Aimee Willsher - The Essential Book of Drawing Animals: The Step-by-Step Guide to Beautiful Artwork

The animal world provides us with a never-ending source of inspiration for drawing, from the exotic and unusual animals we might see in televised wildlife documentaries to the familiar domestic pets that share our homes. Their forms range from simple to complex, so animals are a great place to start when embarking upon your drawing adventures.

The biggest stumbling blocks when learning any new skill are the initial fear of making mistakes and the worry that you wont live up to your own expectations. We are all human and its difficult to avoid these anxieties, but with a little help and explanation, a new discipline such as drawing becomes a breeze! Hardly anyone would be intimidated by the thought of making a representation of the humble goldfish, for example, so there are plenty of opportunities to start small. Once your confidence grows youll think nothing of sketching more complicated animal forms and youll probably seek out the most testing subjects to stretch your newfound skills.

In this book Ill explain the discipline of representing the solid form on a flat piece of paper and show how easy it is to create the illusion of three dimensions. Any form, no matter how complex it appears at first glance, can be broken down into a series of interlocking primary shapes that fit together to create an outline. Paring forms down to their basic simple elements makes the process of starting less daunting everyone can draw a square, circle and triangle, so it follows that with a little instruction, everyone can draw!

All you really need to get started is a pencil and some paper, though as you progress and become a bit more ambitious and experimental you will obviously want to expand your range of artists materials.

So, start by equipping yourself with the simple essentials, remember how easily and unselfconsciously you used a pencil when you were a child and begin drawing with optimism. It wont be long before you are determined to tackle almost any subject in the animal world!

There are many brands of art materials and the variety that will confront you when you walk into an art supplies shop may be offputting. However, most essential equipment is inexpensive and therefore there is room for experimentation. You only need a few key materials to enable your techniques to evolve.

Drawing paper is available in a variety of weights and textures. When you are buying a sketch pad, look on the front for a weight grading. The higher the prefixing number, the thicker the paper. For example, 120gsm, or 120g/m2 (75lb) is quite thin but fine for making quick, rough sketches. If you want to start using paint or blending pencil with wet brushes it is a good idea to buy a more robust heavyweight watercolour paper of 300gsm (140lb) as it can withstand water application without curling or perforating. Also look out for the texture or grain of the paper. Paper with a fine grain is perfect for working with charcoal and pastel, because the slight texture gives your medium something to engage with.