My goals for this project were to firstly, create a believable drawing with a composition which showcases perspective planes well, and also to achieve success with tonal value control.

I went to coffee bean at Plaza Singapura to draw as I liked that cafe. It was indoors so it’s air conditioned, but it was located at a place where there is a lot of natural sunlight from above. I liked the lighting, and there’s always available seats so I decided to sit there and draw my composition. I brought my hard cardboard backing as well to make drawing on an A2 piece easier for me. I did a couple of sketches first somewhere else just to get a feel of drawing people from life, and also to warm up. (at a food court in my neighborhood)

I also used a ruler to draw the counter and shelves, which I now regret as I thought it would make my piece neater, but only served to take away some of the raw element of it. After the WIP feedback session, I went back home to try drawing over the lines without ruler this time.

Shading was the toughest part for me as after the first session. I didn’t have time to go back to Plaza Singapura so I shaded from imagination and online references as well. I had to first decide where I want to place my darkest blacks and lightest whites. The clothes patterns on the people were all designed from imagination and references as I didn’t manage to draw them in on my first session. The signage and stuff inside the glass were mostly from online reference.

Overall, I think I managed to achieve some level of understanding on how tonal structure affects my drawing by making things pop and pull back into the distance. I think I can improve my line work and the way I shade faces though. I spent a couple of nights just on shading alone, so I think I could improve on speed as well.

I enjoyed this course very much and I think Jesse’s lectures/feedback really inspired me to work harder to become a more observant and better drawer. 

Practice sketch

Final Piece