Rush for Art College · Pencil Portraits Art College Entrance Examination Series

Author: Shan Hanxue
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Reasonable composition, accurate modeling, and distinct expressive features of the face; rigorous and solid form structure, with detailed elements that are both deeply rendered and well-integrated; skillful use of tones or other modeling techniques to vividly portray forms, demonstrating good sense of volume, space, and texture. Broadly speaking, it can be summarized in the following aspects:
1. Accuracy: This is the fundamental requirement of sketching and a key indicator of modeling proficiency. The demand for "accuracy" should encompass the entire process and all aspects of shaping forms, especially proportions, shapes, and structures. This requires scientific observation methods, frequent observation, comparison, and comprehension, as well as exercises to develop keen observational skills.
2. Solidness: This means brushwork and tones should follow the structure, creating a tight and "internal" structure with strength. Deeply study the anatomical structure of the head; only by understanding it can one more profoundly perceive it. Avoid failing to capture the structure, which may lead to a loose and superficial rendering.
3. Wholeness: Major relationships should be orderly and cohesive, avoiding fragmentation. The observation method determines the expression method. Therefore, cultivate the habit of observing holistically to avoid local observation and piecemeal assembly, which may result in a mere accumulation of details. Under the guidance of a holistic concept, analyze and handle various relationships to ensure that the shaping of local details serves the whole.
4. Sense of Volume: Pay attention to the modeling of internal contours (the light-dark line) to accurately depict the transitions between surfaces. For example, the temporal line is the transition between the front and side of the head; from the temporal line through the zygoma, zygomatic muscle to the triceps is the transition between the front and side of the head.
5. Sense of Space: This refers to the depth of the portrait. Pay attention to the rules of perspective foreshortening. Forms closer to the viewer can be rendered relatively more solid, contrasted, and detailed; forms farther away can be treated oppositely.
6. Sense of Texture: Texture should include hardness, smoothness, reflectivity, and translucency. In sketching, form structure explains how a form occupies space and its appearance. Texture, on the other hand, explains its material content. The sense of weight, or visual heaviness, largely depends on the representation of texture.
7. Brightness: An ideal sketch not only has accurate forms but also clear tonal contrasts between black, white, and gray.