DAUB

Drawing for the Absolute and Utter Beginner, by Claire Watson Garcia.

I've only just read the first part, up to the first drawing assignment. I don't think I'm going to like this book. First of all, the list of junk I gotta buy takes up a whole page, two columns! What ever happened to pencil and paper? Oh, and the paper she wants you to use is Strathmore 400 series 80 lb drawing paper for light washes and dry media. It is very good quality paper, but waaayyyy too expensive for beginners to mess up on. Anyway, after looking at the materials list, and how much the stuff costs, I decided to just stick with what I have on hand. Until I get to the lesson that calls for watercolor paint. PAINT???? I thought this was a DRAWING book!

Ok, so I get to the first drawing exercise. To do it, I have to go buy a spool of 24 gauge galvanized steel wire so I can get 15" of it for this lesson. Which means I either have the remainder of a spool of wire that I will never use cluttering up my house, or else I throw the rest of the wire in the garbage--throwing away money. After I get my 15" of wire, I have to bend it into a squiggly shape and draw it. I do this three times, drawing once with pencil and twice with pen. Which means I have to buy expensive drawing pens. Or I'm supposed to...

Now, I'm supposed to draw this wire with a dark, bold line. Sketching lightly, according to Ms. Garcia, is a sign of a timid artist. This flies in the face of everything I have ever read about drawing. I've always heard that you start sketching lightly, in case you have to erase, then build up your darker values until you have your finished product. I for one, am not going to rough out a drawing with dark, bold lines. It is almost impossible to erase them, and if you do get them erased, you most certainly damage your paper.

I decided to skip this exercise.

So far, I don't think much of Ms. Claire Watson Garcia.