Worksheet 1: Drawing Eyes | Part 1
Renaissance artists begun their training with simple drawing tasks to “get their hand in” as Cennino
Cennini wrote in the Craftsmansʼ Handbook. Apprentices would take simple images to copy which
would allow them to work towards being able to draw the human head and figure in the style and
manner associated with the workshop they belonged to. I have broken down the methods used by
Renaissance artists to draw the human form and here show you how to draw an eye. The eye was a
useful starting place for apprentices because it allows a young artist to learn and memorise a simple
body part which would support them when drawing portraits. Memorising the intrinsic linear design
of something helps you draw more intuitively when working from life or imagination.
1. Start with the shape of the
opening of the eyelids when just
drawing an eye and not the
whole face.
2. Draw the pupil and iris in the
opening of the eyelids,
remembering that part of the iris
and pupil will probably be
concealed under an eyelid. 5. Then carefully draw the start
of the nose and the outline of the
brow to indicate the borders of
the orbital. Go over some of
your lines selectively to darken
them and thus create the visual
3. Draw the tear-duct and the impression of relief and form.
lips of the eyelids connecting to
it. This represents the three-
dimensionality of the eyelids.
In the next Study Sheet I shall
show you how to shade the eye!
Remember to start lightly and
build the drawing up slowly in
4. Draw the outer shape of the layers.
eye around the opening of the
eyelids. This is represented Enjoy drawing and all the best,
through the lines where the
eyelids fold into the orbital Jon
cavity; where the eyeball fits
into.
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