Positive and Negative Drawing (Figure / Ground Drawings)

Below is the current still life in the studio that you will start drawing this Wednesday.
What you "see" is he color version and you need to be able to interpret this color version into areas of black and white creating spatial qualities in your drawing.

It becomes a layer of black and white silhouettes of shapes one on top of the other.
Perhaps choose a small area to start on first....but try to eventually capture the entire still life on a page of your newsprint/sketch paper.



The original still life that is set up in class consists of rectangles, spheres and cones. Everything is made up of these three elements.
Example One:




Example 2:









Starting the class with a few "negative drawings" is one way of introducing you to the space around object otherwise known as "the ground or negative space." The first art professor (Ezra Sellers) I had at Young Harris College in the mountains of North Georgia introduced our class to negative space drawings by asking us to take a pair of scissors and some black paper and cutting the space around the still life he had set up in class. We saw the space around the objects thus defining the object itself in silhouette. I still have those black and white paper collage drawings which I cherish because it was my first introduction to learning to draw. Once we found the negative shape then we were asked to place them together in a more formal way to create a larger more intricate composition.

Below are some examples of some negative space drawings (figure/ground drawings) from the web. Again, defining the space around objects and also creating interesting compositions.




Below I am including some amazingly beautiful drawings/prints by Ed Ruscha and Robert Longo. Ruscha has a long history of using graphite and intertwining the figure/ground relationships and building imagery. Examples of his work can be seen below:





The works by Robert Longo I'm including are usually positive images on a negative background. However, when you are looking at these drawings imagine he had drawn this in reverse. Meaning, what if his paper background were all BLACK and his drawing tools were white...then, indeed he would be creating negative space drawing. His drawings are seen below:







Drawings from last year's Summer Drawing Class: Food for Thought

Meet your Instructor: Stan Anderson

Stan Anderson

GRADUATE DIRECTOR
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, GRAPHIC DESIGN
stananderson@gsu.edu



In 1976, Stan Anderson received his B.V.A in painting and drawing from Georgia State University with an AFA degree from Young Harris College in 1973. He attended graduate school (GTA) at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he received his MFA in painting and drawing.

Anderson worked as gallery assistant at the Nancy Hoffman Gallery in New York City (1978) and the Contemporary Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio (1979). During this time, he worked with such notable artists as Robert Mapplethorpe, Philip Pearlstein, Joan Snyder, Christo and Wayne Thiebauld.

In 1980, Anderson was hired as one of the original 7 graphic designers for the groundbreaking 24-hour cable news network, CNN. He moved to NBC News in New York City in 1983 and worked on the Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, The Today Show and Sunrise with Connie Chung. After only a year at NBC, he was recruited by CNN to return to Atlanta to accept the position as Assistant Art Director for CNN2 (Headline News) where he stayed until 1987.

It was during his return tenure at CNN Headline News that Anderson also began teaching in a part time capacity at Georgia State University (Foundations.) In the fall of 1987, he joined Georgia State University fulltime as Assistant Professor in Graphic Design where he remained until 1991. During his time spent in academia from (1987-1991) he also worked as a concept sketch designer (freelance) for numerous prestigious theatrical studios in Los Angles, New York City and Atlanta.

His professional design work includes numerous theatrical, Broadway and television concept designs. Anderson served as concept sketch artist and designer for Twentieth Century Fox Films (1990-1992), New Line Cinema (1995), TNT (1992-1995), GEM (Grey Media and Entertainment NYC (1990-1994), Poetic Justice Studio, LA (1992-1993), Aspect Ration Studio, LA (1992). He has been responsible for designing over 50+ theatrical release posters, Broadway shows, network and cable television films including ABC Hallmark Hall of Fame. His collateral print, storyboards, and original concept sketches for such films including "Edward Scissorhands", " Home Alone", "The Deep", "For the Boys", "Batman: The Return", "Soapdish", "Memoirs of an Invisible Man", " This is my Life", " My Life in the Theatre", "Cool World", "Singles", "Kissinger and Nixon", "Meeting Venus", "Andersonville" and countless other cinematic visuals are a witness to his passion for design and creativity. Anderson has over 90+ theatrical designs to his credit.

