Many students rush their figure drawings. They are not lazy, and they do care. They are rushing because they want to get good quickly. You see it in the studio and classroom all the time. A student will jump right into shading. Another will jump right into using colour. Another will start pursuing style before drawing the structure.
At the time, it seemed productive and exciting. But eventually, it becomes a source of frustration for the student. Here is a fact that most art books fail to make clear:
Figure drawing is not something you push through. It’s something you build step by step.
When you slow down, you will notice something surprising happens. Your confusion will go away, your frustration will go away, and your guessing will be replaced with confidence.
That’s the foundation behind Drawing and Rendering THE FIGURE in Black and White and Colour. This book does not teach shortcuts. It’s about learning in the right order, so each step supports the next.
In this article, you will read about:
➔ Why slowing down actually makes you progress faster
➔ The early habits that quietly cause problems later
➔ How a clear, step-by-step method builds real confidence
Ready! Set! DRAW!
Image from the book “DRAWING AND RENDERING THE FIGURE IN BLACK AND WHITE AND COLOUR.”
Why Slowing Down and Learning the Basics First Actually Helps
Taking your time doesn’t mean you are sacrificing speed. It means learning and doing things correctly and with purpose.
Many students rush through drawing because they can see the result. For example,
➔ Shading gives the impression of movement.
➔ Adding colour gives the impression of movement.
However, without a strong foundation, creating the finished drawing may just mask an underlying problem rather than fix it.
Instead of quickly finishing a drawing, the author of this book asks students to stop and look closely at the figure they are creating. Draw the figure in ways that actually make sense in order to understand how each of the shapes fits together. You can get this book to learn more details about drawing if you are a beginner. This book is best for you.
Slowing Down Helps You See the Figure, Not Just the Outline
When a student works quickly, they usually draw what the figure looks like in their head. When they work slowly, they begin to draw what they see, which means they develop a better understanding of several important aspects of the figure’s body:
➔ The proportion of the head and torso to the limbs
➔ How the weight of the body is distributed and moves from one part of the body to another
➔ The direction and rhythm of the pose
When you are in a hurry, it is easy to overlook these important details when drawing a figure. However, they are important components of a strong and realistic drawing.
Structure First, Everything Else Follows
One of the key concepts presented in this book and it is important to learn. You must learn to think about and draw the structure of the figure before you add detail. In the early stages of developing your figure, your drawings should focus on creating a clear structure before moving on to shading, rendering, and colouring.
Two key benefits are provided by this action:
➔ Eliminates guesswork.
➔ Provides a defined objective for each future step.
When the structure is made, the shaded and colour will feel less risky. Instead, they’ll now feel like natural extensions of the drawing.
Slow Down to Build Confidence, Not Frustration
Being rushed creates anxiety because you are always adjusting, correcting, and covering your work. By slowing down, you replace your anxiety with clarity.
As a result of slowing down, students experience:
➔ Greater control over their drawing.
➔ Less tendency to “hide” mistakes.
➔ A stronger sense of direction through each stage and process.
You may feel uncomfortable initially about learning to slow down. But once the process is made clear to you, the drawing process becomes less about guessing and more about building one step at a time.
Image from the book “DRAWING AND RENDERING THE FIGURE IN BLACK AND WHITE AND COLOUR.”
The picture shows that slowing down leads to clarity and control.
Common Early Habits That Cause Problems Later
Mostly, these drawing issues stem from smaller drawing habits that seem harmless at first.
When students draw figures quickly, these small drawing habits form without realizing it and become permanent.
Habit 1: Drawing the Shade First
Shading can make a drawing look like it is finished, even if the structure is weak. When you shade first or early on:
➔ You are hiding your issues with proportion instead of dealing with them
➔ The figure can appear to have lots of detail, but still feel wrong
➔ You will depend on the tone of the drawing to hide your inexperience
As the book points out, you begin to learn to use shading when the drawing’s structure is accurate.
Habit 2: Not Using a Basic Structure
Many new artists will skip the body structure because they do not want to do the boring part or feel it is too simple. They immediately start with the outline of the body, muscles, or surface detail.
Skipping the basic structure of the body and going straight to the outline of the body, muscles, or surface detail usually results in:
➔ Stiff, awkward-looking poses
➔ The movement of the body is not clear
➔ The body appears flat and or out of balance
When you learn the basic structure first, you are able to see and understand how the whole body works together.
Habit 3: Prioritizing Style over Skill
Style is fun, and everybody wants their work to stand out from the crowd. However, typically, if you try to create with only style, you get confusion as a result.
When students try to develop style too quickly, the following occurs:
➔ Repeated mistakes
➔ Long-lasting bad drawing techniques
➔ Slower progress instead of faster progress
This book emphasizes developing skills first before developing style. Styles develop naturally when you learn about the figure and trust the process.
Habit 4: Working without a Clear Order
Most students do not have a plan when they draw. They’re going back and forth, fixing one part of the drawing while ruining another part.
Using a step-by-step approach will eliminate this confusion. Each step serves a purpose and supports the next step.
Drawing in this organized manner will make drawing feel less chaotic and more controlled.
A Simple Exercise to See How Slowing Down Helps
Here’s one exercise from this book based on drawing and rendering, that shows why slowing down works so well.
Step 1: Draw Just the Gesture
With a light pencil, begin your first drawing. Do not concentrate on details, whether they be muscles, shading, or anything else. All you are trying to do is capture the movement and energy of the pose by drawing loosely because it’s not about achieving perfection.
Step 2: Add Basic Structure
In your second drawing, lightly block in the head, torso, and limbs. Pay attention to proportional relationships between the different parts of the body and the distribution of mass within that body. This will help you make a foundation for your drawing. Remember not to add shading yet.
Step 3: Check before Moving On
Before you go on to create your next drawing, step back from your drawing and compare it with your reference picture. Then adjust any shape, angle, or proportion that appears to be incorrect. Make sure that all of the body parts “sit” on top of each other correctly.
Step 4: Start Rendering
After you feel that you have now made a solid structure, you can add tone, light, and shadows. The final step in your drawings will be adding Colour.
Note: You should find that spending 5-10 minutes on the gesture and primary structure of your figure drawing will improve your drawing. If you jumped directly into shading for one hour before moving onto the primary structure, you will end up doing something horrible.
Image from the book “DRAWING AND RENDERING THE FIGURE IN BLACK AND WHITE AND COLOUR.”
The picture shows gesture → structure → checked structure → shading started
The Ending Notes
Figure drawing should not be rushed. It feels good to do something quickly, but it may also mask problems rather than solve them. By slowing down to only focus on the structure, then adding rendering in small steps:
➔ You will be able to see the figure better.
➔ It is easier to fix mistakes.
➔ You will boost your confidence.
➔ You will find it relaxing, fun, and rewarding to draw.
Patience is the secret. First, do a gesture, then create the structure, and finish with the rendering. Each part has a purpose, and each part is connected to the previous one.
The next drawing you create will not be perfect, but it will be done thoughtfully. So take time and create strong drawings that are drawn with confidence.
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