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About instructor
Founder of Proko, artist and teacher of drawing, painting, and anatomy. I try to make my lessons fun and ultra packed with information.
DOWNLOADS
project-notan-master-thumbnails.mp4
250 MB
project-notan-master-thumbnails-transcript-english.txt
7 kB
project-notan-master-thumbnails-transcript-spanish.txt
7 kB
project-notan-master-thumbnails-captions-english.srt
11 kB
project-notan-master-thumbnails-captions-spanish.srt
12 kB
ASSIGNMENTS![]()
![Wieke Pierhagen]()
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![Wieke Pierhagen]()
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![@dawnshredder]()
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![Carmen Ciumber]()
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![Chuck Ludwig Reina]()
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![@hampop]()
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![Wesley]()
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![Rachel Dawn Owens]()
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![Mal]()
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![Quinton Larrimore]()
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![David D]()
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![Daniel Cabot]()
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![Paolo]()
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![Patrick Bosworth]()
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![@androida]()
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![@aakerhus]()
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![@aakerhus]()
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![@aakerhus]()
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![@aakerhus]()
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![Rachel Dawn Owens]()
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![Youssef Ateya]()
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![Otis]()
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![Wenhan Lee]()
Level 1: Two to Three Value Studies
In this project, you'll do Value Thumbnails to help you see value relationships and organize them into groups. You'll simplify the drawings into just 2 or 3 values. This practice will improve your ability to observe and interpret values in your drawings.
Thumbnails are small sketches. They are intentionally small to help you avoid drawing details. Don't draw the details! Focus on designing the large shapes and assigning them a value.
Reference
In the downloads, you’ll find several images of master paintings. Use the images I provided, and if there's another master painting you're excited about, feel free to study it as well.
Two-Value Studies
Two-value drawings (Notan) use just lights and darks. You'll choose a threshold: anything lighter goes into lights, anything darker into darks. This threshold is up to you, based on your interpretation of the image.
- Lights
- Darks
Three-Value Studies
Optionally, incorporate a mid value into your thumbnails. The mid value is useful for areas that aren't clearly light or dark and could belong to either group. Including this value helps to categorize those ambiguous areas.
- Lights
- Mids
- Darks
Level 2: Still Life Photos
For more challenge, set up your own still life, compose, light, and photograph it. Use a direct and clear light source to create distinct light and dark areas. Choose a subject that interests you.
Then, do value thumbnail studies from your photo. This is harder since you're working from a photo, not a master paintings, which have a lot of the composing, designing, and simplifying already done. Photos present raw details and noise. You'll need to filter out unnecessary information, focusing on big shapes and value groups. Fight the urge to include all the details.
Remember, this project isn't about beautiful drawings. It's about improving specific skills to help you make beautiful drawings later.
Deadline - submit by Nov 15, 2024 for a chance to be in the critique video!
Level 2: To my surprise I found the notan better that the 3 value study because of its clarity. I expected it to be worse because I'd miss the nuances, but it actually improved my drawing.
Ik found it especially with people as a subject really hard to do the notan, so I did those with 3 values. Also, I found that generally I tend to let the mid value become too light; I went back a few times. I found the waterfall harder that I first thought it would be.
Enjoyed the challenge this one provided. Each one demanded a different level of detail from me so they ranged considerably.Hopefully I didn’t miss the point…
Hi all, this is my assignement. I have a question regarding this exercise with 3 values only. I can draw the objects as they are and then add the 3 values, or i can just identify the values and draw the shapes that define the values but not the objects. What is the correct approach? like my example with the boats - i have one done that is very clear and the same with only 3 values where the boats are not distinguishable anymore becuase the value is the same as the water near the boat. Thanks
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22d
Hello! First off, nice drawings.
For this exercises I find it best to group the values together. This is a skill you will use more and more as you develop your technique. Being able to group values will give you many options and design choices when working on your own pieces, letting you control pace and atmosphere.
Hope that helps! Cheers.
