Lesson video

Hi, everyone, I'm Miss Miah.

I'm so glad you've joined me for this lesson today.

In this lesson, we're going to dive even deeper into creating some amazing artwork inspired by the rainforest.

I hope you're ready and you've got your imaginative thinking switched on.

Let's get started.

In this lesson, you will be able to observe and sketch a variety of leaves.

Your keywords are on the screen now and I'd like you to repeat them after me.

Line.

Geometric shapes.

Organic shapes.

Tone.

Now, I'd like you to use these keywords in the lesson.

Let's find out what these keywords mean.

A line is a mark made by a moving point, such as a pencil or brush.

Geometric shapes are shapes that have uniform measurements and do not appear in nature.

Organic shapes are shapes that do not have straight lines and are found in nature.

Tone is how light or dark something is.

This lesson is all about drawing the rainforest and we are going to be creating studies of plants and leaves.

This lesson is made of two lesson cycles.

Our first lesson cycle is to do with sketching plants and leaves.

And then we're going to move on to adding the details, so applying tone and shade.

I'm really excited for this lesson, let's begin.

Have a look at this image.

What do you notice about the leaves in this painting? Leaves come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and colours, especially in rainforests.

Some leaves have special shapes to help them catch more sunlight, while others have designs to help them keep water or survive in the shade.

As we draw, let's pay attention to these differences and try to capture the unique shapes of leaves that you see, like wide, heart-shaped leaves or narrow pointy ones.

By noticing the variety, we can make our drawings look more interesting and realistic.

Now, artists make leaf studies or other closeup studies of nature to help them become better at observing and drawing what they see.

So it's really important when we observe something, we look very carefully at it.

Sometimes we get carried away by looking at our sketchbook more than actually observing what we are trying to draw, and I used to be guilty of this.

What can happen is when you're looking at your sketchbook more than you're actually observing, you tend to use your imagination more than actually seeing what's in front of you and trying to recreate what's in front of you.

It's really important that we observe what's in front of us and maybe glance at our sketchbook here and there just to see that we've got the positioning and the shapes correct.

More on this later.

But observing means to look really closely at something.

By studying leaves closely, artists learn to notice small details, like vein patterns and shapes which make their drawings more accurate.

So Laila Shawa's "Rainforest, Malaysia, (acrylic on canvas), 1990," Sam Hutchinson's, "Spinach sun prints", and Armando Morales' "Selva" 1986 are all examples showing various ways artists represent leaves using different techniques and styles.

When drawing a leaf, there are two types of shapes that we can use to help us draw an outline.

Geometric shapes.

These shapes have straight lines, angles and do not appear in nature.

Organic shapes, these are shapes that do not have straight lines, are irregular and are found in nature.

Andeep is drawing a leaf.

He is going to use shapes to help him.

Andeep says, "First, I'm going to draw the geometric shapes I can see in the leaf.

Next, I will add the organic shapes I can see in the leaf." Sofia looks at Andeep's shapes.

I think one of the organic shapes is too small.

Which organic shape do you think Andeep should change? You can use your finger to point at it.

It was the shape in the middle and Andeep's changed that shape now.

Sofia says, "I think the shapes are more accurate now." Now that I am happy with it, I can begin to add the details.

Over to you.

Which of these shapes could be used to draw the main body of a leaf? Is it A, B or C? So pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? If you got A and C, you're correct.

A circle.

This can help you outline the overall shape of the leaf, especially if it's rounded or oval.

A triangle, well, this can help you with the pointed or sharp end of the leaf, especially for leaves that come to a point.

When I was drawing leaves, I found that I definitely used circles and triangles a lot.

You might find the same.

Now, line is one of the formal elements of art, and you can see some examples here.

This means that it is one of the tools an artist can use to create an artwork.

I wonder if you've used some of these lines before to create your artwork.

Now, by using different styles of line, an artist can make their artwork more interesting.

So artists can use a variety of lines, and you can see these examples here.

I'm thinking about what lines I would choose to use when it comes to drawing a leaf.

Hmm.

We've got straight lines, dotted lines, scuttered lines, curved lines, thick and thin line and scribbled lines.

Now remember, you're the artist, so you're going to be in charge of choosing what type of lines you use.

