Drawing and sketching

Drawings are often made as preparation for something else. A sketch is a quick study of a subject or of a whole composition, typically done ahead of a more detailed, finished work. An underdrawing is the first outline set down on a primed surface to guide the paint; it can stay visible, or show through again later. A cartoon (from the Italian cartone, a large sheet of paper; here not a comic) is a full-size drawing on paper, usually detailed, made as preparation for a painting or a tapestry. A drawing can also be appreciated as a finished work in its own right. Different materials leave different kinds of line. Graphite, in pencil form, leaves a mark under the lightest pressure and can be rubbed out with an eraser. Charcoal is less exact than hard pencils, so it suits looser studies, and it smudges easily. Red chalk arrived in the late 15th century and was preferred by High Renaissance artists. In Japanese, 素描 (sobyō) is used alongside デッサン (dessin, the French word for drawing) and ドローイング (from the English “drawing”). The National Museum of Western Art's permanent galleries include the Prints and Drawings Gallery (版画素描展示室).

Find where the lines are densest and where the surface is left bare, and look for smudged or shaded areas between them.