Shading Fundamentals / Drawing with Dramatic Light and Shadow

Drawing is not a talent. It’s a skill anyone can learn. Designed for aspiring painters, graphic designers, illustrators and artists of all types, The Art & Science of Drawing series will teach you the foundation of art and design of all kinds: drawing.

SHADING FUNDAMENTALS is the sixth course in The Art & Science of Drawing series designed to take students from the absolute basics to advanced drawing techniques like perspective drawing and shading.

In this course you’ll learn how to draw with dramatic light and shadow.  All form, no matter how complex, follows a basic set of light and shadow rules.  By understanding how light operates on the fundamental volumes like the sphere, cylinder and cube, you’ll be able to realistically shade basic forms and be prepared to draw and shade more complex subjects.  It’s essential that every artist and creative professional know and be able to use these powerful shading tools and techniques.

This course is a perfect prerequisite to painting and figure drawing.

In this course you’ll learn:

• How to shade basic volumes using dramatic light and shadow.
• How light and shadow operate on fundamental volumes.
• How to recognize and draw fundamental light and shadow patterns including the highlight, core shadow, reflected light and cast shadow.

SHADING FUNDAMENTALS is a remarkable course that will teach you how to draw one day at a time. Here’s how it works: Each day you’ll watch one video lesson that will introduce an essential drawing skill, and then do the recommended practice. 

During this course you’ll create a series of drawing each focusing on a different measuring technique.  By the end of the course you’ll be able to use a wide range of measuring techniques in your drawings.

This course is overflowing with powerful insights into the drawing process and offers some of the clearest, most accessible drawing instruction available.  Many of the tools and techniques you'll learn here are rarely taught outside of private art academies. 

If you're a beginner, we recommend going through the entire series in the following order:

The Art & Science of Drawing:

• BASIC SKILLS / Getting Started with Drawing 
• DYNAMIC MARK MAKING / Drawing with Expression & Creativity
• FORM & SPACE / 3D Drawing & Perspective 
• MEASURING & PROPORTION / Drawing with Accuracy & Precision
• CONTOURS / Drawing with Compelling Contours & Foreshortening:
• SHADING FUNDAMENTALS / Drawing with Dramatic Light and Shadow
• SHADING BEYOND THE BASICS / Shade Any Subject No Matter How Complex

If you've got some drawing experience, feel free to mix and match The Art & Science of Drawing courses to suit your personal needs as an artist! Many frequently asked questions are answered here.

Brent has two drawing books that many students find valuable learning tools to accompany his courses. His first book "The Art & Science of Drawing: Learn to Observe, Analyze and Draw Any Subject" is available in paperback and for kindle. 

Brent's latest series The Drawing Laboratory includes everything taught in the original Art & Science of Drawing courses and far more. It contains many new skills, projects and demonstrations. The first course in the new series is How to Draw: A Beginner's Guide. 

Additional shading tutorials can be found on Brent's YouTube Channel.