MANASI KATRAGADDA
EDUCATOR | SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR | ARTIST | WRITER |
Every day still life
(c)Manasi Katragadda
In this section I share still life drawings.
What do I draw?
Everyday things. Things that I find interesting. You'll be surprised by how much one can learn by drawing things often considered common or usual.
'Practice makes perfect'. The more I've drawn, the more fun it is drawing these.
If you are looking for tips on how to draw, see my advice on how to improve your still life drawing techniques.
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How to draw still life as a beginner
There are many people who would like to draw still life and think it is difficult.
Panic not.
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Some tips you can begin with.
If you want to try drawing still life, here are some ideas.
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​When you pick up fruits from the grocery store, instead of putting them directly into the refrigerator, keep a few in front of you. Maybe an apple or a strawberry or something you like.
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As an example, I picked out apples and oranges for a still life.
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If you are new to still life, drawing fruits or a setting of fruits is a common teaching method.
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Paying attention to shapes and how they are placed next to each other is one of the first things you'll learn in still life techniques.
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Happy sketching!
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(c)Manasi Katragadda
Part 2- How to draw still life as a beginner
Thank you everyone for your responses.
I am glad many first timers tried drawing still life and had fun with it. There were all kinds of drawings shared of fruits that were in kitchens. Apples, strawberries, bananas, oranges and more!
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For those of you who asked for another tip on still life, here's one.
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Take a jar or a bottle, something you'll also find in your refrigerator.
After you take it out to drink, don't put it back in the refrigerator immediately.
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Now open your sketchbook. Draw that jar or bottle.
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Here's one of my quick sketches that I completed right after a snack.
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(c)Manasi Katragadda
'My lines do not look straight'.
'What should I do?', someone asked me recently.
'I am new to drawing still life. My lines do not look straight'.
If you are knew to drawing still life, this is normal. You'll see squiggly lines
when you are learning.
Think of this like driving a car. In the beginning, your turns could be abrupt.
As you drive more, you get better at making turns. You know where to turn and
where not to.
Sometimes not getting perfectly straight lines is fun. As you learn
to draw more, you'll get better at your lines.
Sketch time
Drawing a bottle of spread that was right in front of me.
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(c)Manasi Katragadda
Sketching another every day item. Here goes.
(c)Manasi Katragadda
Sketching a flower that just bloomed
The sketch of the flower looks like this after it was completed.
Have you ever drawn something like this?
(c)Manasi Katragadda
Drawing plants
Plants are everyday objects that I sketch a lot. If you need ideas for sketching,
find a plant around you. They are fun to draw and don't move around.
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Here's a sketch of a plant with small flowers. The flowers had small buds that
were fun to draw.
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(c)Manasi Katragadda
This was an empty box. Drawing something like this makes you
notice its features and shapes that would be easy to miss.
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(c)Manasi Katragadda
Another sketch of an everyday object- a tube of lotion.
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My objective here was to study the shadows that fall on the
object from behind.
