I have tried to explain the elementary fundamentals of drawing like shapes, forms, shading, perspective drawing etc. This training material was prepared for my team consisting primarily of Graphic Designers with the objective that they'd start approaching their work like artists. There are plenty of exercises at the end of each section as well... hope you enjoy it!

1. Fundamentals of
Drawing
- Kabir Malkani
*
This presentation has been compiled from references available from the Internet. This is meant purely
for educational purposes and the presenter does not claim to hold any ownership whatsoever; of the
content (textual or graphical) included in this presentation. The ownership and copyrights of the following
content belong to the respective brands /agencies / artists showcased in this presentation.

2. Topics covered…
O Introduction
O Origin of Basic Drawing Materials
O Gripping the Pencil
O Basic Shapes & Forms
O Shading
O Perspective Drawing
O Drawing the Human Face

3. Introduction

4. Introduction
O
O
An artist who practices or works in drawing
may be called a draftsman or
draughtsman.
O
Raphael, study for what
became the Alba Madonna,
with other sketches
Drawing is a form of visual art that
makes use of any number of drawing
instruments to mark a two-dimensional
medium.
The medium has been a popular and
fundamental means of public expression
throughout human history. It is one of the
simplest and most efficient means of
communicating visual ideas.

5. Introduction
O
O
André Masson
Ink on paper
Instruments used for drawing
include graphite pencils, pen and
ink, inked brushes, wax color
pencils, Crayons, Charcoal, Chalk, P
astels, Markers, styluses and various
metals (such as silverpoint).
Other materials used for drawing
include various kinds of
erasers, pencil
sharpeners, geometric apparatus
such as rulers, protractors, compass
etc.
O
The most common surfaces for
drawing is paper, although other
surface materials such as
cardboard, plastic, leather, canvas, a
nd board, may be used. Temporary
drawings may be made on a
blackboard or whiteboard or indeed
almost anything.
Pencil portrait by
Ingres

6. Origin of Basic Drawing
Materials

7. Origin of Basic Drawing Materials
Paper
O
O
O
Hemp wrapping
paper, China, circa 100BC.
O
Stack of modern day copy paper
The precursor to modern paper dates back to
2nd century BC in China.
From China, the paper making process spread
to the Middle East, then to medieval Europe
in the 13th century, where the first waterpowered paper mills were built.
In 1844, Canadian inventor Charles Fenerty
and German F.G. Keller independently
developed processes for pulping wood fibers
significantly lowering the cost
Modern day paper is a thin material produced
by pressing together moist fibers, typically
cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or
grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets.

8. Origin of Basic Drawing Materials
Pencil
Ancient Roman Stylus
First mass-produced pencils in 1662 by
Faber-Castel
Modern day HB graphite pencils
Origination of the word “Pencil”
O
from French: “pincel”, which means ―a small
paintbrush‖
O
From Latin: “penicillus” a "little tail―
Evolution
O
Modern day pencils evolved from an ancient Roman writing
instrument made of lead called a stylus. Lead poisoning
from pencils was not uncommon
Discovery of Graphite
O
Some time before 1565, an enormous deposit of graphite
was discovered Cumbria, England. The locals found that it
was very useful for marking sheep and thought it was some
form of Lead. Graphite from a pencil stick is not poisonous.
Grading and classification
Pencils are usually graded on the European System using a
continuum from "H" (for hardness) to "B" (for blackness), as well
as "F", a letter arbitrarily chosen to indicate midway between HB
and H.
The standard writing pencil is graded HB.

9. Origin of Basic Drawing Materials
Eraser
O
O
O
An old-fashioned gum eraser
O
Faber Castell Vinyl Erasers
An eraser is an article of stationery that is used for
removing pencil markings.
Typical erasers are made from synthetic
rubber, but more expensive or specialized erasers
are vinyl, plastic, or gum-like materials.
Before rubber erasers, tablets of rubber or wax
were used to erase lead or charcoal marks
from paper. Bits of rough stone such as
sandstone or pumice were used to remove small
errors from parchment or papyrus documents
written in ink. Crustless bread was used as an
eraser in the past.
In 1770, Edward Nairne, an English engineer, is
credited with developing the first widely-marketed
rubber eraser for an inventions competition. He
sold natural rubber erasers for the high price of
three shillings per half-inch cube.

