erase into the graphite to add highlights. Include the dark cast shadow -- that helps make it look three-dimensional. And notice how the lower edge of the ball next to the dark cast shadow is light... that's called "reflected light", which bounces up from the light colored surface onto the ball. Look very carefully for all those subtle shifts in value, and don't rush.

You should probably spend 30 minutes to an hour on this. Make it look like a photograph! There are lots of YouTube videos on shading with graphite, so if you don't know where to start, do some research.

Due February 4.