Drawing Boards...

This drawing wood exercise was probably the most laborious I have done, but the results are pretty amazing using the techniques from Leonardo Pereznieto’s book, “Simple techniques for realistic drawings.”  I have so many wood projects, so I was keen to do this tutorial in the book. I have plenty of photo references from all of the world; drift wood on a South African Beach, old wooden doorways off old churches, and tiny medieval doors in Spanish, and French villages. 

I didn’t have quite the same tools as recommended in the book. The photo below was using a charcoal 2B pencil which is a little softer than the HB pencil Leonardo used. My background was also a graphite background using my 4B softer graphite stick. 

Again, I have a new set of eyes that will allow me to see wood more clearly. I love the almost poetic way Pereznieto describes wood grains, “To help you visualize the grain lines of wood while drawing them, imagine the waves of a liquid. They flow in a similar way and envelop any object...” And it is so true! Next time, watch how water flows over rocks, in a babbling brook. And then follow the line grains on your wooden floor boards. 

My first attempt at drawing wood for real. If you look closely, It’s simply tiny vertical lines close to one another. I look forward to my future projects. 

Meanwhile, check out this flooring! The knots are interesting although my grain work needs practice. The bit that blew me away is where the boards meet. Just a rounding the edges and a highlight made all the difference. 

The next photo is a close-up of my boards. I got pretty lazy by the time I got to the bottom of each board! The far left plank I left as one long plank since that was the best grain. Being left handed, I had to start from the far right board, and work across to the left. 

Next stop, is to get the paper and charcoal pencil that the artist suggests for the other projects. And I may repeat this exercise to refine my grains. For wood and On woods! Sorry, but you should know by now that I love word play.