Drawing as Expression: Techniques and Concepts

Drawing as Expression: Techniques and Concepts is designed to guide students through their very first college-level drawing course. The text presents key techniques and concepts of drawing paired with illuminating discussions of works by professional artists and practical exercises that help students learn by doing. Finally, the text encourages students to move beyond techniques and concepts and toward creative expression. They are challenged to experiment and invent new forms of drawing.

Each lesson is clearly written with precise instructions to well support students with little to no background in drawing. The exercises reflect projects a drawing instructor might assign to students to support their classroom lessons. Detailed diagrams, artist profiles, and easy-to-understand directions foster learning and artistic exploration. Dedicated chapters cover gesture drawing, line, the importance of light and dark, perspective, and texture and pattern. Students become familiar with drawing portraits, figures, drapery, and landscape. They explore color and modern art, contemporary drawing, and media.

The third edition features updated or new art critiques, images, and artist profiles. Each chapter ends with a journaling focus to help students further develop their understanding of the possibilities for drawing.

An engaging and approachable introduction, Drawing as Expression is a valuable resource for foundational courses in art and drawing.

Sandy Brooke is an accomplished artist and was an associate professor of fine arts at Oregon State University for 25 years. She received her B.F.A. and M.F.A. from the University of Oregon. Since 2010, Sandy's work has been featured in 19 juried shows of which five were nationally juried, fifteen by invitation, and six solo exhibitions-one at Dakota State University, three in Bend, Oregon, and one at The School of Mines in Rapid City, South Dakota. She is the author of Hooked on Drawing and Hooked on Painting. Her current paintings are oil on linen focused on climate change in the Arctic. To see her work, visit sandybrooke.com.