Before he did all those lovely line drawings, Matisse would make really detailed charcoal drawings and tear them up. He wouldn't leave them about, he thought of them as working drawings. I understand what he was doing: discovering what's there. And then when you come to use line, if you know what you're looking at, it's much easier to make the line meaningful, to find a linear solution to what you want to depict.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Matisse used detailed charcoal drawings as working steps before making meaningful line drawings.
- In plain terms
- Matisse tore up early drawings to understand the subject before drawing lines.
- What can you take from it?
- Understand the subject deeply before making final marks.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Why is understanding the subject important?
- Does process matter more than product?
Another view
Some artists may find value in preserving their working sketches.
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