Calligraphic Drawing

CHAPTER THREE

ANIMALS

Let’s move on to the fun stuff. With a quill or two of experience in your cap, we’ll flourish some birds!

THINKING IN SHAPES

Just as you did in flourishing quills, when you start to flourish birds and other animals, think of each part of the animal as its own contained shape—then flourish within each shape.

Pigeon 1

To get started, we’ll work with a reference photo of some pigeons flying through the air. First, let’s simplify these birds into four or five basic strokes. Keep an eye on the curves of each part of the bird because you’ll be dealing with those later.

STEP 1

Here’s what I came up with; does yours look ...