In 1991 Anderson returned to CNN Headline News to become Director of Broadcast Design, where he remained until the relaunch of CNN Headline News in August 2001. This position was to oversee and manage a creative staff of 20 artists including internship programs, recruiting, annual budgets, and overseeing all on-air production and set design for new studio sets. He was also in charge of art direction & graphics for CNN Airport Network, CNN Newsource, McDTV, CheckOut Channel, Better Health Network, Cafe USA, University & College Network.

In 2001, Stan returned to teaching fulltime at Georgia State University as Associate Professor, where he has served numerous years as Coordinator of the Graphic Design department. Stan is currently the Director of Graduate Studies within the Ernest G. Welch School of Art & Design. He has received numerous media design awards from the Broadcast Designers Association (BDA) and an Emmy from The National Academy of Arts and Sciences (NATAS). He has also served on the Awards Committee and Education Committee for the BDA/Promax as well as being invited to serve as a judge for numerous Blue Ribbon Committees for the National Academy of Arts & Sciences, Daytime Emmy awards.

Stan is the recent recipient of the 2011-2012 Outstanding Teaching Award given by the College of Arts & Sciences that celebrates outstanding teaching achievements in academia. Currently he is the only faculty member within the Welch School of Art & Design to receive this prestigious honor.

Anderson currently continues his design work with many notable national and international clients such as CNN, Lifetime Television, Miracle House Organization, Oxygen Network, MODA (Museum of Design Atlanta,) GSN (The Game Show Network,) Haggar, Inc., The House of Versace, NBC Universal, The Game Show Network, Noble EP, HLN (Headline News,) The N Network, and The Georgia Aquarium.

Anderson continues to maintain a painting studio that allows him to participate in numerous national and international art exhibitions and galleries. He is also an avid collector of pop art masters such as Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and other notable artist from the Pop Era.

Welcome to Summer Drawing ART1010

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ART 1010- Drawing I                                                                                                Summer 2013
An introduction to the techniques, materials, and principles of drawing.

3 Credit Hours / 552C Studio / CRN# 51594

Instructor: Stan Anderson, Associate Professor
Summer Semester 2013 (June10-July 29th)
MWF 12:30-4:30pm
Office: 362 (Office Hours by appointment)
Phone: 404-413-5234
Email: stananderson@gsu.edu
Blogsite for Course:

Objective:
Drawing is certainly the cornerstone for everything else to follow in your art career, regardless of whatever discipline you might be pursuing. Drawing I is designed to provide information about drawing techniques, the function of drawing, and all the concepts associated with drawing including how “to see” what you are drawing. Through drawing we express our ideas, create a visual language, a narrative, and use critical thinking skills in addition to our intuition and conceptual abilities. We will discuss the following basic drawing terms, exercising each for a full understanding: foreground, middle ground, background, contour line, chiaroscuro, content, subject matter, linear perspective, cropping, cross-hatching, eye/worm/bird’s eye view, figure/ground relationship, fixed viewpoint, form vs. shape, formal vs. conceptual, format and composition, highlight, horizon line, mass, negative shape, non-objective, picture plane, proportion, shade, space, tactility, value, and volume.

In-Class Work:
We will work primarily in black dry media such as charcoal, pencil, conte and mixed media on paper. No computers! The freedom you will earn as you get into more advanced classes is not as evident in Drawing I, as many of the drawings we will do are geared for a particular learning experience. Your focus, attitude and participation are critical to your success in this class. We will generally work on projects that can and should be completed within the designated class periods.

The Sketchbook:
Each Wednesday the entire class will have the chance to take a look at your sketchbook with the sketches you are doing outside of class. The work in the sketchbook should focus around what we are currently working on in class. For instance if we are working on Value Drawings in class that week then the sketchbooks should be about Value as well. Each student is required to complete 10+ sketch pages per week. The sketchbook will count 20% of your final grade. It is imperative to stay current with your sketchbook work and not get behind. The sketchbook is a designated place where students can feel free to experiment and create and grow during their own private time. Your sketchbook should be treated with respect as it has always been an integral part of any artist history in formulating their work. Historically, some of the best work that a student will do will be found in their sketchbooks. Honor your time and work that you put into those sketches. It will tell your story as an artist, struggle and success and all.

Your sketchbook drawings that you will be working on outside of class will follow along with what you are doing in class regarding the type of drawing. For instance, if we are working on VALUE drawings during the week then you should be doing VALUE drawings in your sketchbook as well. Practice does indeed make you a better artist.

