Blind Contour and Left-handed Drawing 07.09.12

In transit on the way to a conference and staying in an airport hotel. The light isn't very good in the room and there are a limited number of items to draw. Having got caught up too much in looking at the paper rather than the subject in the boxes exercise I decided to have a go at a bit of blind contour drawing - trying to draw a simple subject (in this case a mug) looking only at the object in front of me without looking at the paper.

The results are hilariously inaccurate but I quite like them! I also really enjoyed this little quick exercise and it could be good one to use to 'loosen me up' before starting a bigger project if I'm feeling nervous.

I then went on to explore the mug further making quick sketches with my left hand so I had to concentrate very hard and finally with my right hand. The last sketch is still quite tentative and suffers a lot from too many outer contour lines where I've been trying to correct the ellipses. I'm hoping this will improve as I practise more and more.

Over the following  few days while I was away I did numerous blind contour drawings. I've included a selection of the results. This technique is an effective antidote to looking at the paper too much as occurred with the boxes and books exercise.