(LEONARDO DA VINCI)

Brenda Hoddinott

Z-01 ADVANCED: DRAWING ON THE MASTERS

This lesson presents a brief background on Leonardo
da Vinci, and then challenges artists to recreate his
style of contour and hatching lines within a simple
fifteen-step exercise.

The artist ought first to exercise his hand by copying

drawings from the hand of a good master.
(Leonardo da Vinci)

The masters of the Renaissance are no longer living, but many of their works survive and can
serve as extraordinary teachers of classical styles and techniques. The term Renaissance, derived
from the French word rebirth, refers to the diverse changes that occurred within European culture
from the early 14th to the late 16th centuries.
This lesson is divided into the following three sections:
 LEONARDO DA VINCI (1452-1519): This section provides a brief background on one
of the best known artists of all time, and examines one his drawing styles.
 FOLLOWING CONTOURS: Learning to draw is all about learning to see as an artist.
In this section, the goal is to duplicate Leonardo’s style of contour drawing with graphite
pencil.
 HATCHING IN THE STYLE OF LEONARDO: The goal in this section is to add
hatching lines to the contour drawing.
Suggested drawing supplies include good quality white drawing paper, 2H and 2B graphite
pencils, kneaded and vinyl erasers, and a pencil sharpener.

7 PAGES – 20 ILLUSTRATIONS
This lesson is recommended for artists, with beginner-level shading skills, as well as home
schooling, academic and recreational fine art educators.
Published by Hoddinott Fine Art Publishers, Halifax, NS, Canada, 2006
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LEONARDO DA VINCI (1452-1519)

The artist ought first to exercise his hand by copying
drawings from the hand of a good master. (Leonardo da Vinci)

Leonardo, one of the best known artists of all time, was

born on April 15, 1452, in the small Tuscan town of Vinci;
hence his name became Leonardo da Vinci.
Many of my favorite drawings by Leonardo are of the
human face, and demonstrate his obsession with contrasting
the beauty of youth, with the splendor of old age. His
drawing media included pen and ink, brush and ink, red and
black chalk, and metal-point. Metal-point, considered the
ancestor of the modern day pencil, is a small, sharpened
metal rod used for drawing on paper or parchment. Silver
was very popular because it eventually tarnished, and took
on a beautiful luminous brown tonality.

You can learn from the drawings of others who do better

than yourself; and if you are better than they, you can
profit by your contempt for their defects, while the praise
of others will incite you to farther merits. (Leonardo da Vinci)

Many of Leonardo’s drawings combine contour lines with

hatching. Contour lines are formed when the shared edges
of spaces and/or objects meet. Hatching is a series of lines
(called a set), drawn either close together or far apart, to
give the illusion of values. Values are the different shades
(or tones) created in a drawing by various means.

First draw from drawings by good masters done from

works of art and from nature, and not from memory. Any
master who should venture to boast that he could
remember all the forms and effects of nature would
certainly appear to me to be graced with extreme ignorance,
inasmuch as these effects are infinite and our memory is
not extensive enough to retain them. (Leonardo da Vinci)

FOLLOWING CONTOURS
Consider with the greatest care the form of the outlines of
every object, and the character of their undulations. And
these undulations must be separately studied, as to
whether the curves are composed of arched convexities or
angular concavities. (Leonardo da Vinci)

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com
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This contour drawing of horses is rendered primarily with

contour lines. A contour drawing is comprised of lines that
follow the contours of the edges of various components of a
drawing subject. The individual lines in many of
Leonardo’s drawings, especially those done with a pen or
brush, are wide in some places and thin in others.

The eye, which is called the window of the soul, is the

principal means by which the central sense can most completely
and abundantly appreciate the infinite works of nature.
(Leonardo da Vinci)

Examine a tiny section of one of Leonardo’s drawings (on

the left) of an old man’s face in profile. Find the contour
lines that outline his nose and forehead.
Learning to draw is all about learning to see as an artist. In
the following exercise, the goal is to duplicate Leonardo’s
basic style with graphite pencil (instead of ink). Use the
drawing on the left as the major reference, and view mine
as merely a copy.
The following eleven steps are well illustrated, so you
won’t find any text instructions. Leonardo often did a
preliminary sketch with chalk or metal point before he
drew the outlines; hence, I very lightly sketched the basic
proportions with a 2H pencil before rendering the more
detailed outline with a 2B pencil.

