250 Box Challenge

10:20 PM, Tuesday May 4th 2021

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this challenge taught me how to draw lines and also draw boxes in a smart way and not in a stupid way i think?????

i really improved allot in this challenge though so thats pretty cool

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4:13 PM, Tuesday May 11th 2021

Hi Cincat, somehow you managed to crack me up with just the title of your boxes. I'm gonna go over your submission now!

Before we move on to the actual challenge I wanted to point out that you need to take better pictures in future submissions. I know they are around 50 pages for this challenge, though remember that is better that you take your time preparing the submission so you make it easier for the one reviewing to spot out your mistakes, I use an app on my phone called Tiny scanner, but see if that suits you. I usually don't point out specific mistakes, but just see this one, like I know it's just one on this state but like come on.

Anyway, let's get to the fun stuff; So overall I can clearly see an improvement on this boxes, they get bigger, less messy and you start to hit more convergences. However, there are still some issues that you need to work so you can go on the right path.

First and most important, line quality- Now, there is a lot of improvement on this dimension, your lines got way more confident since the beginning, though there is still some work to do. Now, the thing that is so important about focusing on making confident marks instead of wobbly accurate ones is that all we try to do in this course revolves in creating 3d, solid and believable forms, where that is constructions, sausages (you heard me right, you'll see what I mean next lesson) and also boxes. Now, in order for this forms to be solid, we need to strive for confidence on our lines since they are the ones that compose the overall constructions, to make a confident looking box, you need confident looking lines. So, for now on I will advice you start warming up with some super imposed and ghosted lines so you can practice your ghosting, and also always ghost your lines, take your time and don't try to rush through this exercises.

Another thing related with lines is your line weight. I'm glad that you started applying it at one point of the challenge, is better that when people just don't include it at all, though remember that it is not just an aesthetic choice from this course, it's more a tool- When it comes to line weight, it's job it's to clarify, through a subtle super imposed line, how our forms sit in 3d space. By outlining the silhouette of this boxes, you are showing the viewer how that box is facing them! You are achieving the same with hatching lines, which you are using, but you need to also take your time ghosting them and making them look confident. You can see all this explained on the challenge page

While your line quality is not ideal, I can see that your convergence got pretty good by the end of the challenge. I'm seeing that you are struggling a little with the back corner, check this method of construction next time you warm up with some boxes, it will give you a new perspective (pun %100 intended and prepared for the occasion).

On a similar note, remember that in order to guess better how a line extends into it's vanishing point, you should be taking into account howall the lines on that set extend. If you only compare your lines to one of them, there will not be working together, you should be checking the relations between all of them before adding one extra line. Now, I know how confusing this sounds, so check this diagram for time to time and it will eventually click. However, I'm seeing hints here and there that you may be realizing this on your own, so I hope this diagram helps!

Now, I was close on calling some revisions mainly because of your line quality, but you showed some good control over your boxes. So, I'm going to mark this challenge as completed, but I want you to understand that you have to start ghosting your lines and focus on making them confident, for this try to warm up as I recommended you. Keep it up.

Next Steps:

Feel free to move on to lesson 2.

This community member feels the lesson should be marked as complete. In order for the student to receive their completion badge, this critique will need 2 agreements from other members of the community.
5:01 PM, Wednesday May 12th 2021

Hi, thanks for being really in-depth with your critique. It really means allot because I was concerned on whether I was doing well or not. I'll certainly work hard to try and improve my line quality, and I'll work on the problems my boxes have like the back corner and them not working together as well. I'll do allot of line exercises as well to make my stuff better so thanks for critiquing me!

5:31 PM, Wednesday May 12th 2021

Hi! I'm glad you found my critique useful, remember to give yourself time to draw for fun!

Good luck.

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Sakura Pigma Microns

A lot of my students use these. The last time I used them was when I was in high school, and at the time I felt that they dried out pretty quickly, though I may have simply been mishandling them. As with all pens, make sure you're capping them when they're not in use, and try not to apply too much pressure. You really only need to be touching the page, not mashing your pen into it.

In terms of line weight, the sizes are pretty weird. 08 corresponds to 0.5mm, which is what I recommend for the drawabox lessons, whereas 05 corresponds to 0.45mm, which is pretty close and can also be used.

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