The Class Absences:
Class is only 7 weeks in length so you cannot miss more than 3 class absences per student during the summer semester.
At the time of your 3rd absence, the Instructor will notify the student via email as well as verbally. Further absences from that time forward could result with the Instructor dropping your final semester average a complete letter grade for each absence or drop you from the course. Pay attention to the “WF” and “W” calendar dates as listed on the gsu.edu website.

Tardiness and Leaving Early:
Arrive on time and be set up and ready to start drawing at 12:45 each day. Tardiness will not be tolerated. A lot of information is given to the class at the very beginning of each class so don’t be late. Each student should be ready to start at the scheduled time for the course to begin. Habitual tardiness can also result in being dropped from the course but not before being notified via email. If a student misses or is late to any scheduled critique, the student will receive an “F” on the project. Do not be late to any critique. Period. “Late” means anytime after the critique has began.
These are very important days, in which you will get direct feedback, not only from me, but also from your fellow students.
Learn to take criticism without being defensive. Learn to talk about your work and others. “I like it” is not permitted without some type of reason why “you like it.” Drawing is not what you might expect it to be so be open to new ideas and ways of drawing. Experimentation is key.

The Photography and the Blogsite:
Throughout the summer course I will photographing the work you do in class and at critiques and will be posting those images on the blog so you can have copies of your work (drag to your own desktops) as well as demonstrating how your work looks once you are away from the studio. It’s amazing what a photograph on a website can do to a drawing that you worked on during the class period. It’s also a great way to access your work and to show others what you are doing in the drawing class. It creates great conversation and is also a record of your work. I might also post candid photos of you working on the drawings as well. If you or your work do not wish to be photographed please let me know and I will oblige without question. This blog is only used for academic purposes.

The Grading:
Your grade for the semester will be figured from the seven main portfolio assignments as well as the cumulative sketchbook grade. Although grading in art classes is somewhat subjective, you will be working with specific drawing concepts and your grade will be largely determined by your understanding and progress with each idea. The main portfolios are: Negative space, Value, Line, Texture, Color, Ink Wash and Combination Drawings.

*All students will submit a minimum of one drawing for each critique that should be done on a better quality paper (other than newsprint paper.) This teaches students to think in a more finished and competitive and archival manner with regards to their drawings. The critique drawings are seen as an example of the weeks worth of drawing and should be a more thoughtful and complete drawing…although experimentation is greatly encouraged.
If there are more than one drawing due at the critique the Instructor will let students know what is expected.

A=Significant work being completed; experimentation and outstanding work
B=Lots of effort being demonstrated by student
C= Average work, making the work but with little effort or inspiration
D=Below average (not meeting the requirements adequately)

Attendance, participation in critiques, and self-improvement will all contribute to your final grade.

Assignment One: Negative Space Critique Project 10%


Assignment Two: Value Critique Project 10%


Assignment Three: Line Critique Project 10%


Assignment Four: Texture Critique Project 10%


Assignment Five: Limited Color Critique Project 10%


Assignment Six: Combination/Ink Critique Project 10%


Class Participation/Critiques 10%


In Class Drawings: The Egg Drawing 5% and the Value Drawing 5%


Sketchbook Assignments: 20%

An important point of this class is that you become a more confident artist.
Talk is cheap and doing the work is usually hard and needs to be nurtured especially if you are creating a new way of seeing which is what all creativity has in common. Do the good work, become inspired by your own work while acknowledging the accomplishments of previous artist. At any time during the semester, feel free to email me with any questions or stop by my office for an update on grades, an individual critique, or anything else you might need. Only in cases of emergencies will I allow an assignment or portfolio turned in late. Please make every effort to let me know in advance of these situations. Drawing I is an experience-based studio class. You will learn from me and from your colleagues as you watch them draw. For this reason, it is very important to be in class. Please let me know what is going on regarding any necessary absences—email if you are sick, or have to go out of town or have an emergency of some kind. I am much more open to working with you if I know what is going on. Communicate with me as I am here to assist you in any way I can.

Withdrawal from Class:
Students desiring to withdraw from class must follow the procedure appropriate for the period of time in the semester. Official notification for withdrawal by a student must be made to the Office of the Registrar according to the guidelines listed in the current Schedule of Classes bulletin. During the published registration period for each semester, students can revise their schedule. After the last day to registrar for course credit students should withdraw from a class through the Tempo Web system. Failure to follow this procedure may result in the awarding of a grade of “WF” instead of a “W”. The necessary actions should be taken as soon as possible.
A student who withdraws after the midpoint of the semester is assigned a grade of “WF” except in those cases in which hardship will be determined by the Dean of Students office.