Looking for feedback 👋
This took way longer than I thought it would. And I still feel like I rushed the processor and missed a lot of details along the way.
I decided to use only a single direction for shading lines, but maybe I should have experienced with that more 🤔
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1mo
Great job keeping things simple here. Try more iterations. There’s a ton you could play with here.
What would happen if you made his shirt dark and blended it with the background for instance?
Here are two studies I did. For the Native and horse 3 value study, I feel that I may have unintentionally created more than three values because I ended up getting so lost in the process. I tried to create smooth edges when that was not what this activity is about. I enjoyed creating these and will most certainly be adding them to my personal practice!
2 value study. Looking for critique. Do you think I should try to go even simpler or perhaps add more detail?
My threshold was right in between black and white. After I finished my first attempt, I went over the original image with the eyedropper tool to check its values. I tried to look for the average in an area and then I marked what I think I got right in blue, what I think I got wrong in red, and then what I think could go either way in yellow. I think the biggest mistake I made was with the newspaper in the foreground. On my second attempt, I tried to correct those areas.
I have a couple questions as well.
1.) Are we strictly using hard edges for this section?
2.) The project says we should focus on large shapes, but I have a hard time with smaller shapes. How do draw your smaller shapes? Or, is it too early to worry about that?
For my first go at Notan studies, I went with a 2 value study. By the end I felt like I was more clearly seeing the values of the paintings instead of the subject, form, or shapes. Particularly like the two Sorolla paintings!
I should probably revisit with a 3 value study, but I’ll do that after I watch some critiques and demos. I’m not 100% sure I’m doing this right, but it seems like there’s room for interpretation.
Was fun tough to maintain idea of what was happening in paintings with 3 values some especially the last one, fun practice
I've been studying three of my favorite masters: Zandomenighi from the Macchiaioli movement, Monet, and the Hildebrandt Brothers. I found it challenging to avoid getting caught up in details, and limiting myself to just two values was particularly difficult—I often struggled to decide where to place darks and lights. Still, it was an enjoyable and rewarding exercise that deepened my appreciation for these artists.
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2mo
Nice notans, from some great references, good work! Deciding where to place darks and lights is always the struggle, and the benefit of doing many of these studies! The limitation of two values can be intense, but when you get it to work, it's very rewarding. Keep it up!
Some of them got undeniably messy - but I loved doing these. Mostly done with jumbo size 2B and 4B pencils and then one office-grade pencil that is either B or HB. I picked up the jumbo pencils to try and avoid details but it wasn't the best decision because I lost a bit too much on defining the edges.
I haven't watched any of the critiques nor demos yet and I didn't do the digital editor threshold check on which areas should go to lights and which to darks,wanted to see how badly those'll go wrong with eyeballs only.
Finally finished. Here is Notan study 9 - 13 of 13 references using three values.
The one by Sorolla and N C Wyeth were tricky in this instance, when there is a lot of gradiations, notan studies become much harder. But I got through!
Update; I wanted to make some tiny updates for the man on the table in the Cornwell reference.
Partial submission: Notan study, 8 out of 13 references using three values.
The first one, by Zorn, made sense to relatively easily.
The second one, by Sorolla, was one of those references where it was hard to set a border for how much I should simplify the shapes. There is so much going on.
In the first version, I gave the darker parts in the water the mid value, and in the second version I gave the water and the sky only the lightest value. I am most happy with how the latter turned out.
These are such great exercises on the simplifying of forms, I am getting more and more used to rely on squinting to reveal the simple forms.
Partial submission: Notan study 6 out of 13 references using three values.
It was tricky to avoid getting too much into the details with this one. But I remembered to squint alot and tried to simplify the shapes as much as possible.
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2mo
This is a very good notan value study!
Only an extremely cultured individual would add a Kung Fu Panda's Po reference in between the master studies. Love it! Great work!
Level 1 attempts, both digital and traditional. I only have No. 2 pencils (I draw digitally most of the time so I don't have that much equipment for traditional art). I started out with using 4 values, but then moved on to using 3 values. Feedback is welcome
