While reading through Writing With Pictures by Uri Shulevitz, I read the following quote from Leonardo da Vinci:
"Consult Nature in everything and write it all down....Memory is not that huge."
Uri Shulevitz interpreted this quote to mean that we need actual models or photos of real things to aid us in drawing accurately. I LOVE this! As Shulevitz says, "You can, of course, try to draw from imagination, but this can be difficult and the results are often unconvincing. True, there are illustrators who rely totally on imagination, but they are few. When you rely on imagination alone, you soon discover its limitations." It's good to know that I'm okay when I feel the need to look at a photo in order to draw something accurately!
I highly recommend this book for those learning about illustration. It was published in 1985, so some of the material on printing books may be outdated, but there is still much good information to learn from.
Interesting! I've heard artists say that it's all about seeing.
ReplyDelete