I have just discovered a whole dichotomy of drawing that I never knew existed; the visual versus the constructional. That is drawings which rely on recreating a purely visual image in comparison with those with a sculptural or anatomical foundation. I am thinking in terms of academic systems of drawing, or rather more significantly the principles on which these systems rely.
I should explain at this point that I am in favour of questioning principles and against dogma of any description. As soon as anything is systematised and becomes dogma it loses much of its power. Discovering this dichtomy has led me to question many of the assumptions I had made (e.g. this is the only way to learn to draw to that standard) about atelier drawing and the methods/systems I’m being taught. It is leading me to a better understanding of the principles behind those methods and how they relate to what I believe.
I’ve seen some fabulous drawings before by Russian students but I had assumed that they did more or less what we were doing at LARA. Not so. It turns out that in the russian system students construct their drawings from the inside out, to the extent that an anatomy study is conceived in full perspective with imagined light sources. I was suprised to discover that academic drawings can be produced in that way.
But what of the dichotomy, why does it matter?
The dichotomy of visual versus constructional is important: I think that it matters how a drawing is made. The ideas you use determine what you think and how you see. They will have a bigger influence on the appearance of the drawing than the materials you choose to use.
I think that the ideas used also relate to why the drawing is made and what it communicates. There is a chain of connections, from why you want to draw through how you think and the ideas you use to what the drawing ultimately communicates. It is a fascinating journey of discovery, try it for yourself. Start anywhere (some suggestions below) and chose your own adventure:
Some places to start:
The initial source of my revelations is an epic thread on CA where I was reading about the Russian academic drawing system and comparisons with other teaching methods. It’s a real eye opener. If you’re interested in the Russian work don’t miss the Repin Academy thread, also on CA.
Synchronicity and the internet being what they are I followed this with a video from Florence Academy, ‘Beauty, Teleology and Taste’
