stuh505 wrote:Positive and negative space is really a watercolor concept I think, because with waterolors you have to paint darker colors over lighter colors and you can't do it the other way around. So, there are now 2 ways to make a shape -- you could paint inside the shape, or you could paint around the outline of the shape (leaving the shape a lighter color). That's negative painting. Negative space is the space that you leave blank, or, more blank than the rest. You can extend the concept to other mediums but I still think it makes the most sense with watercolors.
I disagree with Vivian that you won't improve without drawing from life. That's simply nonsense, I'm sure you've already noticed improvements from copying 2D pictures. Any artisit will continue to improve drawing only from 2D, but the improvement function is diminishing over time. Any artist will also continue to improve from drawing from 3D, but the improvement function is much less steep in the beginning...I think that you will improve more from 2D at this point, but some time there will come a point when these lines intersect and beyond that point drawing from 3D will give you a faster rate of improvement.
your
copying skills will improve stuh but not your
drawing skills. you are working second hand from someone else's vision. Drawing is about a lot more than mere copying. It's about resolving problems for yourself and not simply mimicking another's solution.
Negative spaces are the quiet bits around objects - the shapes they make between objects and the edges of the piece are important, it isn't a watercolour issue only, it applies to any art or even photography - even to the way print is laid out on a page.
Definitely read some books from the library, search the web, there are some good sites out there
if you visit this link you can sign up for a free newsletter of tips from Marion Boddy Evans - some of her stuff would be useful for your
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