Step 3 1 lay in the tones
for the finer details, still using
a very light touch. 1 lighten
any of the outlines that ap-
pear too dark. The flowers
are light and smooth in the
lower petals, so the tone of
the outline should match. The
small cast shadows from the
sepals and stigma add to the
heavier texture of the upper
flowers . As 1 work on the
leaves, 1 pay careful attention
to the small, irregular folds
that create many crisp
shadows, and 1 leave light
areas for the leaf veins.
Step 4 Now 1 establish
the value relationships. The
leaves and stems are green
with a rougher texture, so the
values are between middle
and dark tones. Conversely,
the flowers are light pink and
white and velvety smooth,
so 1 keep my values lighter.
For the leaves, 1 use heavy
pressure with the blunt point
of an HB, adding deeper
shadows where there are
folds in the leaves.
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 Step 5 For a flower of such delicacy, 1 approach even
the smallest details with great care. 1 shade and texture
the stigma with sma ll circles and a 2 B and deepen
the tone at the bottom of the stigma to indicate the
cast shadow. 1 add a little stippling on top for more
texture. Using an HB, 1 go over each flower, deepening
the shading to bring out the cup shape. 1 then use
my kneaded eraser to lift out the lightest parts of the
flowe rs, particularly where the petals fold out. Where
the leaves fold over and create shadows, 1 use heavy
pressure to create dark tones. 1 further deepen the
shading on the stem; then 1 lift out highlights and some
leaf veins with my kneaded eraser .

20
Step 6 The last stage is the polishing stage, a time to
bring out the soft curves of the petals in contrast to the
angular leaves . Using an HB, 1 go back to each of the
flowers and create more subt le va lue transitions on the
petals, using very light pressure to create the edges of the
petals. 1 use a 2B for the deepest shadows on the rougher
stem and leaves, and then 1 emphasize the irregular
edges of the leaves. 1 use a sharp HB to further refine
the lines of the leaf veins and lighten some areas of the
leaves just a touch with my eraser. 1 check my drawing
in a mirror-which offers a fresh viewpoint-to see if
there are any more adj ustments to be made. When l'm
satisfied, 1 erase any unwanted smudges or pencil lines.

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 TRAD ITI ONAL STI LL L I F E TEXTU RE S
Still life compositions allow you to have complete contrai : You design the composit ion; choose the
range of textures, values, and colors; and create the ideal lighting situation. 1 like to set up my com-
positions so that there are many contrasting textures, such as a smoot h piece of fru it in a coa rsely
woven basket. Play around with different types of fruits and cheeses to see how the light catches their
textures. lt's always an added bonus to be able to sha re your f ood subject after your drawing is dane!

Fruit

Apple A polished red apple
reflects a strong highlight,
w hich contrasts with the
skin's dark tone. 1 apply car-
bon dust (shavings 1 collected
from sharpening my pencils)
w ith circular, irregular strokes
(top), then lift out the high-
light w ith an eraser (bottom).
Orange First 1 apply carbon
dust, using strok es that fol-
low the fruit's form (top). 1
lift out the main highlight
and then use an eraser to
create curved strokes around
the highlight, showing
the bumpy texture of the
orange's skin (bottom).
Strawberry 1 lay in dark
tone with carbon dust and
use a 4 B to start establishing
a dotted pattern for the
strawberry (top). 1 continue to
enhance the dimpled, seeded
texture by adding thin, curved
highlight lines around the
darker dots (bottom).
Cantaloupe With the side
of a 4B, 1 lay down some tone
and then randomly blend the
graphite. 1 lift out a few lines
to see how the lights contrast
with the dark tone (top). Be-
cause the skin is very rough,
there are no highlights-jus t
the upper veining.

Bas kets
Weaves Baskets a re incredibly tactile. The
texture of the weave creates a three-dimensional
pattern w ith many layers. Trying your hand at
rendering a woven basket is a great way to lea rn
about the interplay of light and shadow and how
it can show the heavy texture of the basket.