The Proposed Studio Schedule:

Assignment One: NEGATIVE & POSITIVE SPACE DRAWINGS:
Cones, Spheres, and Rectangles (1+ Drawings due @ Critique Monday June 17th)
Monday June 10th: Meet and Greet and go over materials and Show and tell/materials.
Drawing in the studio on Wednesday June 12th and Friday June 14th
Critique on Monday June 17th @ 1pm

Negative Space/Positive Space/Spatial Illusion/Figure Ground Relationships/Baseline/Horizon Line/Ground Plane
Negative space describes the space surrounding the positive forms. It is always relative to positive form and thus helps us see proportion and spatial relationships more accurately. In real life we are conditioned to search out positive shapes, but as we train ourselves to be more sensitive to the negative space as well as the positive forms, our drawing intuition will grow tremendously. As we progress, the notion of positive and negative space will be manipulated. We will be working in B/W dry media only.

Assignment Two: VALUE DRAWINGS:
Still Life in the Studio: Paper bags and Bed Drawings (2+ Drawings due @ Critique Wednesday June 26th)

(1 Paper Bag Drawing and 1 Bed Drawing.)
Drawing in the studio on Wednesday June 19th, Friday June 21st, and Monday June 24th
Critique on Wednesday June26th @ 1pm

Divisions of Light: light on dark, light on light, dark on light, and dark on dark.
Chiaroscuro/Planar/Wet and Dry media/Crosshatching/Rubbed and Erased/Pen and Ink Wash
Value has the most emotive and expressive potentiality of all the elements. Simply defined, it is the gradation from light to dark across a form, and is determined by both the lightness of the object and by its natural color, its local value, and the degree of light that strikes it, its conditional value. For our study of value, we will deconstruct the local and conditional values of an object to understand how light and colors affect the overall value changes. During our drawings, we will use the eraser just as boldly as we will use the charcoal. Planes will be formed by one value next to another. We will focus on volume and shape with much more internal structure than we did with negative shape. We will try to eliminate the use of line in these drawings, and focus more on the planar shifts. We will be working in B/W dry media only.


Assignment Three: LINE DRAWINGS
Still Life in the Studio: The Box &The Bottle (2+ Drawings due @ Critique Wednesday August 3^rd.)
Drawing in the studio on Friday June 28th and Monday August 1st
Critique on and Wednesday August 3rd @ 1pm

Contour/Blind Contour/Continuous Line/Rhythmic Line/Outline/Gesture/Cross Contour/Expressive Line/ Calligraphic Line/Implied Line/ Line is the most elemental and purest form of drawing. It is the element most associated with the graphic arts and is valued both for its simple reductive power and for its expansive potentiality for embellishment. Of all the elements it is the most adaptable. It can be an economical indicator of space and it is a key element in establishing the relationship between the surface of the paper and the emerging or dissolving images on it. We will separate the study of line into three parts: contour, cross- contour and gesture. Contour lines involve an inspection of the parts as the make up the whole. Contour, unlike outline, is spatially descriptive. It is plastic, emphasizing the three dimensionality of a form. The process of contour drawing involves a very slow and accurate observation of the subject. Cross- contour describes an object’s horizontal contours rather than vertical edges. Gesture drawing can be thought of as a continuous experience of seeing. The hand duplicates the motion of the eye making a movement that quickly defines the characteristics of the subject: placement, shape, proportion, relationship between the pars, a definition of planes and volumes as well as their arrangements space.

*****UNIVERSITY HOLIDAY: MIDTERM POINT IS JULY 1^ST.

I will not have class on Friday July 5^th.

Assignment Four: TEXTURE DRAWINGS
Still Life in the Studio and in Nature (1+ Drawings due @ Critique Friday 12th)
Drawing in the studio on Monday July 08^th, Wednesday July 10^th.
Critique on Friday July 12th @ 1pm

Texture in its most literal meaning refers strictly to the sense of touch. For the artist, however, the visual appearance of a work, its surface quality, or texture, is most important. While this type of texture may have only a subtle tactile quality, it has a visual quality that contributes to the textual character of work. Even though both representational (realistic) and nonrepresentational (abstract) drawings have textual character, we will focus our attention towards nonrepresentational works and draw more from our imaginations and begin to explore abstraction.


