(upbeat music)
-: Hi, my name is Maria
and I'm a visual artist, teaching artist.
So today we're going to be,
doing some observational drawing.
So developing on observational skills and art.
So, a lot of times, as artists, we interpret
and observe the world around us, and create art out of it.
And observing, seeing our surroundings
is one of the biggest inspirations to the work that we do.
So this is the focus of it
is how we can observe the details around us,
and the importance of that skill development.
So, you're going to grab just like a blank sheet of paper.
And so you're gonna grab your paper.
And when we think of observational skills or observing,
what comes to mind to you?
For me, what comes to mind is,
I'm looking at something and I'm seeing how it's shaped.
How does it look like?
And then I'm seeing the reflection of it.
Does it have shade?
Is it a certain direction?
And then I'm looking at things around that.
So, is this object in a city?
What kind of setting is it?
Is it like an urban setting? Is it in a city?
Is it like in either like rural area?
Are you looking at a space that has trees
or does it have buildings, cars;
when you're looking at something, you want to be mindful
of looking at everything around what you're creating.
So, I'm gonna imagine right now: I'm in the beach,
I'm in the ocean, or I'm at a beach somewhere
in the tropics.
And so what I'm looking at is, I'm looking at the ocean.
And then I'm thinking, what time of day is it?
It's kinda morning, so it's sunrise.
So these are things to keep in mind, time of day,
where's your scenery at.
And so, you also can be imaginative and just imagine
a space, a scenery, or a background.
It doesn't literally have to be what you observed,
but you do have to be mindful of, like,
making sure that the things that you want in your scenery
are there.
So like, for the person that is looking at your artwork
to also observe and think about.
And so, we're gonna get to drawing together
and creating art.
So I'm going to make an ocean background.
So when I think of an ocean - or when I think of a beach,
I think of the ocean.
So I'm gonna put a straight line just across my paper.
And so this will be my ocean water.
This will be my sky.
And so when you're sketching out,
always sketch with a pencil, that way it's easier to erase
and easier to cover, when you're painting
or coloring your art.
So here's my ocean, and when I think of a beach scenery,
or when I'm looking at a beach, I always see Palm trees.
So I'm gonna draw Palm tree here.
And if you're doing your setting,
like in a city, are you looking at building?
So you want to draw that out.
So I'm drawing out my
Palm trees.
So remember, you're just sketching with a pencil,
so you don't have to go really in detail
it's just a rough draft for you to, like,
know what you're working with.
So there's my Palm tree, my ocean; I want some sand,
so I got the waves coming in and then the sand.
And then, you wanna think about what time of day it is,
or, if you're making a realistic drawing,
is it day? Is it night?
And so, as I mentioned earlier,
I'm doing our morning sunrise,
beach kinda scenery background.
So I'm putting my sun coming out
and then I'm going to put my breeze, put some breeze,
and then the reflection of the sun in the ocean.
And so then I have my basic sketch of my scenery.
And then I want some clouds.
So you wanna think about, is it a sunny day, cloudy day?
What kind of days it, weather-wise
and then reflect that,
if you're making a realistic drawing.
So I have my clouds.
Okay, so you have your basic sketch
and then you're going to start,
filling it in with different colors, textures, shading;
so this is, like, where you have, as an artist,
the creative ability to create
your drawing based on your own individuality
as a creative being.
So this component is your creative freedom.
So you can explore, and also experiment with colors
and textures.
So there's different types of art forms.
Like, this one is mostly like a realistic type of drawing,
but also if your style is more, kinda like,
more abstract, that's completely fine;
the purpose of what we're working on right now
is developing our drawing skills
and how we can observe
around us to be developing multiple skills
to create artwork.
So that's mostly what the intent of you working on this is.
So I grabbed a micro pen;
micro pens are great because they're water resistant.
But if you don't have a micro pen,
just any water resistant marker works perfectly.
And so with this, you're gonna go over,
the areas that you wanna bring out
in you're drawing.
See how I'm kinda starting to bring out my Palm trees.
And then my ocean.
Okay, so I have a basic
sketch,
and then now
with the pen, I've been able to highlight and bring out
the areas that I wanna paint.
So, with this, you can be experimental.
I have some watercolor brushes.
Usually, the watercolor brushes will have a little brush
on next to the side. So that's how you'll know that
you can use them with water, and blend with water.
So, if you go to the store and you see colored markers,
and then you see water color markers,
it's the water base that I'm using for these tools.
'Cause then I can blend with other water colors.
So I'm kinda gonna do, an abstract realism piece.
So the plants, the trees,
everything's not going to be the actual color
of, like, what you would think the tree looks like.
That's where I'm gonna allow myself to be creative
and experiment.
So you could do the same, it's up to you kinda, so...
I'm gonna color it in, and you wanna make sure
you take your time with coloring it in and filling it in.
As an artist, we spend a lot of time drawing,
it can literally take 30 minutes to like hours.
I could be drawing for 12 hours the most
to five hours a day, and for me, it's like,
time doesn't exist in that continuing moment.
And a lot of artists are the same,
like, kind of lose track of time when we're,
doing our artwork. So, take your time.
You can always set aside your piece
and then take a break and go back to your artwork.
Don't always feel like you need to finish
your artwork in one take,
especially if you're doing an observational piece.
You wanna be very mindful of like the details.
So take your time.
It's okay, there's no good or bad art,
there's just art.
And so, even if you don't feel your artwork
is how you want it to be, it's all part of the process.
