Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Jeff Fuchs
Lacey, I use those measuring techniques only when I can't resolve the measurements by eye. If you read Tony Ryder's book, the text gives a very convincing argument for measuring by eye alone. To be honest, I can't remember how he explained it, and I don't have the book handy, but I remember that he made a very good case for trusting (and training) your eye. My work improved as a result of studying his book.
|
Jeff, this is the way I work from life - I have to do a couple of plumb lines, but what I basically do is make a mark on the canvas, compare it with the figure, and if looks wrong to me I fix it. If you quickly move your eye back and forth from subject to canvas you can see a "jump" - the "jump" is your mistake on the canvas and that's what you fix.
I'm convinced that it is panic and fear that keep artists from working this way and if one can quell that panic one can go a long way toward being a better artist. I also think that overreliance on photos saps the confidence of artists - and that is a huge danger in using photos all the time. We have to let our eye/mind/hand measure without judgment of our abilties.
It takes lots of practice, but it's a eye/hand/brain skill, like shooting hoops, maybe. My head would explode if I had to use a ruler or grid working from life. Painting from photos, though, is a whole other story.