TheVirtualInstructor Blog

Part of drawing is making mistakes. (I’d probably argue with myself on that opening sentence.) Part of drawing is subtracting. (That’s probably more accurate.) Erasers are an inevitable part of the process of subtraction in drawing. I’m not going to discuss the many ways that erasers can be used to actually create the drawing in this article. Instead, I want to give you a run down of the different types of erasers and what they are generally used for.

1. Rubber Erasers- A rubber eraser is the most common type of eraser out there. It can be found at the end of every #2 pencil. Rubber erasers are generally colored pink, although I have seen them available in all different types of colors. The Pink Pearl brand eraser is a standard for most artists. It comes as a wedge shape and is colored pink. Rubber erasers are best suited for erasing pencil (graphite) on paper. It works by shedding itself as it lifts the pigment from the surface. Rubber erasers will not tear the paper unless they are used over-aggressively. Rubber erasers are also quite economical averaging from $.25 to $.50 a wedge.

2. Gum Erasers- Gum erasers are sometimes called art gum erasers. These erasers are also made of rubber, but are a softer version than rubber erasers. Gum erasers are very soft and tend to crumble as they erase. If the integrity of the paper is a concern, then a gum eraser may be your best bet because they will not tear the paper even with aggressive rubbing. Gum erasers are best for erasing graphite on paper. These erasers are usually brown in color and some are even semi-transparent. One negative aspect of gum erasers is that they don’t last very long. Because they crumble so easily, the life of the gum eraser is a short one. Gum erasers range in price from $.50 to $.75.

3. Kneaded Erasers- Kneaded erasers are very soft, pliable erasers that be formed and sculpted. They are a unique breed of eraser because of this feature. They work by lifting the pigment off of the surface. Because of this, kneaded erasers will not harm the surface. Because they are easy to form, kneaded erasers are particularly popular with artists. Kneaded erasers become dirty as they erase but can be pulled and manipulated to clean them. They can even be washed. The standard color for kneaded erasers is gray, although I have seen them in all sorts of colors. Kneaded erasers are mostly used for graphite and charcoal. Kneaded erasers are best suited for charcoal. These erasers are a bit more expensive than rubber erasers averaging in price from $1.00 to $2.50.

4. Vinyl Erasers- Vinyl erasers are made of soft vinyl and are sometimes called plastic erasers. These erasers are the toughest of the bunch. If not used properly, they can easily tear paper. Vinyl erasers can erase almost anything including ink. Vinyl erasers are usually white and come in a variety of shapes. Many draftsmen prefer vinyl erasers because of their ability to erase cleanly and completely. Vinyl erasers are fairly expensive, ranging in price from $2.00-$5.00 depending on the brand.

5. Erasils- Although the material used to create erasils is vinyl, I still think it necessary to mention them. Erasils are just erasers in a pencil form. They can sharpened just like a pencil for super precise erasing. Because the eraser material is vinyl, they can damage the paper if not used gently. Erasils are becoming increasingly hard to find, but with a little search on the internet, you’re sure to find a place where they can be ordered.

So many people are disillusioned with the process of drawing.  First of all,  many people feel like they are not capable of drawing well.  This is just not true. ANYONE can draw and do it well, IF they truly want to put in the hours of practice that will result in true skill.  I think that so many people “buy into” the great talent myth that they limit themselves.  There is NO talent.  Sure, some people are able to learn and develop quickly.  But no one is born with the skill of drawing.  It is a skill that must be learned and developed.

Secondly, drawing is not something that happens in the arms or the wrist.  It is a process that occurs in the mind.  It is about seeing objects and arriving at a form of understanding about the object that is being drawn.  It about understanding how we see things.  How light is reflected off of objects.  How we perceive space, texture, color, and so on.  Too many people think that drawing is something that happens elsewhere than the mind.  When it is acknowledged that drawing is a cerebral activity, than it can more easily be digested as an attainable skill.

Drawing is a skill.  And just like with any other skill , drawing can be learned and developed.  Any skill that is worthwhile takes time and attention.  In other words, drawing well requires practice.  It does not happen “overnight”.  There are tips that may help us to better understand how we “see” objects, but in the end, the skill of seeing and the ability to draw well, comes with practice.  Look at the great athletes.  They practice constantly.  The athletes that are at the pinnacle of their sport are usually the ones that practice the hardest.  Drawing is the same.  In order to progress and develop at drawing, we must practice our craft.  Keep a sketchbook and draw constantly.  You will notice your skills improving.

