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Recently I took a figure drawing class from a classically trained instructor.  It had been a while since I had taken a drawing class.  The human form is beautiful, but amazingly complex, and as I stared at the model, then back at the blank paper, I simply did not know where to begin. Thankfully, the instructor came to my rescue.  His first words were “go from the general to the specific” – meaning, first, draw the basic shape of the entire composition,  then the basic shapes of the major body parts, with details coming in at the very end.  This is common art advice, but so often forgotten – I usually find myself drawing little things like eye wrinkles before I even sketch out the basic shapes, only to find out too late that the whole composition has become too large to fit on the paper.

 

General to specific - translation:  “Don’t get hung up in the details.”  As a former bookkeeper, I tend to zero in on details, and even now I often get so focused on little petty incidental issues in my everyday life that I feel overwhelmed.  My husband recently gave me a copy of the book, “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff, by Richard Carlson.  This helpful little book points out that when we are immobilized by the little things, we lose sight of the big picture, making life a lot more complicated and stressful than it needs to be.  I have found that if I keep my attention on the big picture, everything tends to fall into place, and the details tend to take care of themselves – no sweat!

 

So I’m going to keep reminding myself to approach everything from the general to the specific.   Focusing on the big picture instead of all the “small stuff” is a good approach to life, as well as art.