You Can Draw in 30 Days

Mark Kistler, cartoonist and author of the ever-popular Draw Squad and Drawing in 3-D with Mark Kistler, has taught children to draw using his methods for years. In this book, he takes his fun, yet start-with-the-basics approach and offers it up to adults who think they can't even draw a straight line! He promises that yes, anyone can learn to draw if they set aside twenty minutes a day for a month. If you're game, you can grab any old pencil and sketchbook and embark on an adventure that will take you from drawing spheres to tackling the human face! I like the balance of simple form and more advanced skills he meshes together here. Although you begin by drawing a circle, you immediately turn it into a three-dimensional sphere by adding shading. So you skip that whole "drawing a straight line" thing and head straight into the world of 3-D. Lesson drawing subjects progress in difficulty, beginning with the basics: spheres and cubes. From there you build onto the cubes and spheres that you know, creating koalas, roses, cylinders, houses, rippling flags, pyramids, mugs, trees, rooms and cities in one-point perspective, buildings in two-point perspective, and the human eye and face. Each lesson goes step-by-step, with Mark's illustrations showing the student exactly what to add each time and his written instructions are clear, easy-to-follow and entertaining. Many of the lessons are reminiscent of those in Draw Squad, but the pace is a bit quicker, and the subject matter slightly more sophisticated. Lessons often end with a "Bonus Challenge" where you can take your new skill to the next level, and several examples from Mark's other adult students offer inspiration as well. Drawing supplies are minimal, although Mark makes suggestions and recommendations in several lessons. With its 30-day commitment and incremental lessons, I would recommend this one as an introductory drawing course for your high-schoolers, especially if they have not had much drawing instruction in the past.