Lessons Archive

As the supporting elements of the piece take shape, Jim moves to push his values even darker, slowly building them up to further add dimension and depth to his drawing.

As the drawing begins to take form, Jim moves to incorporate background elements to his piece.  Watch and learn how to incorporate these supporting elements to compliment your piece.

Follow along, as Jim continues to slowly build up his values.  Patience and through fulness are key in this approach.

Follow along, as Jim begins to build his values slowly in graphite, and further refine and design his shapes.

Watch as Jim continues to refine his shapes, and learn how to approach your mapping in a more tonal fashion.

Follow along with Jim, as he begins to block in his lay-in in a tonal fashion.

Join Watts Atelier Instructor Jim Hahn, as he begins his long figure drawing in graphite with a linear lay-in.

Learn how to incorporate surrounding, grounding elements and and lost background shapes to compliment the figure, as Jeff brings his drawing to a finish in this final installment.  

Join Jeff, as he continues to expand his value range and ultimately lock down key areas on the figure.

Watch as Jeff begins to expand his values, slowing building up the graphite in order to achieve darker darks.

Follow along with Jeff, as he continues to lay in his base tonal layer, paying special attention to the shapes and edges.

With the mapping now complete, Jeff begins to lay in his middle values.

Follow along, as Jeff begins to break down and carefully map in the interior shapes of the figure

Follow along as Jeff demonstrates the time and care that a long figure drawing lay-in demands.

Join Jeff as he begins his long figure drawing by exploring compositional options through thumbnails sketches. 

Follow along with Jeff as he demonstrates the versatility of the limited Zorn palette and brings this piece to a finish.

Learn to approach your gestural pieces with the limited Zorn palette in this exciting lesson.

Watch as Jeff brings this gesture painting to a close, proving that a monochrome palette can be just as impactful and subtle as a full color palette. 

Paint along with Jeff, and enjoy this wonderful, contrasting start to this bold gesture portrait.

As Jeff closes in on a finish, enjoy the subtle approach he takes with the outfit and costuming, losing edge work and making executive decisions in the piece.

Gesture portraits can be more than simple studies or small, fast paintings; They can take on a narrative that changes with the model.  Watch as Jeff begins this wonderfully narrative gestural piece. 

Follow along as Jeff completes this painting, utilizing complimentary reds and greens to pop the portrait against the background.