This is the eleventh in a series of bi-monthly articles about sketching on location. The articles are based on my Sketching on Location Manual. The manual was developed as a series of lessons that I use on my guided sketching tours of Europe and as material in my regular drawing classes. As such the lessons can be part of a regular course or used by individual students as a practical learning guide. If you have not seen the previous lessons starting in the June 2000 issue of Animation World Magazine, it is recommended that you do. The lessons are progressive and expand on basic ideas. It is suggested that you start from the beginning for a better understanding of my approach. If you really want to start at the beginning open with the lessons based on the Vilppu Drawing Manual.

In the last lesson we discussed "Three Dimensional Figures." The main purpose was the use of tone to create the illusion of 3D form, this was one of the corner stones of the Renaissance and a useful tool in expression and as a strong picture making tool.

All drawings in this article are by and © Glenn Vilppu.

Adding the Unseen
Atmosphere, the air around us, is one of the more difficult concepts to understand. Even though the air that we breathe and are surrounded with is transparent, we still need to use it as an element that can be manipulated and made to serve our purposes. The transparent wash is my preferred medium to work with.

The simplest tool I have found to use while sketching is the fountain pen, with brush and water. I have even used coffee and wine on occasion for a wash.

The fountain pen is my favorite because the ink used will bleed when water is applied to it. When using pens with waterproof ink, an extra color wash is needed, and traditional watercolor, or sometimes even coffee as I mentioned, will work.

Many of the drawings in the previous chapter were done with just my pen, brush and clear water.