Study a Thing and Draw It

An Exercise In Finding The Details

LOCATION: Auburn, AL

PROJECT TYPE: Hand Rendering

MATERIALS: brown butcher paper, charcoal, Arches 140# hot-press, Prismacolor colored pencils

SIZE: 8’ x 5’6”, 22” x 30”

PROFESSORS: Margaret Fletcher and Rusty Smith

TERM: Spring 2018

The first material required for this project was a deceased insect. In this case, the insect was a bumblebee. The goal of the assignment was to study the bumblebee and depict it in various mediums. This project’s purpose was to improve one’s ability to study a thing. To begin, the bee was drawn two ways in charcoal: a line drawing and realistic drawing. The pieces were created on large sheets of butcher paper that measured eight feet in length. After this study, half of the bee was rendered completely in color with Prismacolor colored pencils, while the other half was drafted purely with graphite on a full sheet of Arches 140# hot-press.

The first line drawing offered an initial understanding of the basic shapes and textures of the insect.