Intro to Portrait Drawing Basics

Course description: 4 hour course that is an introduction to drawing portraits, using basic visual perception and perspective, along with basic instruction on anatomy. Includes analysis of drawing elements and applied creative problems. Subject matter includes plastic anatomy models and plaster casts. This course will serve to provide each student with techniques and methods that can apply to almost any observable portrait situation.

Rationale: Visualization of the human portrait, and the parallel development of perceptual prowess and hand skills, are rudimentary to understanding how to depict a personality on a two-dimensional format. Recognition of the basic anatomy, proportions and planulae structure of the human portrait will help with each students at drawing portraits in any observable situation. This course provides a nuts-and-bolts approach to developing a foundation for visual perception and working processes of basic portrait drawing from observation, so that the student can develop a more sophisticated understanding of how to work beyond a generic, pre-determined approach.

Course objectives:
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:

interpret, analyze and evaluate their own drawings
describe the technical and components of the portrait drawing
demonstrate practical knowledge and use of basic anatomy and proportion
begin to demonstrate appropriate skill and dexterity for the faithful representation of the human portrait on a two dimensional plane

Major Topics – Lectures:
empirical understanding of proportion and head-and-shoulders anatomy, and how to depict a portrait image using that understanding.
The course will begin with a basic description of perspective, and then the instructor will demonstrate specific techniques and guidelines that help each student depict the human head in space according to an understanding of proportion, anatomy and structure.

Materials and cost:

• 18×24” drawing pad
• 18×24” newsprint pad
• two each of 2B, 6B and 8B drawing pencils
• white plastic eraser.
• Approximate cost for all materials is $30

Cost of the course is $40 plus the cost of materials.