Instruction for beginner artists: how to draw a cat

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

A cat is a great object to draw, although it is quite difficult. A graceful adult animal or a funny, clumsy kitten evoke a desire to endlessly observe and admire. The cat silhouette is distinguished by smooth lines. The emotionality of facial expressions just rolls over. A characteristic feature is the elegance of postures and manners of movement. What else do you need to take up a pencil and draw a cat? How to express an artistic vision will determine the chosen style and the way the drawing is created.

Sketches from life

If you need to develop your powers of observation, there is no better practice than using a live model. How to draw a cat sleeping in front?

The secret of artists number one: the visual image consists only of color spots. They need to be transferred to paper in order to get a reliable image. Lines are just borders between spots or spots of a special shape.

To make sure this judgment is correct, it is worth closing one eye and squinting the other. One eye seesthe world around in two dimensions, and squinting will save nature from unnecessary details.

The order of applying color areas and further development depends on what technique and what materials the artist will use.

So, the model on paper turned into a bunch of spots. To turn them into a cat again, you need to outline the general outline, add small details and deepen the chiaroscuro. At this stage, the quality and realism of the drawing will depend on the experience and skill of the author.

How to draw a cat without a cat?

To gain good technique, it is worth practicing drawing from memory. Drawing the silhouette and details, the artist must apply knowledge of anatomy and perspective. Here you will have to use reference figures: circles, ovals, rectangles and so on. It is better to draw an auxiliary contour with a thin pencil. Fantasy will tell you how to place a cat on a sheet. The main thing is to keep the proportions of the body. The head is small. Neck, back and tail form one smooth line. The trunk expands from the chest to the pelvis. It is important to determine the center of gravity of the cat in order to give it the correct posture.

Draft lines are carefully removed with an eraser. Details are added inside the silhouette: eyes, nose, mouth and more.

Small inaccuracies, asymmetry in small details will help to give the drawn cat character, emotionality and avoid stereotyped averageness. Shadows and highlights will make the image three-dimensional and realistic.

Howdraw in haste?

If you need a cartoony or stylized drawing, reference figures will help even more. It is easy to draw a cat in stages, like circles and ovals connected to each other. Even a child can cope with such a task.

Steps:

1. Here is a cat curled up by the fire. This means that the overall contour will be almost round.
2. Cartoon characters always have disproportionately large heads. Therefore, the oval of the head will take almost half of the large outline.
3. The smallest muzzle circle. It will house the eyes, nose and mouth. It is these details that will determine the character of the beast. Perfect symmetry is not needed.
4. Two triangles are ears up. Only in rage can a cat press them to its head. And this one is sleeping peacefully.
5. A sausage tail completes the look.

Beginning artists are very inspired by the opinion of Bert Dodson that anyone who can hold a pencil can draw. However, success cannot be achieved without constant practice and self-improvement. It is worth trying all the styles and tricks to find your own way. In this regard, animals, and cats in particular, offer a wide field of experimentation.