How to Draw Orchids
Select a healthy-looking plant with several buds yet to open., Turn your plant around to determine its best angles., Select your drawing materials., Choose the size., Start with a gesture drawing of the plant., Plan the placement of the plant for...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Select a healthy-looking plant with several buds yet to open.
Orchids are often available at florists, over the internet, or even at some grocery or home improvement stores.
Do not collect orchid plants from the wild, since they will not survive out of their habitat! -
Step 2: Turn your plant around to determine its best angles.
Draw it from different angles, and maybe take some photographs for later reference. , What medium do you mostly use? Pencil, pen and ink, colored pencil, gouache, scratch board, watercolor, pastel, oils? Select that which works best for you. , What size do you want your completed piece to be? Do some preliminary sketches (artists call these 'thumbnails'
drawings about 4" by 5"), to work out composition of light, medium and dark values, but not any details.
A full-size drawing on tracing paper is ideal.
It's much less expensive per piece than the paper the finished piece will be on and it's easy to layer if you decide on completely changing the composition halfway through the initial drawing! , Delineate the main line of the flowering stem, going down to where it inserts by the leaves (with some species the flowering stems emerge from the middle of the new growth, sometimes from the base of the plant; every species is different).
Then very carefully draw the leaves, since they move around the least.
Note the midrib, how it inserts further down into the core of the plant, whether the leaves wrap around each other, and any identifying features of the leaves and base of the plant, such as pseudo-bulbs and roots.
Carefully draw the buds, noting dimension and being careful about proportions, and, working down the stem, drawing the flowers each in turn.
If you feel that the flowers won't last long at this point, take some close-up photos and spend the time drawing and painting the flowers
- the leaves will hopefully stay green and fresh for a long time after the flowers have faded! , Make sure you leave enough paper or canvas around your subject to go under the mat or frame.
Look at the positive (image) and negative (empty space) shapes.
Are they in balance? Interesting? Consider how the viewer's eye moves around the image! , Some watercolor papers need to be stretched too. , Do this by sandwiching a piece of graphite transfer paper (available in art supply stores or you can make your own) between the tracing paper preliminary drawing and the canvas or paper, then carefully tracing over the tracing paper drawing with a fine ball-point pen. (This is a good use for one that is used up, too) The graphite from the transfer paper is transferred by the pressure of the pen onto the paper underneath it.
Make sure your tracing paper is taped down securely so the image does not shift.
Lift carefully just to check.
If the transfer paper lines are a bit too dark, you can lift them a bit by gently pressing a grey kneaded eraser on top of them and lifting until you get the right value of line.
If you are working on paper, try not to erase any lines because that will abrade the surface, making your results uneven. , Cut a window a few inches square in the tracing paper 'shield' so that you can work one area at a time in that square.
It works well to tape the tracing paper down near the edges of the good paper so that the papers don't rub together. (If you are right-handed, work from upper left to lower right.
A left-handed artist would work from upper right to lower left.) Very carefully lift up and move the tracing paper 'window' from one area to another, trying not to smudge the drawing underneath.
When you are painting, you have to be more careful, and often use larger-sized 'windows'.
The tracing paper technique doesn't work with oil or any other slow-drying media, since the paper can stick to the wet paint.
Only use this for egg tempera, watercolor, pen and ink or gouache and don't move your tracing paper window until the area you completed is fully dry. , When you feel you're almost finished with the piece, take the tracing paper 'window' off and put the painting or drawing in front of a mirror.
The image will be reversed and will often show up any design, value, or color flaws.
Go back to the drawing board if need be and make any required changes. , Sometimes it helps to put it away for a day or so.
If you are very pleased with the work, put it in your portfolio or in a frame and submit it to any of several exhibitions.
If not, it's back to the drawing board.
Do you need a better excuse to go buy a new orchid? -
Step 3: Select your drawing materials.
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Step 4: Choose the size.
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Step 5: Start with a gesture drawing of the plant.
-
Step 6: Plan the placement of the plant for your painting.
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Step 7: Prepare your surface for work: stretch an oil or acrylic canvas
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Step 8: choose your paper or board for any other media you prefer.