Assignment Five: LIMITED COLOR DRAWINGS (Dry and Wet)
Combination Negative Space, Value, Texture and Line in Drawing, etc.

(2+ Drawings due Friday July 19^th.)
Still Life in the Studio: Fruits, Veggies, Flowers, Baskets, Bottles, Plants, Reflective surfaces/Patterns
Drawing in the studio on Monday July 15th and Wednesday July17th
Critique on Friday July 19th @ 1pm

By using the techniques and experiences from the previous weeks in class, we will begin to employ how these techniques work successfully and creatively together to form drawings that are rich in form and composition with emphasis on spatial qualities that appear in both the 3D and 2D environment. You will discover what color drawing can encompass. It’s strengths to your subject. You will discover just how all the black and white drawings you’ve created up to this point will assist you in using selected color. Wet media may be used along with dry at this point.

Week Six: The Final Drawing: Mixed Media (Everything you’ve learned)
Camping: The Great Outdoors Indoors

A Formal Still life as Subject (1+ Drawings due @ Critique Friday July 26^th.)
Drawing in the Studio on Monday July 22^nd, Wednesday July 24th
Final Critique on Friday July26th @ 1pm


ART1010: Required Drawing I Materials:
(Students usually get a 10% discount at just about any Art Supply Store. Sam Flax Art Store has always honored that and can actually save you some cash. You can also find a variety of art supplies at Walmart, Office Depot, Sam Flax, Binders, Utrecht, Dick Blick, Hobby Lobby, GSU Bookstore, etc.)

I have already bought you the 18” x 24” Newsprint Paper and the Sketch Paper you’ll need in class.
I have also bought you a Pink Pearl Eraser and several sticks of charcoal to get started with. These supplies were bought with your Lab Fee money.

Sketchbooks:
Bound Black Classic “Cachet” Sketchbook that is 8.5” x 11”(11.74)
*Please only use graphite and pencil and dry brush/ink wash in this book.
No Charcoal unless you spray it so it won’t smear.

Graphite Pencils:
Ebony Black Graphite Pencil (several) (.64 each)
Woodless Black Graphite Pencil (several) ($1.97 each)
#2 Graphite Pencil like the one’s you use in school (several) soft graphite
Carpenters Pencil (large flat graphite pencil)

Small Box of Prismacolor Pencils (all colors)
China Marker Pencil (Black and White) (.77 each)
Crayola Small Crayon Box (Walmart or Dollar Store)

Conte:
Black conte crayons (2pack for $3.62)
White conte crayons

Pastels:
Nu Pastels (Black and White) ($1.09 each)

Charcoal Pencils and Sticks:
Black Charcoal sticks
Black Charcoal cubes
Black Charcoal vine
Black Alphacolor 12 Pak CharKole ($8.95)
White Generals Charcoal 4 Pak ($3.49) or $1.15 each

Erasers:
Art Gum (.59 each)
Magic Rub (.75 each)
Jumbo White Pencil Eraser ($2.00)
Pink Pearl

Ink & Brushes:
Black India ink
Brushes (variety—2 to 3 different widths (soft brushes) (Value pack of 6=$11.99)

Black conte crayons (2pack for $ 3.62)
White conte crayons (2pack for $3.62)

Paper:
Single Sheets/ Strathmore Drawing Paper
Fabriano, Strathmore, Arches, cold press/hot press, etc.
Charcoal Paper in various colors
Printmaking cotton paper

Cotton Tshirt/Rag ( for blending with charcoal/graphite)
Masking/Drafting tape (Small roll)
Shoe box or some type of container to carry drawing tools/ materials
Cardboard Portfolio (18x24 or larger for care of your drawings)
Drawing board to use in class (minimum size18 x 24)

Books that Inspire: (both of these books I have read numerous times and they still inspire me)
The Artist Way, Julia Cameron
The Art Spirit, Robert Henri

Artist that Should Inspire You:
Leonardo DaVinci
Michaelangelo Kathe Kolowitz Picasso Vija Clemins
George Serat Chuck Close Andy Warhol Honore Daumier
David Hockney Matisse Rotko Marsden Hartley
Phillip Pearlstein George Bellows Robert Rauschenberg Giacometti
Bonnard Cezanne John Singer Sargent Charles Sheeler