NOT AI GENERATED 😉 

A figure drawn by an AI robot, instead of you, is not a figurative drawing. A figurative drawing, for real, is created by a person of a person and for a person. Drawing “of, by, and for the people!” You are so much more than an algorithm. You are a person with pencil-in-hand, like a human soccer player with ball-on-foot (no hands!).

Okay, with the robot benched, we gather the real deal figurative drawing players.

“Anybody want to draw a soccer player?!”  (No big art words.)

First “See Big,” then “Keep Your Eye on the Ball.”

See Big. Look at the field, the players, the action, the whole big scene. Sit for a while and just see. No marks yet.

Next, focus down on a favorite player. Keep Your Eye on the Ball, right?

Now, for next steps, follow my sketch above:

See, there are three colors, drawn in order: one, two, three.

1. Yellow lines are Gesture Lines.

2. Blue lines are Big Shapes.

3. Black lines are Outlines.

The Gesture Lines show the movement, a few simple yellow marks that, to your eye, capture the figure’s line of action. If you miss the movement, the player looks standing-still, and who likes that?

The Big Shapes come next, in blue, drawing only the largest forms over the yellow Gestures. See Big! No details, no fave logos, merch, shoelaces, etc. Those come last.

Now, add the pencil-graphite-black Outlines of the figure over and around the Gestures and Big Shapes.

There you have it. Gooooooal!

With practice, like in soccer, you’ll get the hang of it and finish as you wish.

And, like the soccer player who looks for both the big picture and the ball—at the same time—your drawing will reflect the big picture of gesture, form, and line as well as your focus on ball in air and logo/color/number of jersey.

(Our home-town-fave for action drawing, like this, happens to be FC Cincy.)

SketchCAM hopes to see you at the museum! (By the way, a great place to practice your sketching skills is CAM’s Rosenthal Education Center, aka the REC! All ages welcome!)