Traditional Territories Acknowledgement
(Land Acknowledgement)

It is particularly important for this drawing assignment in Drawing Studio 1 (Assignment 1: Exterior Drawing Assignment) to include a Traditional Territories Acknowledgement, as it will depict images of land entirely within Treaty 1 territory, located on the University of Manitoba campus. Additionally, it is a good way to start the course.

“The University of Manitoba campuses and research spaces are located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Ininiwak, Anisininewuk, Dakota Oyate, Dene and Inuit, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Métis.

We respect the Treaties that were made on these territories, we acknowledge the harms and mistakes of the past, and we dedicate ourselves to move forward in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of Reconciliation and collaboration.”

Here at the School of Art and at the University of Manitoba, this Traditional Territory Acknowledgement is a reflection and expression of gratitude that recognizes the Indigenous land we occupy as a community, while promoting a shared commitment to understanding historical events that have led us to the present day.

Starting Assignment

Drawing Supplies

18 x 24 inches cartridge paper pad
Pencils (for line drawing)
Drawing board
Bulldog clips to prevent paper from being blown off the board by wind
Kneadable eraser
Layers of appropriate clothing for drawing outside
(Optional) Small portable chair, stool, or cushion for outdoor comfort
(Optional) Tracing paper, recommended for students who may struggle with proportions or perspective
(Optional) Plastic sheet to sit on if the ground is damp

Steps for Drawing Exterior Line Drawing Assignment

(Assignment 1)

Where to Sit near Art Lab

Select an area that will provide a strong sense of deep space and subject matter that shows a progression of space from foreground to middle ground to background.

Choose a viewpoint for your composition that includes some built environment subject matter (buildings, road, light posts, etc.) as well as some natural environment subject matter (trees, bushes, grass, etc.).

Set up close to the Art Lab building and make sure the instructor knows where you are located before you begin. If you are too far away from the group or do not see anyone else from the class nearby, you will most likely need to move closer to where the group is working.

How to Start Drawing (Early Stages of the Drawing Process):

1. Review Examples

Look at online examples (here in this assignment posting below) of line drawings that effectively depict deep space.

Use these as references to guide your approach and compositional choices.

Continue to review examples through the various drawing stages of the assignment.

Notice that there is no shading in this assignment. The assignment examples present subject matter depicted through variations of a flowing continuous line with different levels of line thickness and line darkness.

2. Select Subject Matter

Choose a scene or subject that clearly shows foreground, middle ground, and background.
Ensure each spatial zone (depth of field) is distinct while remaining visually connected in the overall work.

3. Lightly Map Out the Composition

Begin by drawing lines lightly.
Start with a basic shape in the center of the composition (2D design approach to proportions).
Compare proportions outward from the center to help establish the foundations for creating a three-dimensional illusion.
Roughly sketch the overall composition so that it describes deep space with accurate proportion and perspective (ask instructor for assistance)
Keep your lines fluid and light, avoiding the use of a ruler. Fluid, wiggly, and light lines are strongly encouraged and flowing lines in general are required to maximize the success of the assignment.

Remember, mistakes are inevitable and part of the process, so always draw lightly. When a mistake happens, just restate and try to compare lines instead of erasing all the "wrong" lines. You are encouraged to get a little messy and sketchy with the light fluid lines.

4. Check for Overlapping to Clarify Depth

Continue with light lines to ensure slightly overlapping shapes and elements as they move from foreground → middle ground → background.
This overlap will help strengthen the sense of spatial progression.

5. Refine and Clarify

Check that your overlaps and placements reinforce the depth of the drawing.
Adjust as needed so the three spatial zones (depth of field) are clearly understood and ready to depict.

Middle to Later Stages in Drawing:

1) Ensure the drawing has all forms carefully and lightly drawn out, with a progression of shapes from foreground to middle ground to background, clearly laid out with some slight overlapping of shapes.

