“WHAT are you doing?!”
I’d frequently get that perplexed question mixed with a look of horror, whenever I’d eat a candy bar in front of my friends.
No, not because I’d shove the whole thing in my mouth in one go (although that’d be a feat worthy of admiration, too), but because I’d dissect the thing painstakingly, layer by layer.
Take a Twix for example.
First I’d gnaw off the top chocolate coating, then the caramel layer, and last I’d eat the cookie. But Twix is really for beginners. My favorite challenge was a Knoppers. A finely layered wafer sandwich filled with nougat and milk creme. If you could eat that layer by layer, you my friend, were playing in the candy bar dissection big leagues.
Maybe this quirk was an early sign that the immense satisfaction I received from archeologically stripping down a candy bar, would later be matched by an equal sense of accomplishment for breaking down various creative processes.
And good for you that that’s how it shook out because understanding the phases of different creative processes has allowed me to become a better and more effective teacher.
You’ll see what I mean when you watch this week’s video, in which you’ll get the full-length explanation of The 3 Phases Of The Drawing Process.
You can watch the following step by step drawing demonstration, in which I’ll explain, in depth, what each phase entails.
Being aware of these phases will help you stay out of overwhelm and mentally organized so you won’t lose heart half-way through your drawings in the future anymore (not saying that you currently are, but if you do, this’ll help).
This is what you’ll learn:
- Phase 1 is the search and placement phase
- Phase 2 is the construction and execution phase
- Phase 3 focuses the viewer’s attention by placing finishing touches in all the right places
You’ll hear me mention easy tricks to use to get better results as well as valuable advice on what to avoid.
I even made a free visual reminder card for your pencil case, which you can print out. Hopefully it’ll help you stay organized the next time you sit down to draw.
And in case you’re wondering if I still do this, the answer is no (ok, fine, rarely), because once you master the layers you find new joys in the synthesized version… and the same is true for candy bars.