Wolves are very common heroes of fairy tales and cartoons. From the earliest years, children begin to be interested: "But how to draw a wolf?" They begin to ask parents, grandmothers, brothers and sisters to draw him this beast.
Are you going to draw a wolf?
What you need to know in order to please your beloved child, and yourself to be satisfied with the work done?
For creativity, you should arm yourself:
- paper, more convenient - A4;
- a simple pencil, it’s better - not the softest and not the hardest (hard-soft - it is);
- good eraser.
Before you start drawing, experienced artists recommend that you study the anatomy of the wolf, view photos and images of this animal, decide on the pose. Novice painters make their sketches from photographs. In this case, the picture does not move, which simplifies the task, the borders of the image are also visible. Any pet dog can be a great model. After observing it, after making some sketches, you can get great experience and understand the anatomy of the wolf. After all, dogs are very similar to wolves in their structure.
What are sketches
So, having decided on the pose, do not immediately work out the subtle details of the picture. To begin with, several sketches should be made: simple forms, proportions in which the animal’s poses, its head, limbs, body are guessed.
Sketches should be what distinguishes the wolf from dogs, foxes and other similar animals.
To make the wolf voluminous, you should once again refer to the collected collection of images, carefully study them. And then - start creating. For beginners, even carbon work is allowed to give the outline the right shape. In school, all means are good. On the sketch, the muscles look like ovals, the bones look like simple lines. Do not clutter the image with excessive details.
It is recommended to separately perform several sketches of the wolf's head, from a variety of angles.
You need to pay attention to the grin, the position of the ears, nose, eyes, learn to correctly transfer the proportions of the head of the wolf. This is how the wolf’s face is worked out. Anatomy of a wolf for drawing is very important if the artist seeks to draw an animal close to reality. The more options he works, the better the animal will feel, his habits, mood, character.
Next, pay attention to the wool. The shine of the wool, the length, the features of the color scheme will help to correctly convey the same photographs and pictures from the pre-prepared collection.
The study of the limbs of the wolf
Next - limbs are worked out. Knowing the anatomy of the wolf's paws will help to correctly convey the pose of the animal.
This will help create a wolf in the picture more alive, real. It is necessary to make several sketches of the limbs from different angles, in different positions.
Communication with wildlife in drawing
Students of art schools who strive to portray the animal as realistic as possible, study the anatomy of the wolf, visit zoos many times, where they make many sketches from nature. This gives an invaluable experience that will be useful in the future for real artists.
Collect the wolf from the outline
It is necessary to put together all the drafts to get the final result. Realizing that it is a very difficult job to redraw the same limb, or head, or tail many times, some young artists resort to cunning. If they are sure that the anatomy of the wolf, its proportions are thoroughly worked out in the sketches, then the individual parts are collected under a carbon paper or glass.
At the early stage of drawing, it’s not shameful to use cells, so as not to make mistakes in proportions, as well as other people's developments. When assembling sketches of parts of the body of the wolf, do not rush. Before you take any step, you must very carefully look around, determine the exact position of a particular part of the body.
Do not be upset if the anatomy of the wolf is not immediately given, biology is not their lung science. If you don’t give up and continue to work, using all of the above tricks and tricks, then you can certainly achieve the desired result. To do this, add shadows to the image. Usually begin with the nose, cones under the paws. Work with a pencil at an angle that can later be wiped with a simple piece of paper, using it as a palette. Then proceed to the separation of paws among themselves.
Giving volume to the body of the wolf
When all parts of the body of the wolf are assembled together, it's time to start transferring the long-awaited volume. Anatomy of the wolf for the artist plays a key role. All unnecessary lines are erased, wolf fur is added. In the process of coloring the wolf with the help of light and shadow, volume is given to the figure. In nature, there are no clear outlines, angles, the rule of the lines of three-dimensional figures works: bold-bold-thick-thin-almost-transparent-thin-thick-bold-bold. The parts of the wolf located in the foreground are drawn more clearly, in the background - more gently.
These are the advice of professionals who will help to achieve excellent results in drawing.
Tips for Beginners
Beginning artists who want only to try their hand can be armed with a pencil, eraser, a sheet of paper and a photograph of a wolf.
- Three circles are drawn on the diagonal of the sheet, relatively close to each other. The largest circle is in the middle, the other two are smaller.
- On the first lap, ears and jaws are schematically indicated. From it will be built the head of the beast.
- Next, you need to make a conditional image of the limbs: the two front legs with sticks are designated coming from the middle circle, and the other two, hind legs, from the third. From here the schematic designation of the tail is made. If, according to the artist’s idea, the wolf should bend its paw, then the bent joint is schematically indicated by a circle. It is worth thinking about the surface on which the wolf will be located. Whether it is snow or grass, they can hide part of the limbs.
- The most difficult thing is to outline the legend, giving the animal the right shape.
- Erase circles and sticks that have already performed their function.
- To give the wolf the appearance of a predator, it is necessary to properly work on its sharp mouth, nose, eyes and ears. It is these details that can convey the emotions of the wolf as well as possible.
- The final touch on the wolf’s head is the hair of a predator. She is also able to convey the emotional state of the animal (disheveled, on end, or smooth, silky).
- Next, you need to cover the entire body of the animal with thick gray hair. This is done with quick, simple strokes. The hand should move clearly and confidently. The drawing can be revived with paints or modified with a pencil, as you like. The color of the wolf is mainly gray tones with elements of white, black and sometimes a reddish hue. When painting a wolf, do not forget about the time of year. So, in winter, wolves are lighter than in summer. This nuance is very important. Eyes are very expressive, most often yellow, sometimes with a greenish tint.
Drawing a wolf is never too late
In conclusion, I want to say that it is never too late to start drawing. The main quality of the future artist is desire, as well as a sufficient amount of time, effort and patience. Do not despair, if you can’t get it the first time, feel sorry for the time spent, paper and pencils. Important - do not quit what was started. Over time, the hand and eye will feel the volumes and proportions, wonderful pictures will be obtained. All great artists began with sketches and sketches.