DRAWING 101
Additive & Subtractive Drawing
Module 6 - Lecture
Additive Drawing
Additive drawing involves building up layers of material or marks to develop the image gradually. Whether using pencil, charcoal, pastels, or any other drawing medium, artists employing the additive technique start with a blank surface or cover the entire work area with a light covering of charcoal, and progressively add lines, shapes, and tones to develop their subject matter.
Additive drawing, in this approach, is very similar to sketching out your subject matter by defining the form and depth. Additive drawing lends itself well to the exploration of light and shadow, as artists can gradually build up areas of tone to create depth, volume, and dimensionality in their drawings. By layering strokes or blending colors, artists can achieve subtle transitions and nuanced effects, enhancing the realism and visual impact of their work.
Subtractive Drawing
In contrast, subtractive drawing involves removing material from the drawing surface to create the desired image. This technique is commonly associated with mediums such as charcoal, graphite, and chalk, where artists use erasers, brushes, or other tools to selectively erase or smudge areas of the drawing to reveal lighter tones or highlights.
The typical approach to subtractive drawing is to cover the work area with charcoal and begin removing the highlighted areas of the subject to add depth and form. The highlighted areas would be the areas on the subject that the light source is hitting, thus adding depth by removing the pigment in those areas.
Combining Additive and Subtractive Drawing
While additive and subtractive drawing are often discussed as distinct approaches, many artists choose to combine these techniques to achieve their desired effects. By alternating between building up and subtracting from the drawing surface, artists can create complex, layered compositions that showcase a diverse range of textures, tones, and visual elements.
Here are two videos showing the combination of the two working together to create some depth in subject matter.
John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) was a vanguard in the use of additive/subtractive drawing. His use of these techniques utilized together popularized the approach during his professional art career. He would even use this approach in his sketching when working out the subject matter for a final painted composition.
In both of the pieces, Sargent uses the subtractive technique to emphasize the light source on the subjects