Drawing and Illustration Basics by Heather Ross

Beginner | 3 hours

Taught by Heather Ross

When you’re first learning how to draw, the secret is to relax, warm up, and keep it simple. Heather shares exercises to help you approach the blank page and learn how to control the pencil. Then, together, you will practice drawing everyday objects without worrying too much about realistic results. This first class is a great way to learn how to reduce objects to basic lines and shapes get past the intimidation of drawing from real life.

Learn how to:

Sketch everyday objects
Erase marks you don’t like and define the edges of your sketch
Blend and shade
Easily add dimension and perspective
Add letters to sketches

Chapters

Drawing Simple Shapes
Part 1 Overview00:38
Materials00:59

Anyone Can Draw
Warming up05:00
Drawing an apple and a thread spool07:42
Drawing clothespins, safety pins, pencils and thumbtacks18:29
Drawing a floral still life17:22

Materials

Here’s what you’ll need:

Pencils (Heather uses Palomino Blackwing pencils and Papermate #2 mechanical pencils)
Kneaded eraser
Pencil sharpener
Drawing paper with a little bit of weight
Washi Tape and drawing board (optional)
Everyday objects to draw (like an apple, paperclips, thread spools, clothespins, thumbtacks, safety pins, and flowers)

Buy materials for this project at JOANN.com

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Transcript

Drawing and Illustration Basics

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Part 1:

Drawing and Illustration Basics: Drawing Simple Shapes

Heather Ross

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Part 2:

Drawing and Illustration Basics: Drawing Trickier Shapes and Adding Color

Heather Ross

Now that you’ve had a chance to practice your drawing skills, you may be wondering how to add color to your illustrations. In this class, Heather uses gouache to add color to her drawings. She also demonstrates her methods for drawing and painting more complex everyday objects, as well as creating stylized portraits of pets and people.

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Part 3:

Drawing and Illustration Basics: Making Conversational Artwork

Heather Ross

Simply put, “conversational artwork” is when there is a relationship between the elements in your drawing – think of a child hugging a stuffed animal, or a ladybug determinedly climbing up the stem of an epic mushroom. This kind of artwork tells a story and creates an opportunity for the viewer to relate. In this final class, Heather teaches her techniques for combining everyday objects into a single illustration to create conversational artwork. At the very end of the class, she shows how to scan your finished illustration, tidy it up in Photoshop, and create a beautiful printed notecard.

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