Week Two: going up a level - spatial qualities of line

Fantastic and fast progress by everyone in the class today. We decided to continue developing our understanding of line work rather than moving on to tone/form. We will look at form / tone next week. As always there is also the option of continuing with line work if some would prefer. Some truly great details in each drawing below. Hard work and lots of solid concentration is clearly evident.

Anne: very good development of line weights to create a stronger sense of space. Perhaps consider adding a bit more weight to the edge of the curling leaf in the right foreground to bring it even more forward.

Carolyn: very well observed edges - line quality is great (good variation in weight). Sense of depth is good. The two tall broad leaves that form a "V" shape, on the left and right, perhaps look at making the lines on the outer edges more variable in weight. 

Jane: excellent observation of shape and proportion and angles. Really good development of line qualities on the leaf edges. Perhaps lighten/reduce the line weight on the tall leaf at the back, right to push it further back in space. 

Janice: very good observation of shape, proportions and angles. Lovely line quality on edges of leaves. Keep an eye on the difference of line weight on the foreground leaves and the back ground leaves to retain depth.

John: very well observed and your use of line weight is strong and confident yet nuanced nicely. You are creating a real sense of depth. Perhaps lighten the two background leaves a bit more to emphasise the space in the whole plant. 

Karen: very nicely and sensitively drawn. I like how you are playing with al the flowers to show progression of weight across all four flowers by increasing the weight from right to left. Practice drawing just the stems until you can do both lines, each in one smooth flowing line. 

Margaret: strong sense of a tight space between the leaves which is good.  You are starting to understand how to show depth by varying the weight (thickness, blackness) of the lines. Continue drawing with an eraser to further lighten the lines on the two rear leaves.  

Moira: excellent development of space using more varied line weights. Working really well. Try drawing the middle and rear leaves with an eraser then rebuilding those lines with a lighter, thinner touch to push them backwards in space. 

Pat: lovely start. Good proportions and good use of straight edges to create a simplified more geometric layer of the big shapes which you are now refining nicely. Look at the image of the bee until you can see which parts are closest to you and which are further away. Then use variable line weights to illustrate this - darker, heavier lines come forward whilst lighter, thinner lines tend to look farther away on paper.

Val: a very strong drawing that you are developing into a very good painting. Keep adding oil pastel layers until the background is less "busy" - the coarse pastel marks currently look too similar to the lines in the feathers so you need more contrast between the background and the feathers.