Author: Sharen (22 Articles)

Sharen Chatterton is a talented artist, self-taught in acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and collage.

Gesture Sketches

Gesture drawing is a great way to practice the art of putting energy in your art work. When doing gesture drawing you are trying to capture the movement or energy of your subject, not what it looks like.  Gesture drawing is typically done quickly, capturing the motion or nonmotion, the “gesture”. Don’t get bogged down in the detail, just quickly sketch what the subject is doing.  Someone could be touching their toes, scratching their head, sitting with a book, anything, capture the energy of the subject. Through the use of thick and thin lines, hard strokes or light strokes, you can portray the gesture.  Use exaggerated or distorted lines in your gestures if that’s what it takes to express the gesture.  Practice gesture sketches anywhere, the mall, the park, folks on your favorite TV show, your pets, anything. Just draw!

More gesture sketches