1. Marks and lines - Blind contour

For this task, I set a timer for 5 minutes and drew the unicorn mug without looking down at what I was drawing.

This was a very odd experience. I felt uncomfortable not being able to see if my lines joined up (spoiler alert: they didn't) or seeing where I was drawing the negative space for the handle and the mug opening.

I don’t think any of my attempts worked out accurately. None of my mug outlines were complete, as I never managed to finish my line work where I had started it. I either ended up too high, or too far to the right to join up.

The unicorn muzzle proportions seem to have worked quite well, which I can only attribute to the fact that my eyes precisely and avidly followed the outline of the mug as I drew it.

I should have slowed down. I think the output would have been more accurate had I taken more time to draw each shape. I reckon the reason I rushed it was because it felt strange and uncomfortable and, subconsciously, I must have thought it might be over quicker if I drew fast. Sadly, I discovered that this isn’t how the liner passage of time works, and 5 minutes will always last 5 minutes, even if it can feel like hours when you are doing something you are unfamiliar with. In term of taking a more abstract approach to representing the mug, I think this works well. it is easy to identify what the lines are trying to convey, even if they aren’t an accurate depiction. It feels like a deconstructed representation of the negative spaces created by the object.

Both techniques are successful in imprinting the shape of the object as muscle memory. The repetition of drawing the singular line, paired with the unbroken observation of the object whilst drawing, have cemented the shape in my mind as well as increasing the confidence of hand gestures when committing the shape to paper.