Drawing Blind!

Carla Sonheim’s class “Silly the Third” has been so much fun.  Each day there is a new worksheet to play with.  We are two-thirds of the way through the class and I’ve enjoyed all of the activities.  I think however that the “Blind Contour” has been my favorite.

The Blind Contour is a very basic drawing technique used to teach the brain to slow down and really look at the object being drawn.  So often we think we know what an object looks like and when we over think it, the picture comes out much different than the actual object.  Instead, Blind Contour is an exercise where you draw something without ever looking at your paper.  You work slowly, following the lines of the object with your eyes and allow your eyes to tell your brain where the drawing tool should go.  The writing tool never comes off the paper.  Essentially the drawing is one continuous line.  It’s very scary at first; just imagining what the drawing will look like, eyes darting off the object towards the paper, the logical side of the brain trying to take over.

Even though these drawings end up a little lopsided and obscure, there is something very right about them.  Lines that are difficult for me to perfect end up looking correct in a Blind Contour because I really look at the object rather than trying to draw my perception of it.

”Silly” reminded me how much I like this technique.  To me, it’s very relaxing and I so enjoy the way the drawings turn out.

Some of the drawings from “Silly”…
The car, window, and computer keyboard are blind Contour.  My left hand and the tulips are Contour  Drawing which is like Blind Contour other than you can look at the paper every-so-often and adjust the writing tool as needed.  The computer keyboard kills me!
My (very round) foot is Blind Contour.  The Coffee cup is not only Blind Contour, but also done with my non-dominant (left) hand.  The books and elephant statue I brought home from Zambezi are done in Contour.Both the orchid and pots are Blind Contour. 

Fun! Fun! Fun!  I need to remember to do this more often.   Next time you are in a meeting or waiting for an appointment draw something nearby using this technique.  You’ll be amazed!