Drawing is not just relaying what you see in a literal manner.  For a long time, I was enamored by highly detailed and realistic drawings.  And to a certain extent, I still am.  However, the drawings that appeal to me most, go beyond acquired skill and literal interpretation.  Drawings that speak their own voice are stronger than those that speak what we already see.  Therefore, the development of style and communication is also important in understanding drawing.  This skill is perhaps the most difficult to develop and learn.  And while still attainable and available to anyone who wants learn this skill,   drawing with a unique voice is the most difficult aspect of drawing to develop.    With time and practice however, this skill can also be learned and developed.  Drawing is one of the oldest and deepest means of communication and expression.  What do your drawings say?

The Holidays are approaching and I always get questions this time of year about which art supplies are best to purchase as gifts for beginning artists.  It seems that there would be an easy answer to this question, but unfortunately it’s a bit more complex.  Visual art is so broad.  Because of this, there isn’t just one art set that one can purchase to cover all of the areas of art.  The supplies that are purchased should be tailored to the artist’s needs.  So in this post, I have decided to take a look at a few of the subcategories of visual art and make a list that represents what may be appropriate for beginners in each category.

Drawing
There are lots and lots of drawing supplies out there.  So, it can be quite overwhelming deciding what supplies are appropriate for the beginner.  With such a flood of materials, it would be easy to find yourself with too many supplies.  I am going to break this category down even further into “Black and White Drawing” and “Color Drawing”

Black and White Drawing
1. 3 or 4 quality soft graphite drawing pencils- I suggest 2B, 4B, and 6B.  A regular #2(HB) pencil is also recommended.
2. a sturdy sketchbook
3. a pink pearl eraser, a vinyl eraser, and a kneaded eraser
4. a blending stump or two
5. high quality drawing paper of at least 11″ by 14″
6. Vine charcoal
7. Compressed charcoal (black)

Color Drawing
1. High quality colored pencils- pay more for a high quality.  If price becomes an issue, buy a pack that contains less colors.  There is a huge difference in quality among colored pencil manufacturers.
2. Colored drawing paper- If you can’t decide what colors to get, start out with “grays”.
3. Chalk pastels
4. Oil Pastels
5. Blending stumps 

Watercolor Painting
1. A pan of watercolor cakes (High Quality) or
2. A set of watercolor tubes-primary colors plus Paynes Gray (dark gray), Indigo blue, and Burnt Umber (brown)
3. Nylon or sable brushes
4. a Watercolor pad of paper
5. a plastic mixing tray (palette) 

Acrylic Paint
1. A set of primary tubes of paint plus White and Burnt Umber
2. Nylon brushes
3. a Plastic mixing tray or palette
4. Assortment of stretched canvas or canvas board
5. Table top easel

Oil Painting
1. A set of primary tubes of oil paint plus Titanium White, Paynes Gray, and Burnt Umber
2. a small bottle of linseed oil
3. small glass bottles or jars
4. Bristle brushes and sable brushes
5. a disposable palette pad
6. Odorless mineral spirits
7. Rags
8. Assortment of stretched canvas or canvas boards

Sculpture
1. Assortment of polymer clay colors
2. Mexican Air Dry clay
3. Sculpture wire

All of these supplies can be purchased at the local art store or any online retailer.

Are you an artist that still doesn’t have a website?  Shame on you.  You absolutely need a website as an artist.  A website will increase your exposure and may help you sell your artwork without a middle man (gallery or agent).  So what are you waiting for?  It is so easy to create a website that is professional looking that represents you effectively.  You can hire a designer to do all of the dirty work for you, but the good news is that you don’t have to.  You can create your own website quickly and easily in a variety of ways.  In fact, there are several ways that you can create your own artist website for free.  In this post, we’ll take a look at a few of the ways that you can get your work on the web, and share your work with the world.

