Drawing Natural Forms: SHAPE

Develop your artistic skills with the SHAPE Course class projects! This course focuses on building your ability to perceive and capture shapes, from soft curves to sharp angles. These engaging projects are designed to improve your observation skills, analytical thinking, and overall ability to visually represent the world around you.

Downloadable resources provide comprehensive guidance on project submissions to the project gallery, where you can share your artwork with the Skillshare community and receive valuable feedback. The projects are structured to encourage independent thinking and creative exploration. Feel free to personalize the exercises – adapt the medium and subject matter to match your unique style. Follow the step-by-step instructions in the handouts, using them as a framework for your own artistic expression.

Each handout includes an activity box to track your progress as you complete each project.

Course Project Breakdown:

1. Introduction to Shape:

   • Learning Objectives: Focus on comparative measuring and drawing a dinosaur or skeleton. Explore fundamental shape recognition.

2. Let’s Draw a Dinosaur!

   • Learning Objectives: Practice drawing a dinosaur or skeleton, emphasizing comparative measuring.

3. Let’s Draw a Plant Sprig!

   • Learning Objectives: Develop descriptive language by writing five words capturing the character of a plant sprig. Master negative and positive space drawing techniques.

4. Let’s Draw Reindeer!

   • Learning Objectives: A comprehensive project exploring reindeer anatomy through drawing.
     • The Game is a foot: Begin with a quick skeleton sketch of three different tetrapod foot stances.
     • Color and label bones and muscles.
     • Draw the forelimb and hind limb in five parts, aligning them and labeling bones.
     • Create a side view of the reindeer skeleton.
     • Articulate the legs in various positions.
     • Practice negative and positive space in a reindeer study.
     • Explore foreshortening through multiple exercises.

This course is perfect for artists looking to enhance their drawing skills, improve their visual perception, and expand their creative potential. Learn to confidently draw shapes and bring your artistic visions to life!