Getting a 9 (A**) in Fine Art - Part 1/5: Observational Drawings

Observational drawings are so important, I really think there isn’t enough emphasis placed on them. Make sure you spend a lot of time on them and only submit drawings that you are 100% happy with.

This is because observational drawings are the first thing the examiner sees (that require artistic skill) when they open your sketchbook. It’s like giving them a first impression of what you can accomplish.

 

Materials

Try to do drawings of at least 3 different materials - even if you don’t end up using all of these materials, it shows that you have a diverse palette in art.

I would recommend at least one of each below:

  1. Pencil drawing

  2. Mixed media

  3. Painting

But since drawings are graded, you should stick to materials you are confident in. Really try to play on your strengths - observational drawings are pretty much the only thing in your sketchbook where you can completely control every element: material, surface, style, reference. It’s a great opportunity to show off your talent.

Although it is good to experiment with different materials, for your 2 graded projects definitely choose materials you know will have a good outcome. As an example, I did not enjoy using paint, I found it too time consuming, and the result wasn’t particularly good either. So instead I did a few pencil drawings, another few with charcoal, graphite, and a large scale mixed media piece and stuck to familiar materials.

 

Pencil Drawing Tip: Use contrast

Make sure you have enough contrast between your light and dark tones! The contrast will really make your drawing come to life and make the drawing seem more skillful as well.

Especially in pencil drawings, a lot of art students seem afraid to use dark pencils (6B, 8B) and just stick to lighter tones like 2B and 4B. Do not fear the 8B and do not fear pressing down hard onto the page to get really dark tones! Use a variety of pencils to help you achieve high tonal contrast. (When I draw I like to use B - 9B!) Personally, my drawings went up from a 6/7 to a 9 by adding a lot more contrast, changing nothing else about my technique.

If you can’t get dark enough tones with pencils, use graphite or charcoal pencils. They are generally a similar texture to pencils but you can get some very dark tones with them much more easily.

 

Quantity

The more drawings you can do the better, of course! But quality is more important than quantity - doing 3 high quality drawings is way better than doing 7 mediocre drawings.

 

Time (important!!)

You will find that some materials take you ages, while others may not take you very long. Assess whether a drawing is worth the time it’ll take before you start.

I know I fell into this trap of spending too long on one drawing, as did most of my classmates. We would choose a size, or a material that was far too ambitious and took too much time.

It’s ok to decide a piece is taking too long and stop, rewind, and alter your plans if it’s not worth the time you are putting in. My first oil painting took forever, so I decided to stop it partway through and instead focus my efforts on completing a few pencil drawings of better quality in the same amount of time.

One thing you should consider doing is preparing a few drawings during the summer holiday. You have a lot of time so you can afford spending longer on each drawing and trying some new materials (if it doesn’t work, just don’t submit it). It will also make you far less stressed during the year if a drawing doesn’t work out well and you don’t have enough in your sketchbook. Make sure your drawings fit the category though - if you are planning on choosing People as a subtopic, then don’t draw flowers.

 

Photo References

Remember to use high quality photos for drawing reference. In year 10, I made the mistake of using blurry, not very detailed photos, with unsuitable lighting for reference. This was not ideal and became an obstacle when I wanted to improve. So for my project in Year 11, I made sure to choose detailed and focused photos which significantly improved my drawings.