ILLUSTRATION 01-01 ILLUSTRATION 01-02 ILLUSTRATION 01-03

TIP
Keep your sketch lines very light! My lines are so faint that
they are barely visible; however, I used Adobe Photoshop
to darken the images so you can see them.

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com
 -4-

ILLUSTRATION 01-04 ILLUSTRATION 01-05 ILLUSTRATION 01-06

Let proportion be found not only in numbers and measures, but also in sounds,
weights, times, and positions, and what ever force there is. (Leonardo da Vinci)

ILLUSTRATION 01-07 ILLUSTRATION 01-08 ILLUSTRATION 01-09

Learn diligence before speedy execution. (Leonardo da Vinci)

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com
 -5-

ILLUSTRATION 01-10 ILLUSTRATION 01-11

Before you continue
to the next section,
compare your sketch
to Leonardo’s and
make any adjustments
you feel are needed.

I have been impressed

with the urgency of
doing. Knowing is not
enough; we must apply.
Being willing is not
enough; we must do.
(Leonardo da Vinci)

HATCHING IN THE STYLE OF

LEONARDO
As I examined some of Leonardo’s drawings, I found
myself fascinated by his meticulous rendering of straight
hatching lines that are all drawn at the same angle, usually
around 45 degrees (as in this detail of a man’s profile).
Based on his overall style of drawing and a few little
technical idiosyncrasies, Leonardo is believed to have been
left-handed. Also, Leonardo’s diagonal hatching lines are
drawn from the upper left to lower right, and from the
lower right to the upper left. The natural hand movement of
most right-handed individuals is from the lower left to the
upper right (or from the upper right to the lower left).
The goal in this section is to add hatching lines
to the contour drawing you completed from the
last section. The following four illustrations will
guide you through the process of adding
hatching lines.
If you are left-handed, simply keep the drawing
right-side-up as you work. If you are right-
handed (like me), you can duplicate the
authentic drawing style of Leonardo, by simply
turning the drawing sideways as you work.

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com
 -6-

ILLUSTRATION 01-12 ILLUSTRATION 01-13

ILLUSTRATION 01-14 ILLUSTRATION 01-15

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com
 -7-

BRENDA HODDINOTT - BIOGRAPHY

As a self-educated teacher, visual artist, portraitist, forensic artist, and illustrator, Brenda
Hoddinott utilizes diverse art media including graphite, technical pen, colored pencil, chalk
pastel, charcoal, conté crayon, and oil paints.

My philosophy on teaching art is to focus primarily on the

enjoyment aspects while gently introducing the technical and
academic. Hence, in creating a passion for the subject matter,
the quest for knowledge also becomes enjoyable.
>Brenda Hoddinott<

Born in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Brenda grew up in the small town of Corner Brook. She
developed strong technical competencies with a personal commitment to self directed learning,
and the aid of assorted “Learn to Draw” books. During Brenda’s twenty-five year career as a
self-educated civilian forensic artist, numerous criminal investigation departments have
employed Brenda’s skills, including Royal Canadian Mounted Police and municipal police
departments. In 1992, Brenda was honored with a commendation from the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police, and in 1994, she was awarded a Certificate of Membership from “Forensic
Artists International”.
Her home-based art career included graphic design, and teaching recreational drawing and
painting classes. As supervisor of her community’s recreational art department, Brenda hired and
trained teachers, and designed curriculum for several children’s art programs. In 1998, Brenda
chose to end her eighteen-year career as an art educator in order to devote more time to writing,
drawing, painting, and developing her websites.
Drawspace http://www.drawspace.com incorporates her unique style and innovative approach to
curriculum development. This site offers downloadable and printable drawing classes for
students of all abilities from the age of eight through adult. Students of all ages, levels and
abilities have praised the simple step-by-step instructional approach. This site is respected as a
resource for fine art educators, home schooling programs, and educational facilities throughout
the world.

LEARN-TO-DRAW BOOKS BY BRENDA HODDINOTT

Drawing for Dummies (2003): Wiley Publishing, Inc., New, York, NY, this 336 page book
is available on various websites and in major bookstores internationally.
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Drawing People (2004): Winner of the Alpha-Penguin
Book of the Year Award 2004, Alpha - Pearson Education – Macmillan, Indianapolis, IN,
this 360 page book is available on various websites and in major bookstores internationally.

Copyright to all articles, images, text, projects, lessons and exercises within this drawing class belong to Brenda Hoddinott and
may not be reproduced or used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without the written permission of Brenda Hoddinott.
E-mail bhoddinott@hoddinott.com Web site http://www.finearteducation.com or http://www.drawspace.com