10. Gripping the Pencil

11. Gripping the Pencil
Scribe Grip
O The ―scribe’s grip‖ that
feels natural for most
people is surely the worst
grip for drawing: writing
and drawing are
fundamentally different
activities.
O Writing is done with minute
motions of the hand and
fingers, with the elbow
fixed
O Drawing is done with
broad movement of the
whole arm, from hand to
shoulder-blade

12. Gripping the Pencil
Pen Grip
O Hold the pencil like you
would hold the writing
pen, but much further
from the tip
O This grip is good for
detailing, and for smallsize sketching
O It is also the grip Wacom
tablets are designed for

13. Gripping the Pencil
Violin bow grip
O Hold the pencil with the thumb
against all four fingers. This
removes most control from the
fingers, and emphasizes the
wrist and especially the arm at
elbow and shoulder.
O This grip is the preferable basic
drawing grip.
O it produces flowing, economical
sweeping line and is ideal for
rough sketching, hatching and
tonal work with the side of lead.

14. Gripping the Pencil
Gesture grips and variations
O Between the ―pen‖ and the ―violin bow‖, there is any number of
intermediate grips, suitable mostly for gesture drawing with varying
paper size and motion range.
O Usually, the smaller the page or detail, the closer the grip will be to
the ―pen‖.

15. Gripping the Pencil
Brush Grip
O Sometimes a brush grip is used for detail work — it is the pencil
held like a brush, in a pen grip with index finger resting along the
shaft.
O It offers more motion freedom than the pen grip and works with or
without elbow support, but when used with a pencil it also takes
away some fine control.
O It is fairly good for holding the Wacom stylus, too.

16. Basic Shapes & Forms

17. Basic Shapes & Forms
Exercise #1: Drawing Straight Lines
O Draw each line with a single motion. You'll discover the
best angle at which you can draw a straight line.
Then, all you have to do is turn the paper to execute a
horizontal, a vertical, or diagonal line.

18. Basic Shapes & Forms

19. Basic Shapes & Forms
Exercise #2
O List down a few
objects that you see in
the real world that
follow these structure
types

20. Basic Shapes & Forms
Contour Lines
O
Defines the edges and surface
ridges of an object.
O A contour line also creates a
boundary separating one area
from another.
A contour drawing by Egon Schiele.

21. Shading

22. Shading
Definition
O
The use of light and dark
values to give the illusion
of form and depth

23. Shading - Terms
O
O
O
O
O
Highlights: small areas of
white used to show the very
brightest spots of an object
Transitional Light /
Midtones: used to show the
actual color of the object
Core of the Shadow:
Represents the shadowed
side of an object
Cast Shadow: the shadow
where the object meets the
surface (the darkest tone)
Reflected light – is a faint
rim of light reflected back
onto an object from the
surfaces surrounding the
object.

24. Shading - Techniques
Hatching
Crosshatching
Stippling
Scribbling
Blending

25. Shading - Techniques
Hatching is a series of straight or curved
lines (called a set), drawn beside one
another to give the illusion of a value.
Crosshatching is a shading technique
in which one set of lines crosses over
(overlaps) another set.
The act of Stippling involves covering
an area with dots. It is a wildly timeconsuming technique, in which an image
is drawn dot...by dot...by dot. Pointillism
in art is based on this technique.

26. Shading - Techniques
Scribbling has many different names
and techniques such as
Scumbling, Circling & Squirkling.
Basically, this technique involves
shading using random strokes or
circlular strokes.
Blending, also known as Smooth
Shading is where you use your finger or
some smudge tool such as a piece of
cloth or cotton swab and smear the
shading for a more uniform shade. If
controlled correctly this can give a
smooth polished look.

