Lesson 6: Applying Construction to Everyday Objects

12:37 PM, Saturday November 20th 2021

drawabox - lesson 6 - Google Photos

0: https://photos.app.goo.gl/zadEWckKwSoBXy97A

Hello,

I've struggled quite a bit with the razor so I decided to try once more. I hope it's ok to have 2 pages of the same subject.

I also realized when drawing the coffee machine that I was struggling with cylindrical constructions so I dedicated 2 pages to those afterward.

Thank you for reviewing my submissions !

1 users agree
10:44 PM, Monday November 22nd 2021

Starting with your form intersections, these are coming along quite well. You're constructing your forms such that they feel solid and consistent with one another within the same space, and the intersections themselves suggest that your understanding of 3D space is developing quite well. Do be sure to keep working on your freehand ellipses however - continued use of the ghosting method, and being sure to engage your whole arm from the shoulder will continue to help tighten them up, especially with the larger ones, which are naturally much more difficult to pull off. All in all you're moving in the right direction with them, but it's entirely normal for them to continue to need more practice than our other markmaking, even as we move beyond this course.

Continuing onto your object constructions, as a whole you've done a great job. There are things that are a little wonky at times, and we'll get into that, but as a whole you're demonstrating a clear, step-by-step thought process as you build up each of these constructions which prioritizes patience, care, and the relationships between every phase.

For example, if we take a look at this one, the primary issue comes from the fact that the original bounding box you set down as your base has its top/bottom faces somewhat skewed relative to one another, like the box itself has been twisted a little. Despite this definite flaw, you continued trucking forward, maintaining tight and specific relationships between each constructional step, and relying on as much subdivision as was needed to ensure that every new addition was positioned in as precise a manner as you could manage. So sure - in the end, the drawing came out similarly "twisted" or "wonky" as that bounding box made inevitable, but you still held to the core principles of construction and got a lot out of the exercise as a result. Mistakes happen - but continuing to hold to those principles is how we learn, not by doing everything perfectly the first time.

This continues to hold true throughout many of your constructions, and I think you'll find that if you apply the box challenge's line extensions to your initial bounding boxes for most of these constructions, you'll find that the convergences within each given set of parallel lines are often off. Just be sure to incorporate the freely rotated boxes from the box challenge (along with the line extensions) into your regular warmup routine, and maybe try playing with some larger boxes that occupy the whole page, as those appear to be an area of particular difficulty.

Continuing onward, as you get into your more cylinder-focused constructions - something that is understandably challenging - you generally do a pretty great job. Freehanding those larger ellipses is, as I noticed previously, quite difficult (which is why for these last lessons/challenges of the course we encourage students to use ellipse guides if they are able to, and I definitely recommend you pick up at least a master ellipse template (like those described here) for the wheel challenge), but you've handled them pretty well all things considered. There is some unevenness at times, especially when they get larger (so keep focusing on prioritizing a confident, smooth execution, even if it undermines your accuracy), but since these constructions are generally more than just the ellipses themselves, they still come out feeling fairly solid.

As a whole, I'm very pleased with your work here. There's certainly room for improvement, but what matters most is the sheer depth of patience and care you've exhibited, especially in constructions like this one. You're showing a willingness to give the construction as much time as it requires of you - and that's something that will be especially important when you hit the end of the course with Lesson 7, where students often find their drawings taking several hours each - with some students spending upwards of 10 hours on one or two.

So! I'll go ahead and mark this lesson as complete. Keep up the good work.

Next Steps:

Feel free to move onto the 25 wheel challenge, which is a prerequisite for lesson 7.

This critique marks this lesson as complete.
10:56 PM, Monday November 22nd 2021

Thank you very much for your in depth review.

I do take note in particular of this sentence which I think is really important "Mistakes happen - but continuing to hold to those principles is how we learn, not by doing everything perfectly the first time."

I'll keep practicing on my boxes and ellipses.

Cheers!

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