Sunday, July 31, 2011

Croquis


Croquis drawing is quick and sketchy drawing of a live model. Croquis drawings are usually made in a few minutes, after which the model changes pose and another croquis is drawn.
The short duration of the pose benefits the model because they don't need to keep their poses for a long period. This also benefits the artists because it helps them concentrate on the essential elements of the pose. With this type of drawing and posing, an artist simply does not have time to draw all the details, so they learn to ignore them and concentrate instead on the important elements…
The word croquis comes from French and means simply "sketch".
Perhaps you are familiar with this explanation of the word croquis , not only because it comes from Wikipedia, but also because you already practice this kind of drawing (or have been practicing it in the past) and therefore know the meaning and the benefits of it.  Making croquis is a very important way of developing and maintaining your drawing skills.
I took it very seriously several years ago when I joined a sketching club. We meet every Monday evening to do the quick sketches of a live model. This practice has helped me to regain my drawing skills, which, by the way, have declined dramatically due to a shock that I have experienced twenty years ago. Years later I found the cure to this particular problem  in the mentioned sketching club. 
The croquis and sketches from below were done during the Monday evening drawing sessions. Some of them were done in five to seven  minutes,  and some of them in ten to fifteen minutes.













8 comments:

  1. Thanks, Larry! We are having the summer stop right now, and we’ll go on with sketching in October. Therefore I always get a feeling that my drawing skills decline a bit during the summer months. I need to practice more and look forward to make some more croquis.

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  2. Beautiful sketches. Somebody once told me that it's impossible to learn to do quick drawings and that it's more a matter of talent. Do you agree with that opinion?

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  3. Hey Petar, have you heard of Ted Seth Jacob's book 'The Dictionary of Human Form'? (http://thedictionaryofhumanform.com/) I have found it to be a very valuable resource when I'm not able to do life drawing.

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  4. Hi Eldar,

    As always, the talent is a very important thing, but without much practice there can be no significant progression. Most of the knowledge and skill can be gained through practice, but there are a few things that cannot be learned. After a certain point, the talent starts to count and starts to make the difference. As Picasso ones said; there are many masters in the world of art, but just a few great ones. This is a matter of talent, I am convinced.

    Hi Stephen,

    No, I have never heard of that book before. Thanks!
    But, I think that no book, however good, can replace the life drawing. When there are no models around, there is a mirror – one can always do the studies of his own body, or the parts of it (hands, feet, head, etc.)

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  5. mi ricordano i tempi della scuola.beautiful!!

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  6. Leuke post, Petar! In Rotterdam hebben we ook zo'n modeltekenclubje van tekenaars... inderdaad heel leerzaam!

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