Our gestures express our identity. Whether in our handwriting, our gait, or the movement of an arm while talking, folks who know us recognize us as quickly by our gesture as by our voice. Gesture is a powerful communicator and an authentic expression.
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| Gesture drawing by Rembrandt van Rijn, circa 1635 |
Gesture is movement. Gesture is rhythm. Gesture drawing is quick drawing capturing that rhythm. The subject itself might not be moving, but our eyes are in perpetual motion as they scan its visual makeup. Long, subtle curves cause our eyes to move more slowly, short abrupt curves, faster. We zip right along straight lines and leap from segment to segment when a line changes direction. Just as our bodies move in dance to the rhythm of music we're hearing, our pencils dance to the movement we see.
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| From Dianne's Sketchbook "Watching baseball..." |
The 17th century Zen sage Hui Neng said, "Your treasure house is within; it contains all you'll ever need." With pencil and blank paper in hand, you can feast your eyes on whatever happens to be right in front of you. You can see the rhythm in whatever that is and you can let your pencil dance on that paper to the rhythm you're seeing. This is for you. Not for you to show, but for you to just be with. This will free you into drawing.