2) All proportion and perspective problems should be resolved. (If unsure if drawing at this stage is resolved enough, ask the instructor for assistance)

3) Carefully begin to strategically and lightly draw in more detail, progressively with the most detail in the foreground. Progressively, the drawing will need less detail as the drawing progresses from the middle ground to the background areas. The furthest background area will have the least amount of detail.

4) Carefully and strategically, through a drawing layering process (continuing to use fluidly drawn lines), gradually draw thicker and darker drawn lines, progressively becoming darkest and thickest in the foreground and progressively thinner and lighter as the drawing progresses from middle ground to background areas.

The furthest background area will have the lightest and thinnest lines; in many cases, if following process instructions, the drawing will not need any additional layers in the furthest background area.

Note: Generally, when viewing the exterior environment (a landscape scene), it is impossible to capture everything, so what is left out of the drawing becomes almost as important as what is depicted within the drawing.

First Year BFA Students' Assignment 1 Examples:

Above is a completed Assignment, but it is not the designated area on campus where we will be drawing. The tree in the foreground translates colour into grayscale too much, but overall achieves the assignment objectives in the following way:

-Gradually, the line gets darker and thicker in the progression from background to middle ground to foreground in the depth of field, with the darkest and thickest line in the foreground.

-Gradually, the detail in the drawing progresses from background to middle ground to foreground in the depth of field, with the most detail in the foreground area.

In Progress Assignment Examples

Earlier stage of next drawing below

Example of Deep Space

Examples of 1 Drawing at 3 Different Stages:

The 3 images below are examples of a drawing at different stages:

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 5

This drawing at stage 5 presents an exceptional use of flowing (fluid line) hand-drawn line. This work features a drawing that is beginning to exhibit a variation in line thickness, darkness, and detail, applicable across the range from foreground to middle ground to background.

So this drawing begins to develop the required depiction of subject matter, where the darkest and thickest lines are striving to be the foreground and progressively become thinner and lighter as the line depicts forms in the farthest areas of the background.

Beyond some minor proportion and perspective problems in depicting the facade of the building, this incomplete drawing is poised to potentially achieve many of the assignment objectives.

Overall, it is a very good drawing assignment example at the later drawing stages, but the following formal drawing requirements still needs to be demonstrated in the work:

Some adjustments to the proportion and perspective of the building facade
More strategic use of detail in the foreground area
Some more lightly drawn depictions of the deeper parts of the background
Generally, a slightly more expanded presentation in the spatial progression from foreground to middle ground to background would be achieved by expanding the range of detail and line thickness.

Strengths and Challenges of 1 Drawing Below

Shallow Space:

Excellent example of foreground area with exceptional fluid line and detail of plants, but this drawing needed to select a point of view that had a clearer progression from middle ground to background.

An exceptionally drawn depiction of the subject matter in the foreground, but overall, it lacks the depiction of deep space within the composition (the deep background area is not depicted at all).

Strengths and Challenges of 1 Drawing Below

Challenges: The above drawing assignment is nearing completion, but still requires further development in the foreground area. The angled lines of most of the concrete pads could be more horizontal and less vertically angled.

The lines and planes from the concrete pads could also become progressively more detailed, with darker and thicker lines as the pads approach the viewer.

Strengths: The strongest part of the drawing is in the middle ground area. Notice how the building's brick masonry progressively increases in detail and darker, thicker lines in the part of the building wall that is progressively angling closer to the viewer.

Strengths and Challenges of 3 Drawings Below

Challenges: The 3 drawings below show challenges in demonstrating the following requirements:

A strategic use of fluid line
A range of line thicknesses and levels of detail to clarify the spatial progression
Accurate proportion and perspective

These challenges are very common at this stage and can be improved with practice. All examples are by people who are generally new to observational drawing and will benefit from slowing down as they look carefully and depict the subject matter.

Strengths: The strengths of all 3 drawings below include:

Ambitious compositions containing subject matter that communicates to the viewer a sense of spatial progression from foreground to middle ground to background
A strong combination of built structures (architecture) with natural forms such as trees, bushes, plants, and grass.
Evidence of good effort and commitment to the assignment, which shows that even at an early stage of learning observational drawing, students can take creative risks and build a strong foundation for growth.