Sometimes some lines lend themselves better to drawing a leaf than others.

Ultimately, it's your decision.

There's no right or wrong answer.

I do.

I'm going to draw the outline of a simple leaf and inside the outline, I'm going to select and use different line styles to fill each section of the leaf.

I would like you to have a go.

I'd like you to draw the outline of a simple leaf and then inside the outline, you're going to select and use different line styles to fill each section of the leaf.

You might choose to use dots for some of your section or you might choose to use thick and thin lines.

It's up to you.

You can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So how did you do? Well, you may have created something quick, something like this.

Here, you may have noticed that certain lines, like thick line or dots, make parts of the drawing stand out more, while dotted or thin lines give a more softer look.

Well done if you managed to experiment using those lines.

Let's move on.

Now, when the organic and geometric shapes are in the right place, we can begin the outline.

An outline gives us a more precise shape of the object we are drawing.

We can use the shapes we have drawn to guide our outline.

Sofia is thinking about her outline.

She says, "I will begin by sketching the outline using my shapes to guide me." I think that's a good idea, Sofia.

I would do the same.

She then says, "I can then draw a solid line.

A thicker line will make my outline stand out." I agree, I think that's a good idea.

Have a look here.

So using thick and thin lines for the leaf's outline makes it stand out.

So if you want to achieve this effect, you're going to start softly, and what that means is, you're not going to apply that much pressure when you are drawing your line.

You're then going to start building layers.

Once you've done that, you're going to define the edges lightly.

So you're going to go back to the edge with your pencil and then decide where you're going to apply that pressure again to make that part stand out.

Now remember, you may find that after adding layers, certain parts may need more defining, and that's absolutely fine.

You can go back and apply more pressure with your pencil to make those parts stand out.

So thin lines work well for details like veins.

Sofia says, "I can decide when to use thick and thin lines to make my leaf look more realistic." So you might find that the edges of your leaf might have thicker lines and that the veins of your leaf will have thin lines, and one way to achieve that is to use lighter pressure when creating those lines.

Over to you.

Look at the drawings of leaves below.

Which drawing has used thick and thin lines? Pause the video here and click play when you've got the answer.

So what did you get? If you got C, you are correct.

In this example, leaf C has used both thick and thin lines and actually, it makes it stand out.

All three images show a picture of a leaf, but personally, I think C stands out more because of its use of thick and thin lines.

I can also see dots that have been used as well.

So using thicker lines helps to make parts of the leaf stand out more.

Let's move on.

Follow the steps below to create an outline and the details of a leaf.

You're going to have to observes the shapes carefully.

So you're going to draw the geometric shapes you can see in the leaf first.

Now remember, in most cases it might mean using circles and triangles, and you're going to draw them lightly.

Next, you're going to draw the organic shapes within the leaf.

Look at your drawing.

Is everything where it should be? And then afterwards, you're going to explore using different line styles to create your leaf.

You can pause the video here, off you go and once you're ready, click play so we can move on.

So how did you do? You may have drawn something like this and you might have used geometric and organic shapes to plan your drawing first.

And we can see here that thick and thin lines have been used, particulary in the second drawing.

We can see that for the outline, a thick line has been used and it's been used for some of the veins as well.

This really makes the drawing stand out.

Well done if you created your drawing of your leaf using organic and geometric shapes and various line styles.

Last, you may have used different line styles to create your outline and lastly, had a few goes at getting your shapes in the right place.

Now we're going to move on to our second lesson cycle.

In this lesson cycle, we're now going to be looking at adding details by applying tone and shade.

Now, tone is how light or dark something is.

In drawing, we can use tone to make the drawing look more three-dimensional.

We can describe the tones by using the terms dark tone, mid tone and light tone.

So let's have a look at the three tones we see on our screen here.

Starting at the top, we've got our dark tone, and this is when we apply lots of pressure to our pencil.

Then we've got our mid tone and then we've got our lightest tone.

So this drawing uses a variety of lines to create an outline and this drawing includes tone.

Can you see the difference? I have noticed that the drawing which includes tone really brings the leaf to life and it actually stands out more.

If I were to pick which drawing I preferred, I would definitely pick the drawing that includes tone.

Andeep and Sofia look over their drawing.

