Michelangelo Drawing Studies
Around 1490-1535
When you think of the Renaissance, you can remember the names of the most prominent artists of the period by
thinking of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo and Raphael. Now, these artists
didn’t eat pizza and defeat evil, but their artwork does kick butt. In this package we will look at two of these Renaissance
artists, Michelangelo and da Vinci. We will specifically examine their
drawing studies paying attention to how the artist uses value
techniques and a variety of perspectives to capture the subject matter.
Michelangelo was one of the leaders of the High Renaissance. He was
responsible for very famous pieces such as the ceiling of the Sistine
Chapel and the statue of David. In order to create these masterpieces,
he had to complete many preliminary drawings in order to capture the
figures in the most natural and realistic way. To do this he studied the
human body. He had models pose in a variety of ways to capture the
natural look of the muscles and limbs. He drew from observation
paying close attention to the way the light hits the body. You can see
from his drawings that he examines the figure from different
perspectives. He even crops certain features like the hands and the
feet to capture them in more detail. Michelangelo hid his preliminary
work, as he only wanted people to see the final pieces of art.
Leonardo da Vinci Drawing Around 1452-1519
Famous for The Mona Lisa and The Last
Supper da Vinci created many beautiful
drawings. These are a few of the many
pages from Leonardo da Vinci’s personal
sketchbooks (there were hundreds).
Leonardo was a master of human
anatomy, and he researched the figure
extensively by dissecting bodies and
sketching from observation. Michelangelo mainly observed the figure, but da Vinci studied the insides as well. He looked
at muscles, organs and bones in more than 30 different bodies (including the body of a pregnant woman and an elderly
man) to perfect his drawings. His work is considered advanced for his time, as there was no such thing as x-rays or
scanning. In 2013 his drawings were placed in an exhibition alongside 3D scans and images proving just how accurate his
drawings were in a time with limited technology. The exhibition was called Leonardo da Vinci: The Mechanics of Man.
Making Connections
The Renaissance and GDHS Art
Look at the details captured in the muscles and the
bones. Da Vinci would have examined these in real
life, dissected them and set them up using a light
source to capture the realism. Would you be able
to work in these conditions in order to perfect
your drawings? It took a lot of dedication and
commitment to be an artist in the Renaissance,
and they worked tirelessly to develop Visual Art as
a respected field of study.
Throughout the course we will use practices and
techniques similar to these great artists. We will
be working from realism, using a strong light
source and working with a variety of drawing
technique like blending, hatching, stippling and
figure drawing to build our skills just like the
masters.
Claude Monet Mid to late Nineteenth Century (around 1870)
Claude Monet was not a Renaissance painter like Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, but he was an Impressionist who
created artwork about 300 years after Michelangelo and da Vinci. He rejected the practice of the highly realistic
paintings that we saw in the past, and he was more concerned with capturing the scene as it appeared under various
lighting conditions. He worked en plein air (outside) using quick, loose brushstrokes that captured the “impression” of
the light on the scene. Monet was highly criticised for his technique, as it was considered outrageous to many critics at
the time. Monet is most commonly known for his paintings of water lilies and his loose brushstrokes. While
Michelangelo and da Vinci examine objects from a variety of angles through preliminary drawing, Monet examines a
similar view point under different light sources to explore the effects of light on his subject. He works quickly (half an
hour or so) on many smaller canvases to capture the changing light. We will be combining these ideas in our 1st project
this semester. We will be looking at the effects of light on the objects like Monet, and we will be using highlights and
shadows to capture the lighting from a variety of angles just like Michelangelo and da Vinci. Below you can see the
effects of light on Monet’s popular Haystack series.
Responding to the Work
1. Examine the studies of Michelangelo and da Vinci. What do you
notice about their pencil technique? How does each artist use
highlights and shadow to produce a three dimensional drawing? In
your sketchbook compare and contrast their drawing style. Feel free
to add your own drawings to illustrate the response.
2. Michelangelo’s drawings are beautifully done. Why do you think he
would want to hide them from the public?
3. Take a look at da Vinci’s sketchbook pages. How does he develop his
ideas and organize his work? How can you implement these
strategies into your own sketchbook?
4. Examine the way Monet uses colour to communicate different times
of day, weather and season. How does he work with colour and
create highlights and shadows to form a realistic image?
5. In yours sketchbook, use your drawing pencils to recreate a drawing
(including the style) of either Michelangelo or da Vinci. A small
drawing is fine.
6.
On the same page, use pencil crayons too experiment with colour to
create highlights and shadow just as Monet has done in his Haystack
series.
Now apply what you’ve learned to your 12 Square Variation Drawing and
have fun! This will be submitted with your sketchbook work for this
project, so refer to your rubric for deadlines.