27. Shading - Techniques
Hatching
Crosshatching
Stippling

28. Shading - Techniques
Scribbling
Blending

29. Shading - Techniques
Exercise #3
O
Identify the different shading techniques used in the
above diagram

30. Perspective Drawing

31. Perspective Drawing
Perspective Drawing is
a technique used to
represent threedimensional images on
a two-dimensional
picture plane.

32. Perspective Drawing - Terms
SUBJECT
refers to the object or scene that
we are dealing with in the
composition of our drawing or
painting. It can be one item or
many things, such as a complex
scene from nature.

33. Perspective Drawing - Terms
Low Elevation of View
HORIZON LINE
The horizon is represented by
the point at which the sea and
sky, or flat land and sky, meet.
Normal Elevation of View
High Elevation of View
The true horizon line is always at
the “Eye Level” and will change
as you change the elevation of
view.

34. Perspective Drawing - Terms
VIEWING POINT
Every object appears different
when viewed from various
angles.
The viewing point can be seen as
a straight line from our eye to the
horizon line. If we move to the
right/left OR up/down, we are
changing the viewing point and
there will be major changes in
the drawing.

35. Perspective Drawing - Terms
THE PICTURE PLANE
The picture plane (PP) is the plane that is used to record the 'picture' or 'drawing'
that the eye sees. It is easiest to think of the picture plane as being a sheet of
glass, and the observer having a marking pen that can trace onto the glass
exactly what their eye sees.

36. Perspective Drawing - Terms
VANISHING POINT
is that spot on the horizon line to which the receding parallel lines diminish. As
things get further away, from us, they seems smaller and closer together. When
they get far enough away, distances become ever tinier and so form a single
point.

37. Perspective Drawing - Terms
VANISHING POINT
Look at a long table from one
end and notice that the far end
appears to be smaller than the
near end. We know that the ends
of the table are the same
width, but due to perspective, we
notice the viewing difference.
This is the Illusion of Depth.

38. Perspective Drawing - Terms
VANISHING POINT
If we draw imaginary lines along the sides of the table and extend them to meet each other , they
will meet at a point. The meeting point where the two lines meet is a Vanishing point. And the
parallel line which passes through the vanishing point is Horizon Line. Lines that are parallel to the
table side lines will also meet at the same vanishing point on the horizon line. All objects in the
picture will also seem to grow smaller as they move into the picture, toward the horizon line. So,
the horizon line plays a number of important role in the rules of perspective.

39. Perspective Drawing - Types
There are three types of
perspective that we use most.
one-point, two-point and threepoint perspective.
Let’s learn how to draw these…

40. One-Point Perspective
Steps
Draw a Horizon Line
2. Mark a point on that
line… this will be the
Vanishing Point
1.

41. One-Point Perspective
Steps
3.
Draw a neat rectangle
NOTE: Ensure the
vertical edges are
perpendicular and
horizontal edges are
parallel with the
Horizon Line

42. One-Point Perspective
Steps
4.
Draw 4 lines
originating from each
of the corners of the
rectangle and
converging at the
Vanishing Point. These
are also called
Vanishing Lines

43. One-Point Perspective
Steps
5.
Draw another
rectangle behind the
existing one using the
Vanishing Lines as
coordinates for it’s
corners.
NOTE: Ensure the
vertical edges are
perpendicular and
horizontal edges are
parallel to the edge of
the paper

44. One-Point Perspective
Steps
6.
Now you can delete
the Vanishing Lines.
NOTE: If you want to
draw a see-through
box, you can choose
not to erase the lines
inside the box.

45. One-Point Perspective
Exercise #4
O
Try drawing these boxes in
one-point perspective
following the steps
mentioned above

46. One-Point Perspective Examples

47. One-Point Perspective Examples

48. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
Draw a Horizon Line
2. Mark two points on
that line… these will
be the Vanishing
Points
1.

49. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
3.
Now, draw a vertical
line that will be the
front corner edge of
your box
NOTE: Ensure this line
is not too close to the
Horizon Line and that
its perpendicular to it

50. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
4.
Now, draw the first
Vanishing Lines
starting from the two
ends of the line and
diminishing at the two
Vanishing Points

51. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
5.
Now complete the
visible sides of the box
by drawing the corner
edges (shown here
with red lines).
Note: Make sure these
lines are perpendicular
to the Horizon Line

52. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
6.
Now draw two sets of
Vanishing Lines from
the ends of the corner
edges you drew in the
last step.
Note: The Vanishing
Lines from the left
corner edge of the box
should connect to the
Vanishing Point on the
Right & those from the
Right corner edge
should connect to the
Vanishing Point on the
Left.

53. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
7.
Now you simply have to
draw a vertical line from
the where the lower two
vanishing lines
intersect, to the
intersection of the upper
two lines (shown as a red
line in this example).

54. Two-Point Perspective
Steps
6.
Now you can delete
the Vanishing Lines.
NOTE: If you want to
draw a see-through
box, you can choose
not to erase the lines
inside the box.

55. One-Point Perspective
Exercise #5
O
Try drawing this box in
two-point perspective
following the steps
mentioned above

56. Two-Point Perspective Examples

57. Two-Point Perspective Examples

58. Three-Point Perspective
Steps
Draw a Horizon Line
closer to the bottom of
your page
2. Mark two Vanishing
Points on that line…
and add the third one
above the line closer
to the top of the page
3. Draw a perpendicular
line from the 3rd VP to
the Horizon Line
1.

59. Three-Point Perspective
Steps
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Now, draw a line
beginning from the Left VP
intersecting the
perpendicular line at about
2/3rds its height
From this intersection
draw another line to the
Right VP
Draw another line again
beginning from the Left VP
intersecting the
perpendicular line at about
1/3rds its height
From this intersection
draw another line to the
Right VP
Now, draw two lines
starting from the 3rd VP on
either side of the
perpendicular line

60. Three-Point Perspective
Steps
9.
Draw a line from the lower
back corner to the left
vanishing point. And draw
one from the lower left
corner to the right
vanishing point.

61. Three-Point Perspective
Steps
10. If you want to show a see-
through box… draw the 3
green lines as shown in
the diagram

62. Three-Point Perspective
Steps
10. Now erase the Vanishing
Lines

63. Three-Point Perspective Examples

64. Three-Point Perspective Examples

65. Drawing the Human Face

66. Drawing the Human Face
1.
2.
3.
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/
Draw a circle
Lightly draw a vertical
line splitting it in half
Extend this line
downwards – the length
being roughly about the
radius of the circle (Take
note of the
measurements shown)

67. Drawing the Human Face
4.
5.
Draw the outline of the
face as shown
Lightly mark the vertical
half line. This is where
the eyes should be
drawn.
Tip: The shape of the
face can be fine-tuned
later. Don’t aim for
perfection at this stage.
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/

68. Drawing the Human Face
6.
7.
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/
Lightly draw the
eyebrow line halfway
between the eye line
and the center of the
circle
Similarly mark the
guidelines for key
features such as hair &
the nose

69. Drawing the Human Face
8.
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/
Divide the eye line into
5 equal parts. The 2nd &
the 4th division
demarcates the location
of the eyes

70. Drawing the Human Face
Divide the bottom third
of the face into 3 equal
parts – these will mark
the opening of the
mouth & the top of the
chin
10. The middle third of the
face decides the
position of the ears
9.
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/

71. Drawing the Human Face
11. Erase the guidelines
12. Detail out the key
features
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/

72. Drawing the Human Face
Tips:
1. You must be able to
draw realistically before
stylizing
2. Understanding of
Anatomy is the key to
drawing decently
3. Look up the web,
observe film actors &
actresses or casually
observe people around
you to understand the
basic differences in
features such as eyes,
lips, noses, hair & ears
4. Practice this exercise
over and over again
Courtesy soas95
http://soas95.deviantart.com/

73. Assignment
Choose from projects listed below:
O Draw the inside of a room using One-Point
Perspective
O Draw a popular Indian monument using TwoPoint Perspective OR
O Draw the side profile of the face you have just
drawn during the course of this training. (Feel
free to look up the web for references)
* Final Date for submitting this assignment is the
21st of Jan 2014