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W ood

Knotty Pine Zigzagged lines create
the rough pattern of the grain. 1 use
concentric ovais to draw the knots. Then
1 use an HB to add light, straight vertical
strokes and individual shorter strokes to
show the raised grain.
Ash For this fine-grained wood, 1 make
long, inverted U shapes with a slightly
uneven motion. Then 1 draw very long
grain lines, va rying their density and
allowing the lines to curve naturally. 1 go
over these lines with light, vertical lines.
Zebrawood With a 4B, 1 create the
dark lines of this straight-g rained hard-
wood. 1 group some closer together to
indicate the color var iation. 1 use a 2H
to add very light tone with long, vertical
strokes, adding a smooth quality.

Other Food Elements

I thought it would be a fun challenge to try to capture the coloration markings, form, and
textures of these two very different food specimens.
Squash

Step 1 1 start off with an outline of the
pitted surface of the squash and its color
markings . 1 use carbon dust to put in the
initial tones of the darker markings.
Cheese
Step 2 Using carbon dust on the point
of my stump, 1 add some dark tone to
show the heavy creases and the shadow
of the stem. 1 put some irregular tone in
the lighter areas. 1 use a 4B for the stem.
Step 3 1 use a 4B and circu lar strokes
to deepen the dark areas, show ing the
ragged surface of the skin. 1 go over the
light areas with a 2B, then lift out high-
lights and the lines a long the creases.

Step 1 1 outline the cheese and use the Step 2 1 use horizontal strokes that Step 3 With heavy pressure and a
side of the pencil to shade the creamy follow the form for the rind. Then 1 dull point, 1 deepen the holes, remem-
top of the cheese w ith light pressure deepen the tones of the holes and bering to keep the variations in tone to
and loose, oval strokes. 1 use vert ica l jagged veins and create the slight cast show various depths. 1 crosshatch the
strokes to shade the side, and 1 darken shadow under the cheese to help keep cast shadow and deepen the lines around
11

the veins and the shadows . it grounded.

11
the cheese to show the heavy rind.

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 WI N E AN O CH E E S E Step 1 1 chose these objects
for thei r range of textures. This
composit ion contrasts the very
hard, smooth glass with the
rough straw of the bottle cover,
while the grapes, cheese, and
wooden tray offer intermediate
textures. lt's very important
to pay careful attention to the
reflections on the glass objects.
1 carefully sketch the scene on

smooth plate-finish Bristol with

a very sharp HB pencil. 1 look at
the ovais of the glass and bottle
to make sure they are accurate.
1 then clean up my drawing and

am ready to start the shad ing

process.

------

Step 2 For smooth subjects like

glass, 1 start by applying carbon
dust with a stump. 1 use oval-
shaped strokes to mimic the hard
su rface of the glass and then use
the remaining dust on the stump
to indicate the dark reflections in
the glass. 1 do the sarne for the
wine, which takes on the sleek
surface quality of the glass. For
the straw wrapping on the bottle,
1 follow the bottle's form with

long, vertical strokes, which are

broken and uneven to show the
natural fiber. 1 apply carbon dust
to the grapes with quick strokes,
which creates random variations.
For the cheese, 1 use the stump to
create long strokes that follow the
flat shape of the cheese's form.

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 Step 3 Building up the glassy
surface of the wine, 1 use a 2B
pencil to create long, curved
strokes; then 1 blend with my
stump. 1 use vertical strokes for
the rigid stem of the glass whe re
there are reflections, and 1 use
curved strokes where there are
some darker tones at the base
of the glass. 1 add light shadi ng
on the labels of the bottle. For
the straw, 1 blend the first layer
of graphite and use the side
of the 2B to establish the soft
shadows created by the over-
lapping straw. 1 add some dark
form shadows to the grapes and
then blend my strokes to create
the slick skin. 1 add more tone to
the cheese with my stump, and
then 1 darken the depression in
the cheese with my pencil. 1 add
tone to the cast shadows on the
table and then blend the strokes .

