drawing on the right side of the brain
This is the first drawing exercise that we're going to work on. By engaging the right side of your brain, you are able to see more clearly what it is you are looking at to draw. The videos below are summaries on a book titled Drawing On the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards. This book is great for learning to how train your brain to become a better drawer.
Let's get into this a little. Some science and art today! Hooray! There are 2 sides of the brain: the right side and the left side. Each side of the brain is responsible for different jobs. The left side is the literal side of the brain. It looks for patterns, it categorizes, it makes connections, and it labels things. This labeling part really gets in the way when we draw. When you try to draw an apple, for example, the left side of your brain tells you that an apple is red, has a brown stem, and a green leaf. You end up drawing something like this:
Let's get into this a little. Some science and art today! Hooray! There are 2 sides of the brain: the right side and the left side. Each side of the brain is responsible for different jobs. The left side is the literal side of the brain. It looks for patterns, it categorizes, it makes connections, and it labels things. This labeling part really gets in the way when we draw. When you try to draw an apple, for example, the left side of your brain tells you that an apple is red, has a brown stem, and a green leaf. You end up drawing something like this:
It's not really a bad drawing of an apple, just not very accurate. The left side of your brain says, yes, this is an apple. But it's flat. It's bright red, You can't actually eat this. The right side of your brain, when engaged, helps you to focus and look and see what is really there, making your drawings much more realistic. Here are some images of real apples:
So these real apples are all different colors. There's red, green, yellow, and I can even see brown, orange, and peach colors in this image.
So, to engage the right side of the brain, since you have not trained your brain yet, we will need to confuse the left side. When you confuse the left side of your brain, the right side kicks in and tries to figure things out. It is thinking creatively to try to solve the problem. This is what we need to look and draw what we see.
Open your binder and find the image of the upside down horse. Yes, it's supposed to be upside down. Keep it that way. There's a blank sheet of paper behind it. Use that to draw the upside down horse. You can take papers out of your binder to complete this, just make sure it makes its way back in there. So, since the image is upside down, it begins to confuse the left side of your brain. The right side is trying to figure it out. As you look closely and start to draw the horse, use words in your head that describe each line, not the part of the horse that you are drawing. When you start labeling those parts, like hoof, leg, tail, you are reinforcing the left side labeling, and you're going to end up drawing what you think you see. STOP DOING THAT!!!! Instead, say things like this line curves to the left, then there's a sharp turn to the right. This way you are actually describing something you are drawing. It is much more accurate that a label your left brain has made up.
So, to engage the right side of the brain, since you have not trained your brain yet, we will need to confuse the left side. When you confuse the left side of your brain, the right side kicks in and tries to figure things out. It is thinking creatively to try to solve the problem. This is what we need to look and draw what we see.
Open your binder and find the image of the upside down horse. Yes, it's supposed to be upside down. Keep it that way. There's a blank sheet of paper behind it. Use that to draw the upside down horse. You can take papers out of your binder to complete this, just make sure it makes its way back in there. So, since the image is upside down, it begins to confuse the left side of your brain. The right side is trying to figure it out. As you look closely and start to draw the horse, use words in your head that describe each line, not the part of the horse that you are drawing. When you start labeling those parts, like hoof, leg, tail, you are reinforcing the left side labeling, and you're going to end up drawing what you think you see. STOP DOING THAT!!!! Instead, say things like this line curves to the left, then there's a sharp turn to the right. This way you are actually describing something you are drawing. It is much more accurate that a label your left brain has made up.
Continue drawing the upside down horse until your finish. Try to get all the details in there. Take your time. This exercise will help you with the rest of the assignments for this semester so cheating is really going to hurt your ability to learn to draw better. I can tell when you have traced this too. DON'T TRACE IT!!
When you have finished drawing upside down horse, try to draw upside down guy. The picture seems harder, but it is really easier, now that you know what you're doing. There are more shorter lines and simple shapes in this exercise. Look for them and use them to help you draw. Keep this in your binder for the next binder check.
When you have finished drawing upside down horse, try to draw upside down guy. The picture seems harder, but it is really easier, now that you know what you're doing. There are more shorter lines and simple shapes in this exercise. Look for them and use them to help you draw. Keep this in your binder for the next binder check.
Summary of drawing on the right side of the brain
Play these videos on day 2 of this lesson. Students should listen as they finish drawing.