Example of Deep Space

Earlier stage of next drawing below

Example of Deep Space

Review Links and Examples as You Continue Your Drawing

Objectives for Line Drawing Assignments:

Line Drawing Objectives

The above link offers the grading criteria for assignment 1

Measuring Proportions and Alignments:

Compare the size of one shape to another and consider how shapes and subject matter align with each other horizontally and vertically.

Measuring Observational Drawing from Life

The link above provides examples of measuring with horizontal and vertical alignments using still-life subjects. The same concepts and ways of seeing can be applied to this exterior line drawing assignment. Even though the above link takes you to an example of a still life, the concepts used on the still life can be applied to assignment 1.

You do not need to memorize the information in the two links above; instead, use the information in the two links as a checklist at the beginning and middle stages of your drawing.

Remember, at the beginning and middle stages of the drawing, to keep the pencil lines light and thin! Mistakes are inevitable, but stay focused and be patient with yourself as you draw and develop assignment 1.

Better Assignment 1 Examples

When viewing the assignment examples (above and below), carefully observe how and where they address the Objectives for Line Drawing and where they do not address the assignment objectives.

Generally, the examples below collectively tend to be better than the previous examples, but some individual examples still are missing some of the assignment requirements or are slightly weaker at achieving some parts of the assignment requirements.

1st Year School of Art Students' Assignment 1 Examples Below:

Earlier Stage of Drawing Sept 2008 (almost completed)

Final Stage of Drawing Sept 2008

Detail of the previous image (Final Stage of Drawing Sept 2008)

Excellent composition, with a clear depiction of the progression of shapes from background to middle ground to foreground areas in the drawing. The line quality could be a little more fluid in certain areas, and the metal railing in the foreground could be more distinct by having the line in the closest railing slightly overlap the other railing, or by having the drawing styles (such as a more fluid line and/or thicker line) in that closest railing be more detailed.

A very good depiction of the foreground area, but this drawing needed to select a point of view that had a clearer progression from the middle ground to the background. In this case, having a ground plane (such as grass and/or a sidewalk/road) in the drawing would have been helpful.

A very good drawn depiction of the subject matter in the foreground and middle ground, but overall, due to the same levels of detail in the foreground and middle ground areas and the line thickness and darkness being too similar in the foreground and middle ground areas, causes the spatial depth to slightly flatten.

It lacks the depiction of deep space within the composition (the deep background area has some proportion and perspective problems).

Exceptional beginning to middle stages in the above drawing (drawing incomplete, but presents someone with exceptional drawing skills)

The above drawing provides another clear illustration of the progression of shapes from background to middle ground to foreground areas. The tree in the foreground occupies half to two-thirds of the picture plane, but actually works well in the drawing. This approach to having one shape occupy this much space in the composition is not recommended in the assignment and can generally cause the work to be flat and or uncomplex.

This drawing is quite complex and overall a very good to excellent drawing, but the following could improve the drawing:

To enhance the foreground tree, the lines depicting the tree bark in the center of the tree could gradually have lines that progressively become darker and thicker toward the center of the tree trunk. It is a curved surface that could be better conveyed with this progression of darker and thicker and even more detail on the bark in the center of the tree trunk.

The perspective and proportion in the bricks are off. The bricks are drawn flat because the angle of the progressing bricks is too vertical, and the bricks need to gradually increase in scale as they progress through the space. Some slight line weight changes in the line may also help.

More Assignment 1 Examples

Once again, consider the assignment requirements and the Line Drawing Objectives when reviewing the examples below:

More School of Art Students' Assignment 1 Examples Below:

1st Year Environmental Design Student Drawing Assignments Below (Faculty of Architecture)

Note the light guidelines in the drawing that were put in before the detail and dark lines are drawn in at the later stages of the drawing process

The above image is an example of Deep Space

Some Composition Options near the ART Lab building

(Note that many of the pictures below were taken while standing, so the angles of the sidewalks or roads in people's drawings will be more horizontal since they will be seated on the ground