Step 4 Following the contours

of the forms, 1 use a 2H penci l to
add some shading to the glass,
stem, and base to give them
sharp, crisp edges. Returning
to the bottle, 1 darken the wine
using my 2B. At the back of the
bottle where the reflections are, 1
blend even further, adding to the
smoothness of the surface . 1 also
add to the reflect ions in the glass
by using the stump . 1 deepen -
the grapes and use a sharp HB
to redefine the grapes' distinct
edges. 1 use the side of the
pencil for the thin stems of the
grapes . For the creamy cheese,
1 shade using light strokes with
my HB, following the direction of
the form, and then 1 darken the
wax rind with a 4B. 1 refine the
delicate wood grain with an HB
and draw in some details on the
bottle labels.

25
 Step 5 1 further deepen the tone of the wine in both the glass and bottle, using the dull point of a 48 . 1 use an eraser to heighten
the smoot h quality by lightly lifting out some reflections in the wine. 1 use an H8 to shade the glass and form the reflections . For the
bottle, 1 blend the tone; then 1 lift out the long highlight along the neck with a stroke that mimics the hard edge of the glass bottle.
1 use a 48 and tiny, circular strokes to darken the grapes, and then 1 lift out to further show the glossy skin by defining the highlights.
1 blend a nd lift out to create a smoot her texture for the cheese, and 1 use a very sharp point to draw in the thin cast shadow echoing
the rough edge at the bottom of the cheese. 1 create more deta il in the lightly grained wooden tray using long strokes with a sha rp
pencil; then 1 add more texture to the tablecloth using crosshatching (see page 9).

26
Step 6 1 make the glass a little darker with a 2H to create more co ntrast for the reflections, and then 1 lift out some light areas to
further emphasize the hard surface . For the base of the stem, 1 apply some crosshatching to indicate the transparency of the glass .
1 add a few small, vertical shadows to the upper label to create the irregular folds, and 1 sketch a bit more print on the labels w ithout
drawing every letter. Using my HB, 1 add more shading to the straw . 1 create the shadows cast by the grapes with the side of the
pencil. 1 shade the jagged, depressed areas of the straw with long, curved lines, and 1 use a sha rp point to draw a few splits in the
straw. 1 redefine the gra pes with an HB where needed. 1 also carefu lly place high lights on the cheese by lifting out-this helps define
the depressions in the cheese. 1 use the point of an HB to draw more wood grain and add more crossha tc hing to the tablecloth.

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 FLORAL ST ILL LIFE TEXTURE S
Flowers come in so many interesting f orms, colors, a nd textures- it's no wonder they are an endless
inspiration for artists ! When setting up a floral still life, keep your containers and arrangements simpie,
with a textura! quality that won't overwhelm the flowers.

G la s s

Opaque Gloss Vase 1 apply carbon Opaque Matte Vase This vase hardly Clear Vase This vase is transparent,
dust, and then 1 lift out the bright high- has any highlights. 1 use an HB and make so the back of the vase can be seen from
lights. For the subtle highlights, 1 drag my crisp edges to show the hard, smooth the front. There also are sharp highlights
eraser lightly across the tone of the vase. surface. and reflections. 1 use a 2H for shading.

Ce ra mie

Step 1 Glazed ceramic clay is very hard
11 11
and reflective. 1 create a wash with
carbon dust and a stump, then establish
the shadow patterns. My vertica l strokes
follow the form of the teapot.
Step 2 1 go back with a sharp HB and
draw light, vert ica l strokes that follow
the contour of the teapot. Then 1 use
strokes that reach across the teapot
horizontally, particularly around the base.
Step 3 1 build up the values of the teapot
with vertical and horizontal strokes, and
then 1 use the stump to blend. For crisp
contrasts, 1 use an eraser to lift out high-
lights and spots of reflected light.

Fa brics
Fringe 1 use Crochet
a sharp HB to draw Lace and crocheted
a detailed outline fabrics have holes
of the fringe and that add a lovely
knots. The strands textura! element.
should be slightly The holes create
frayed, reflecting heavy shadow, but
the softness of the the fabric is still
thread. light and delicate.

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