It's all part of the learning process
of developing those skills.
Sometimes I look at my drawings
from even like a year ago
and I'm like, oh no, like, this and that,
But that's, like, we're, as artists, our biggest critics.
And, it's always good to be mindful of that,
that art is always gonna be interpreted different
by every artist. So, we're developing our,
observational skills and this process, as
we're thinking of the textures in our tree;
like this Palm tree, you wanna think of the shading
and the silhouette of your tree in comparison
to the colors in the background,
like the background of the sky, the ocean, and the sand.
And so, I'm using watercolor pencils in this,
and I'm blending with water,
in case you were wondering. So, this is water,
and then I went over a little bit with a pencil,
watercolor pencil, and then I'm spreading it out with
a brush and water, and then you can continue
highlighting as you go.
So that's the cool thing about
watercolor pencils, is you can continue,
coloring on top of your artwork and it blends easier.
So take your time, don't feel you need to
rush through your artwork.
And that's actually the reason why we're practicing
observational skills, because it helps us take our time
to observe what we're creating and what we're looking at
to create an artwork versus just wanting to
rush through it and get it done.
So that's what we're really focusing
on is taking time, reflecting on what we're seeing,
what we're working with,
and what we're trying to visually share with others.
Visual arts is a very interactive art form.
So we're always interacting, as creative people,
either with other artists
or just, like, with the materials we're working with.
And so it's okay to experiment with different colors
to see what emerges out of it.
So I always encourage my students to mix and match
colors and see how they look like,
just 'cause it's cool to see the chemistry of art,
when you mix different colors, what comes out of it.
So you can also always use watercolor brushes.
They're just kinda like little brushes,
but they're water-based, so you can always blend
with all the other water color materials.
And so these, you can start
creating that texture for your ocean. I gotta
replace the light blue one.
So you can see...
and then I'm going to spread it out.
And then...
blend it in
with that water colored pencil.
And then I'll use some liquid water color,
some blue liquid water color
to continue texturizing.
So you can get experimental,
but different materials you have.
If you have crayons that works perfectly,
if you have markers also that works perfect too.
So it's up to you. So this one kinda already
jumped out on me, so I'm just going to spread it out.
Usually I just do like droplets at the top of my brush
and then start blending it in.
And I always tell my students there's no good or bad art,
like I mentioned earlier.
And if you feel you made a mistake,
what I always think of mistakes,
or when you make an accident: it's a learning process.
It's not really a mistake, it's like, you're just learning
something and then you're gonna learn
to do something differently next time.
So, those are kinda like what I tell myself,
so I don't feel negative about what I'm creating.
I always encourage people to talk positively
to yourself when you're making art,
because it's a very vulnerable space
to be with yourself, and then when you share it with others,
it's, incredibly, a vulnerable space, cause then you're open
to people's interpretations of your artwork.
So that's why when you're creating,
always be gentle with yourself
and don't feed into that negative artist-talk
that we, as artist, often tell ourselves
that this isn't good enough.
Don't tell yourself that when you're creating,
because it's not gonna help
your lifelong creative learning process.
'Cause everybody, in every field,
in every artform, makes mistakes.
We all do, all the time, and it's part of human nature.
So, why beat ourselves up for that?
When we can just enjoy the process and then when we're done,
we can just reflect how we felt about it.
So, those are things to keep in mind
when you're observing, is like,
how am I treating myself in this process?
Am I drinking a bottle of water?
Am I giving myself breaks to rest my hands?
Cause you're just pretty much working with your hands
a lot, as visual artists, so remember your hands
also need to rest and they also need to take the time
to, like, to rest so that you can have energy
the next day to continue creating.
So be mindful up your body, too, like,
if you're exhausted, don't rush yourself
through the process.
I have some artwork that I made like in 30 minutes
and I have some artwork that's taken me months to create.
So there's no timeline for this, it's up to you.
So always check in with yourself, how am I doing?
Can I take a break today and go back to it?
So right now I'm going to take a small little break
from this so that the colors can set in.
And then I'll fill it in, and then I'll finish it.
It will probably take me like hours to finish.
So I'm not gonna attempt to finish it for you in this video.
But I will show you some other artwork
that I have made, prepared for you.
This is kind of like a background I've made
for like a garden scenery. And so you can see the different,
shading for the flowers.
I made like a sky, kinda like a cloudy,
but like a summer sky, kinda day.
Cause flowers, springtime, summer is what comes to mind.
So I wanted to create a very vibrant piece.
And then I made this kinda like a universe,
like looking at the Moon,
like I'm observing the...
I saw myself as like I'm in the Moon
and I'm looking at Earth kinda background.
So that's like my creative interpretation
of being like a creative astronaut, as an artist.
Always use your imagination.
It's like the best thing as an artist
is when we are imaginative and
we, like, use our words
to also, like, convey our imagination visually, too.
Don't be afraid to, like, create your own words
for the artwork that you're making, because it's your space,
it's your creative self, expressing itself.
So, you can see here, I use different patterns,
like for the stars and then the skies.
So the most important thing about this lesson
is not so much the art itself,
it's about the process.
And so what you're working on
is developing a skill which has drawing
that could be used for a lifelong
journey of learning and creativity.
And remember each artist
has their own drawing style and technique.
So I encourage you to continue developing those.
And then hopefully, when I'm old, I can see
this amazing artist from Seattle that watched this video
made this incredible artwork.
So thank you for your time.
And, my name is Maria.
I hope you had fun.
(upbeat music)