How can something so wrong be so right?
Because you enjoy looking at this drawing you may not immediately see that the shadows are all wrong. How are the shadows wrong? Can those horizontal scratches even be called shadows? No, they’re not shadows in the sense that they help define the roundness of the figures. Yes, they evoke the idea of a shadow.
When you’re looking at this, the “shadows” trigger in your mind the association to three-dimensionality and that’s so satisfying to you that you don’t look more critically. You don’t even want to look critically because your mind is seduced by the rhythm of the composition. Those “shadows” emphasize the rhythm. Rhythm in any work of art is hypnotic. Your mind likes the hypnotic state.
Compare the above, second, drawing of this motif to the artist’s first version. Your mind is now functioning differently. It’s now
examining the figures for literal accuracy. A drawing tells you how it wants to be looked at. This drawing wants to be looked at as an illustration.
Now go back to the “shadows” version and you’ll notice that your mind has just switched to a different mode. Your expectations are different. You’re not looking for an illustration of anatomy here. Instead you’re struck by the total effect. You’re not analyzing, you’re experiencing the whole. You’re having an aesthetic experience.
Drawings by Jeanne Mueller
The photo we worked with was taken from a book of old photos called “The Way We Were.”
All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.
artamaze by Katherine Hilden 
Great inspiration. Thanks for the posts.
Nice to hear from you, Michael. I hope you’re still drawing.