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Step 9: Transfer the drawing
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Step 10: once you're completely satisfied with it
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Step 11: onto the intended surface.
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Step 12: When your outlines are correct
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Step 13: do your painting or drawing of your subject
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Step 14: working from lightest areas to darkest areas
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Step 15: and protecting the paper by putting another large piece of clean tracing paper underneath your hand.
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Step 16: Work from light to dark
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Step 17: as mentioned before.
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Step 18: Finally
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Step 19: place the completed work in a mat - usually white or cream - and take another look at it.
Detailed Guide
Orchids are often available at florists, over the internet, or even at some grocery or home improvement stores.
Do not collect orchid plants from the wild, since they will not survive out of their habitat!
Draw it from different angles, and maybe take some photographs for later reference. , What medium do you mostly use? Pencil, pen and ink, colored pencil, gouache, scratch board, watercolor, pastel, oils? Select that which works best for you. , What size do you want your completed piece to be? Do some preliminary sketches (artists call these 'thumbnails'
drawings about 4" by 5"), to work out composition of light, medium and dark values, but not any details.
A full-size drawing on tracing paper is ideal.
It's much less expensive per piece than the paper the finished piece will be on and it's easy to layer if you decide on completely changing the composition halfway through the initial drawing! , Delineate the main line of the flowering stem, going down to where it inserts by the leaves (with some species the flowering stems emerge from the middle of the new growth, sometimes from the base of the plant; every species is different).
Then very carefully draw the leaves, since they move around the least.
Note the midrib, how it inserts further down into the core of the plant, whether the leaves wrap around each other, and any identifying features of the leaves and base of the plant, such as pseudo-bulbs and roots.
Carefully draw the buds, noting dimension and being careful about proportions, and, working down the stem, drawing the flowers each in turn.
If you feel that the flowers won't last long at this point, take some close-up photos and spend the time drawing and painting the flowers
- the leaves will hopefully stay green and fresh for a long time after the flowers have faded! , Make sure you leave enough paper or canvas around your subject to go under the mat or frame.
Look at the positive (image) and negative (empty space) shapes.
Are they in balance? Interesting? Consider how the viewer's eye moves around the image! , Some watercolor papers need to be stretched too. , Do this by sandwiching a piece of graphite transfer paper (available in art supply stores or you can make your own) between the tracing paper preliminary drawing and the canvas or paper, then carefully tracing over the tracing paper drawing with a fine ball-point pen. (This is a good use for one that is used up, too) The graphite from the transfer paper is transferred by the pressure of the pen onto the paper underneath it.
Make sure your tracing paper is taped down securely so the image does not shift.
Lift carefully just to check.
If the transfer paper lines are a bit too dark, you can lift them a bit by gently pressing a grey kneaded eraser on top of them and lifting until you get the right value of line.
If you are working on paper, try not to erase any lines because that will abrade the surface, making your results uneven. , Cut a window a few inches square in the tracing paper 'shield' so that you can work one area at a time in that square.
It works well to tape the tracing paper down near the edges of the good paper so that the papers don't rub together. (If you are right-handed, work from upper left to lower right.
A left-handed artist would work from upper right to lower left.) Very carefully lift up and move the tracing paper 'window' from one area to another, trying not to smudge the drawing underneath.
When you are painting, you have to be more careful, and often use larger-sized 'windows'.
The tracing paper technique doesn't work with oil or any other slow-drying media, since the paper can stick to the wet paint.
Only use this for egg tempera, watercolor, pen and ink or gouache and don't move your tracing paper window until the area you completed is fully dry. , When you feel you're almost finished with the piece, take the tracing paper 'window' off and put the painting or drawing in front of a mirror.
The image will be reversed and will often show up any design, value, or color flaws.
Go back to the drawing board if need be and make any required changes. , Sometimes it helps to put it away for a day or so.
If you are very pleased with the work, put it in your portfolio or in a frame and submit it to any of several exhibitions.
If not, it's back to the drawing board.
Do you need a better excuse to go buy a new orchid?
About the Author
Jerry Murray
Specializes in breaking down complex organization topics into simple steps.
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