The book that taught me how to draw
If you’d asked me two years ago if I knew how to draw I would have answered no. At least not realistic drawings. I would’ve said I’d been wanting to learn, but that I didn’t know how.
I’d been trying to capture the images in my head on paper over and over, but never succeeded in turning them into what I wanted to.
But today, when I get that question, I answer, yes. Yes, I know how to draw!
So what happened between then and now? Well the answer is (my favorite answer), I read a book!
Well I read it AND I did the exercises in it. And after the three weeks it took me to get through it, I knew how to draw realistic drawings. Just like that!
It might sound too good to be true, but that’s what happened.
I went from feeling that I had no idea how to capture images and things around me, to being able to draw rather apt representations of them in just a few weeks.
If you don’t believe me, here’s my before and after drawings from the book. One self portrait before I’d done any of the exercises, and another self portrait after I’d gone through all the chapters. As you can see the difference is huuuuuge!
In just three weeks I went from being on the drawing level to the left, to the drawing level on the right.
This is the book that taught me how
“Drawing on the right side of the brain” by Betty Edwards.
I could go on and on about this book and how amazing and fascinating it is, and what a big impact it had on me. On my drawing skills, but maybe even more on my confidence.
But in stead I’ll just give you some of the things that are still stuck with me over a year later.
Knowing how to draw realistically doesn’t really have anything to do with your hand or materials or skill level. Drawing realistically is about SEEING. Learning how to SEE and LOOK at objects is key. So basically, anyone who’s able to hold a pencil and can write somewhat legible can learn how to draw.
The way a person draws is entirely unique. Just think about it. The way we write is so characteristically ours that just the simple act of signing our names is considered to be an identification of who we are.
We all have what Betty Edwards calls a “symbol library” for different things and objects, which is something we learn as children. A head is shaped like a circle, the arms and legs as straight lines, a house is a square or rectangle with a triangular roof. But in order to learn how to draw realistically, we need to unlearn this symbol library. A realistic head is not shaped like a circle in real life, so if we want to draw a realistic person we can’t draw an evenly round circle (or oval). We need to reeeeally look at the persons face, at it’s shapes, it’s curves, and copy that onto the paper.
This is the reason a lot of us grownups still draw as we did when we were kids, because we’re still using the same symbols for things as we did when we were young.
These are just some of the things Betty Edwards dives in to in the book. There are a bunch of other interesting things about how the brain works, and how to tap in to the part of your brain that’s activated when drawing.
And of course, the exercises! They are what’s gonna get you to be able to draw by the end of the book.
Here are some of my drawings from the book.
Materials
I highly recommend you try this book out if you want to get in to drawing and don’t mind learning from a book.
And, if you’re an impatient person like me and want to get started right away, make sure to get these things at the same time, as you need them to properly do the exercises in the book!
If you want to give this book a try it’s available on both Adlibris & Bokus for all you Swedes out there, and on Amazon if you’re anywhere else in the world.
Or just check out the Draw Right Website or Instagram.
Good luck!
