1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIRONMENT
NAME: ONG SENG PENG
STUDENT ID NO: 0319016
WORD COUNT: 657
ENGLISH 1 (ELG 30505)
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 1: PROCESS ESSAY
LECTURER: CASSANDRA WIJESURIA
SUBMISSION DATE: 2ND MAY 2014
2. How to produce an attractive sketch
Sketching is the practice of drawing a rough outline or rough draft version of a
final piece of art. Some may think: âI cannot sketch, because I am bad at drawing.â
That is not true. As long as you have a pencil and a piece of paper, you can sketch.
Sketching can be done by everyone. It can be practiced just like mathematic, martial
arts, dancing and other skill. Whether you are sketching for fun or for a project,
learning the proper technique can make the practice much more enjoyable. Well
what are the steps when we want to sketch?
Firstly, we should get ready our materials. Before we start our sketch, it is
essential to get ready all these materials include: H pencil, B pencil, ruler, eraser and
fine art paper. You can easily buy them from any book store. H pencils are the
hardest pencils. We usually use these pencils for sketching thin and straight lines.
These are mostly used for architecture and business sketches. For B pencils, they
are soft and are used for making smudged and blurry lines and for shading your
sketch. These are the favourites of many artists. Next, we should prepare a paper. It
is prefer to use a fine art paper than a normal paper, because normal paper is thin
and does not hold the pencil but fine art paper is much rougher than the normal
paper which can hold the pencil much better. Eraser and ruler are optional. You can
do a sketch without it, but it is recommended to use an eraser because you want to
correct your sketch.
When you get ready all those materials, you need to choose your subject and
then start your sketch. Take several minutes to study the subject prior to beginning
your sketch. You should consider the light whether the object is bright enough. A dim
object is not good for sketch; make sure it is bright enough. What is the best angle?
3. Different angles of the object you sketch have different outcome. Observe the object
carefully. Take note all the details like texture, margin and colour. When you are
ready to sketch, try to think the subject as a simple shape. For example, when you
are drawing a building, you can associate it with the shape. Different part got the
different shape like the window of the building. You can think it as rectangle and
sketch in on your paper. The door, building structure and so on, try to think them as
a simple shape. This is one of the effective approaches to sketch sometimes. All
objects are actually made up of different combination of shape. Make sure that when
you are sketching, keep compare your sketch with the object, so that you keep the
object in mind and do the sketch correctly.
Next, check your sketch after you have done it. Check the proportion and the
details of the object. See whether it looks resemble. Do not afraid of using the eraser
when you check your sketch. However, avoid erasing the small part of the sketch,
because it will be hard to replace the erased part with a similar hardness and storks.
Instead, try to darken the sketch to camouflage the problem. Other than that, you
can shade your sketch by using B pencils so that it can be more interesting and
attractive. After you think you have done your sketch, erase the smudged part on the
paper and then it will look clean.
Last but not least, the following steps and ways are not fixed; everyone has
their own way to sketch. Sketch does not have to look like it exactly resembles the
object but it is to show the outline and structure of the object. If you think you are bad
at sketching, do not be distressed, instead do more practices and do more
researches of it. The sketching skill can actually be improved by practicing it.