Create Your Artist Website from Scratch
The first way to create your own website is to develop it from scratch.  This method will take you longest, and may require that you learn some things about website design.  But, creating your website from scratch gives you the most control over the look and feel of your website.  Here are the steps to creating your own website from scratch…

1. Purchase a domain name- A domain name is the “.com”, “.net”, “.org” or so on.  It may read YourWebsite.com.  You can purchase domain names from a variety of hosting services like namesecure.com or godaddy.com.  Most domain names will cost anywhere from $5 to $10 a year.  You may need to think about how you want your visitors to “find” your website.  If you are thinking about having organic customers (ones that find your website through Google or Yahoo), then you may decide to name your domain to something that your customers will be searching for.  For example, if you make portraits of fish on cardboard, you may want the domain name- “fishportraitsoncardboard.com”.  (That’s probably an untapped market)  Or, if you your visitors will be finding you based on your name, you could purchase the domain name- “yourname.com”.  This first step is quite important because it will affect where you show up in an organic search in Google or Yahoo.

2. Design and Build Your Website- Next, get your hands on some web design software.  This is commonly called an HTML editor.  This is where you may have to learn some things.  Some software makes learning easy though.  In this step, you will create the look of your website.  You may design a few pages that link to each other.  For example, you may have home page, an about page, a portfolio page, a contact page, and a pricing page.  Be sure to make your navigation easy to follow and understand.  Also, make sure that there is a way to get to every page on your website.  I suggest that you create a navigation bar with links to every page on your site and include that navigation bar on every page in your website.
Here is a link to some HTML Editors…
Windows HTML Editors
Mac HTML Editors
(I use Dreamweaver)
Another great website for help with this step (and really the whole process) is 2createawebsite.com This site helped me out when I was just beginning.

3. Purchase a Hosting Package- A web host allows you to publish your website on the internet.  You can purchase web hosting from the same place that you purchased your domain name.  Web hosting packages usually charge you by the month.  Pricing varies, but is usually pretty cheap ($6-15 a month).  Shop around for the best deals and research who has the best service before you buy.  Once you have your hosting you can publish your website to the web.  The best part about creating your website from scratch is that you can change it at anytime and you have full control over what your visitors see.

Use Wordpress and Host the Site on Your Domain
Wordpress is changing the way websites are made.  Wordpress allows just about anyone to create a professional looking website without knowing about coding.  If you want to host your site with a specific domain name, but you don’t want to learn or bother with the coding specifics, then this method is the way to go for you.  You can pick from hundreds of  pre-coded templates, that are easy to insert your images and info into.  You can visit the Wordpress website and follow the directions for uploading your site.  This method will still require that you purchase a domain name and pay for hosting.

Start a Free Blog (Website) at Wordpress.com or Blogspot.com
You don’t have to pay to have your own artist website on the net.  You can visit wordpress.com or blogspot.com and setup your own website in minutes.  The drawback here is that you are not in control of your hosting.  You don’t have total control over your website, but it is free!

So, no more excuses.  Get your art out there.

Draw with Sticks

Why draw with the same old tools?  Ditch those pens, pencils, and brushes for a day and give sticks and stones a try.  Surprisingly, using non traditional drawing tools can produce beautiful results.  Grab a couple sticks (free) and some stones (free) and some ink (not free) and make some interesting marks.  Often times, we can become too rigid with our drawings and paintings which can lead to stale, overworked imagery.  When you allow yourself a bit more freedom to make organic marks, the results can be quite cool.   A stick can make a variety of marks that just can’t be duplicated with pen or pencil.  Give non-traditional drawing tools a chance, you might just find a brand new favorite drawing tool.  To see the full lesson with the video demonstration, click here-> Draw With Sticks

Draw with Repetition

Students at Rutgers University Roger Mason School of Art created machines to create repetitive marks.  The results were pretty cool.  The intent was to create machines to make marks that humans couldn’t normally make.  Another exercise was the creation of guitars made of cardboard.  The instructor of the class, Jeff Thompson, would play “cheesy” metal music at the end of class, and students would strum their guitars with pencils.  The intent was to show students that using deliberate lines is not the only way to draw, and that loose lines are effective as well.   To see the exercises with photos click here> Non Traditional Drawing at Rutgers

Draw with Your Feet

Go ahead and put that pencil between your toes and try to create a drawing from observation with your feet.  Hint: Sit in a chair and tape the paper to the ground.  You may be surprised at the range of lines that you make.  You may be really surprised how much your drawing resembles what you are looking at.  Give a shot.

Draw with Your Non-Dominant Hand

This exercise is related to drawing with your feet.  If you’re right handed, put the pencil in your left hand and draw from observation.  Again, you might be pleasantly surprised at how much you are able to record what you see.

