04: Basic Blockin Style Drawing

You'll now learn the basics of blockin style drawing (or block-in or block in). The blockin style utilizes rough lines to determine the proportion, position, and relationship of subjects on the paper. You follow a process that is something like:

1. Find the position of the thing on the paper.
2. Find the top and bottom of the thing.
3. Find the left and right of the thing.
4. Confirm it is positioned (#1) and proportioned (#2 & #3) relative to other things on the paper. If this is the first thing, then just guess.
5. Then "carve" out the rough shape from this block to "expose" the actual thing.

This style of drawing can create very realistic drawings, but it is the most difficult for a beginner to "debug." That's why I want you to focus only on doing steps 1-4 and then switch to sketching to do the final drawing. Think of this process as laying down basic guide lines for your more complex sketches. You'll be surprised how well this actually works.

In the video I explain how it's done, and then I do a demonstration of about how far I want you to go. You could go even simpler than in my demos, but going farther will require more training that I feel is better spent in the next style of drawing called "sight sized."

Sight Sized drawing produces an equally high quality drawing when compared to blockin style, but it is done in a way that is far easier to explain, study, and learn from. It's not the best style, but it is the best style for self-education. We'll be covering that style next week, and then I'll do a series of demos that help you get better at drawing using these 4 styles.