Mannequin Still Life

The drawing above shows a headless mannequin with a cloth draped on its shoulder, placed behind what appears to be a pot. A shadow is cast by the mannequin. The objects in the picture are not drawn to the actual size of what they were modeled after. Drawn on an 18 x 24 paper, graphite pencils were used for this piece, thus the colors are limited to a grayscale. Contour lines were used in the drawing, especially in forming the mannequin and cloth’s figure. Close up, it could be seen that the drawing is made up essentially of contour lines of different values, thickness, and length. Several contour lines run across the background as well as wrapping around the figures in the composition.

Drawn from still life, no grids were used for the initial contour lines. The composition as a whole is asymmetrical as well as going beyond the paper. The most prominent feature of this drawing is its use of lines. Cross contours to create shadows and form, giving the illusion of depth in the composition. Light areas are composed of lighter lines that crisscross over each other and are applied with little pressure or with the use of a harder pencil. In the darker regions, the vice versa is applied. Even for the more solid, flat areas such as the shadow and the background, a tighter and even-handed application of crosshatching is employed. The drastic shifts in various parts of the drawing creates the illusion of light, especially from how a shadow is cast and the highlights formed on the objects if the composition. The use of shading to create shades and value gives the piece a more natural and realistic feel.

The drawing itself is a still life, so there isn’t really much that could be said about the composition itself on a deeper context. This project does emphasize the power of lines and cross contours in creating a two dimensional figure. With the shadow lines running on the background as well as wrapping around in odd shapes on the foreground, it really does bring out the shape of the figures.

Overall, I think that the drawing came out fairly well, despite how quickly I had rushed into drawing the shadow lines without thinking it through first. While it does get somewhat tedious crisscrossing the lines over and over to achieve a flat and even tone, the forming of shadows by changing pressure and graphite grade was interesting to see. The realism of the finished product does astound me, especially seeing as the technique is quite simple to do. Crosshatching just might be my favorite style when it comes to dry media.