So what not try something new in your drawings?  Don’t be afraid of something that you’ve never tried before.

Drawing is the most basic form of art-making.  Drawing is NOT a talent, instead it is a skill that can be developed.  The best way to develop any skill is through practice.  Check out the following list of drawing exercises that will help you practice your drawing skills.  The more that you  draw, the better you will become.  You should try to draw at least 30 minutes a day.  Draw anything that you see, no matter how uninteresting it may seem.  Your observation skills will improve and so will your ability to draw well.  Try to draw as much as possible from life.  Avoid drawing other people’s drawings.

Here’s a list of drawing exercises to help you on your way…
The Face/Vase Drawing Exercise
Drawing From Observation with your Memory
Gesture Drawing
Negative Space Drawing
Value Gradation
Blind Contour Line Drawing
Non Dominant Hand Drawing

Basic shapes make up every object that we as artists draw.  Learning to see the basic shapes that exist in everyday objects is a skill that is learned and developed through practice.  By learning how to find the objects that make up objects, we are learning how to see as an artist.  We we learn how to see, we learn how to draw.  Drawing, after all, is about seeing and understanding what we see.  We can take basic shapes a step further by learning how to transform shapes into forms.  In drawing, we do this by adding value to create shadow.  Shadow informs us of the light source and the form of the object.  This lesson explores the process of drawing the basic forms that complex objects are made of.  When we learn how to draw the simple forms, we can draw any complex form that we desire.  To see the full lesson including the video demonstration click here-> Transforming Shapes into Forms

Pen and ink drawing has been around for quite a while.  Drawing in this manner can sometimes mimic some of the older techniques of printmaking like engraving and relief printing.  This lesson, just posted on TheVirtualInstructor.com explores the materials, surfaces, and techniques of pen and ink drawing. Practicing with pen and ink techniques actually will help you become better at drawing and painting with other media as well.  The directional lines that you make with the pens can mimic the strokes that you may make with a paintbrush, pastel, or colored pencil.  In fact, throughout history, many artists used pen and ink drawings for preliminary sketches and finished drawings.

I remember when I first really got into to drawing.  My parents bought me a set of Kor-i-noor Rapidograph pens.  They were ridiculously expensive at the time, but  I absolutely loved them.  I fell in love with pen and ink drawing immediately.  I even have one of the drawings I did with those pens many years ago framed in my house.  This is was the time I really began to practice drawing all the time. I would lose myself in the lines.

To see the full lesson with a video demonstration click here->Pen and Ink Drawing Techniques

So many people get frustrated when it comes to drawing the human figure.  Sure, it is one of the most difficult subjects that can be drawn.  But this fact should never be a reason to get discouraged.  It takes years of practice to really master figure drawing.  That’s why most traditional college art programs require so much figure drawing in their curricula.  Figure drawing not only helps you draw the figure itself, but it also increases your overall drawing skills.  You must pay attention to the position the figure is in, the light , the shadows, the form, and proportion.  In other words, you must look at the subject.  And looking is one of the most important factors in drawing well.  Remember, drawing is at least 50% observation.  So by practicing figure drawing, you get better at drawing anything.

Drawing the figure quickly is a skill known as “gesture drawing”.  Gesture drawings are drawings of the figure that are meant to capture the proportions and general information about the figure.  They are done relatively quickly and not much attention is given to the detail of the subject.  Practicing gesture drawing can really improve your speed in drawing as well as your observation skills.  Practice gesture drawing whenever you get a chance-sitting on a park bench, at the mall, watching a sporting event, or from images in magazines.  You will get better at figure drawing and drawing in general.

To learn more about gesture drawing and to see a video demonstration click here-> Gesture Drawing

Watercolor pencils are an interesting medium.  They allow the artist the versatility to draw AND paint.  Watercolor pencils are somewhat like colored pencils.  Instead of a waxy or oily binder like those found in colored pencils, they have a water soluble binder.  When water is added to them, they behave like watercolor paint.  Therefore, all of the watercolor techniques that you may already use, apply to watercolor pencils.  Watercolor pencils should be applied to watercolor paper or a heavier board, like illustration board.  Watercolor pencils are easy to store and transport, making them an ideal choice for color studies or quick preliminary sketches.  Watercolor pencils  are inexpensive and readily available almost anywhere.

To see the video demonstration of watercolor pencils click here-> How to Use Watercolor Pencils