Practices from The natural way to draw by Kimon Nicolaïdes

I feel like I’m going crazy.

This is probably the fifth time I’ve restarted this book. As the title suggests, it is a brilliant book about how to draw naturally, relying on intuition and feeling rather than just “skills.” Whole Earth Catalog once commented that it is “not only the best how-to book on drawing, but the best how-to book we’ve seen on any subject.” I agree with every word, and I would also add that this is a book about willpower. There are tons of exercises, basically about 15 hours of practice for each chapter. According to Nicolaïdes, “I ask that you follow the schedules explicitly because each one has been planned with care and for a definite purpose. You should not even read the succeeding paragraphs until you have spent the time drawing as directed.” Holy shit, that’s why I’ve never had the chance to read Chapter 2. I’ve never finished the homework for Chapter 1.

So, I guess I’m giving up the idea of “learning how to draw” in the traditional sense. Instead, I want to use this book to improve my observation skills and more importantly, to build the habit of doing things slowly and thoughtfully. Can you imagine how long we’ve abandoned those qualities in the name of efficiency and AI tools? I also accidentally looked up opinions about this book online. Some people think it’s total BS, while others think it’s the best drawing book ever written. Like many of the greatest things I’ve experienced, it’s controversial, and I like that.

So I don’t know how long I’ll keep up with these exercises, or when I’ll finally get to read the paragraphs in Chapter 2. For now, I just want to keep a record of my practice without being afraid of imperfection, which means terrible terrible composition and proportion. More than anything, I want to motivate myself and remember to have fun during this tedious and lonely journey.

*For the record, I did cheat on some of the exercises. For example, I just couldn’t possibly finish 25 gestures in 30 minutes, since the fastest I can do right now is about two minutes per gesture, so I reduced the number I was supposed to complete. Also, for blind contour drawing, I’ve never managed to use the full 30 minutes, the longest I can last right now is about 25 minutes, and sometimes only 15. Maybe I should train my left hand more. Another rule that I can’t follow is “Do not use an eraser until you come to Exercise 28”, simply because a part of my ego is tied to my eraser.

**Most of my references/models are from https://line-of-action.com/

***Update on Feb 17th: I’ve finished the exercises from Chapter 1 and can finally officially read Chapter 2!!!!!!!!!

on Feb 22nd: Chapter 2 done!