Drawing Blind

In some of my classes I use the technique of drawing blind to help people tune into the feel of drawing, the physical sensations of the drawing tool against the paper.  This helps get the focus away from What It Looks Like (which the Inner Critic loves to play with), and onto the physical/material process of drawing.  When you are not concerned with what it looks like, you often surprise yourself with new kinds of marks.  This is not "blind contour" drawing, in which you are looking at the object and drawing it without looking at the paper.  That is another very valuable exercise, but this "blind scribble" does not involve the object.  Just drawing.

These little 9"x12" drawings are like Big Fat Art, only they are small.  That is, they are meant to be drawing/painting explorations, and they can be sort of raw and unfinished looking.  Some may come to conclusion, but the point is to give myself a vast playground for mark making.  This works beautifully as a warm-up exercise, or it can be a regular part of your studio practice.

Because I know you will ask, here are the main materials I am using:
Cheap Drawing Paper (80#)
Paint Markers (for the black and the red)
High Flow Acrlylic, black and red
Paint markers already filled (I used white and turquoise)

See my Favorite Materials for more.

If you want to immerse yourself in this sort of process-oriented drawing and painting, come to Art and Soul in Virginia Beach this fall.  I'll be teaching (among other things):

• Art Therapy for your Inner Critic, on October 2
• Big Fat Art, on October 3
• Drawing Blind, the evening of October 3

See the whole line-up here.