Andeep says, "I think my sketch could look better if I apply tone to make it look less flat." Sofia says, "Maybe adding some softer, lighter areas will make it look more realistic." I have to agree with Sofia.

I think she's onto something.

Now, to spot the darker tones of a leaf, look for places where light doesn't reach as much.

This can usually be found in between veins, along the edges, under the leaf and there may be certain shaded areas because of the texture of the leaf.

Over to you.

With your partner, carefully observe a real leaf.

Look closely together to identify the light tones and the dark tones on the leaf.

You can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you discuss? You may have said something along the lines of this.

Along the edge, you've got some light tones.

On the stem you've also got some light tones.

And then on the vein, you can also see the light tones.

So where the leaf is slightly blocked from the light, that's where your shaded areas are formed, and this is where your dark tones come in.

I do, I've selected one section of my leaf.

I'm going to gently apply light tones.

Then I'm going to add a little darker shade to create the mid tone and lastly, I'm going to add my darkest areas by using dark tones.

I'd like you to have a go.

You can pause the video here to have a go at adding your tones.

Now remember, start off with your lighter tones first.

This will make it easier to then layer the dark tones on top.

So how did you do? Well, you may have got something like this.

Starting with light tones and less pressure makes it easier to build in shadows using mid tones and dark tones.

Well done if you managed to tone one section of your leaf.

Let's move on.

Andeep and Sofia look over their drawing.

Andeep says, "My leaf drawing is looking more realistic.

I added some shading so it looks much more like a real leaf." Sofia replies, "I am thinking of adding colour to my drawing.

I could use darker reds where the shadows are.

That way, it'll look more like it's catching light in some spots and darker in others." Hmm, what advice would you give to help improve this shading? You can pause the video here and have a think.

Now, you may have said something like this.

Using different colours helps to create depth and dimension in shading.

So here we've got an example of using a lighter tone and then a mid tone and then a dark tone.

Have you noticed that the colours get darker? So by combining light tones, mid tones and dark tones helps to create realistic shadows and highlights.

So I'd like you to look at your real leaf.

Select three colours to add shading to your drawing.

You can pause the video here.

Once you've got your three colours, click play.

So what did you select? Now, depending of the leaf that you have, you may have selected a creamy colour, then a green for the base and then a blue for the shade or you may have had a leaf that had more warmer colours.

So again, you may have selected warm tone colours and you can see that it's starting off with a lighter colour and it gets darker.

Now, layering a darker red with hints of orange can make a shadow look warmer.

And we can see that in the examples here.

Can you see how the leaf is beginning to look more realistic? Now, to give your leaf depth, add shading where the leaf might be darker, for instance, where it folds or underneath.

The way you're going to do this, is by using gentle pencil strokes to show the texture of the leaf, especially around the edges and veins.

Now, if I was to do this, I would start off by using my lighter colours first and then layer the darker colours slowly.

I'd also start by applying less pressure, then move on to applying more pressure where the darker parts are.

Over to you.

The darkest areas of a leaf are usually on top where the light hits it the most.

Is this true or is this false? You can pause the video here and click play when you've got the answer.

So what did you think? If you got false, well done and that's because the darkest areas are usually on the underside, in folds or in the spaces between the veins where there is less light.

Fantastic, let's move on.

On to main task for this lesson.

Follow the steps below to apply tone and shade your leaf.

You're going to look at your leaf carefully.

You're then going to add light tones for the brighter parts of your leaf.

Then you're going to add your main colour as the mid tone.

Create shadows by adding dark tones.

You can pick another leaf and try using different colours to experiment.

You can pause the video here, off you go, have fun and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So how did you do? You may have drawn something like this.

By selecting three colours, you should've been able to apply tone and shade to make your leaf look more realistic.

Fantastic work.

Let's summarise our learning.

In this lesson, you learned how to draw studies of plants and leaves.

You are now able to use organic and geometric shapes for the basic structure.

You now know that this makes a more accurate leaf sketch.

You also understand that different line styles can be used to improve a drawing of a leaf.

And lastly, you understand that applying tone and shading can be used to make an observational drawing more realistic.

Thank you so much for joining me in this lesson.

I really hope you liked it.

I look forward to seeing you in the next one.

Bye.