Beyond an Exercise
The blind contour is straightforward. Eyes fixed on the subject, a pencil is placed on the paper and the contour of the subject is followed without lifting the pencil off of the paper. Once the details are documented, the result is an amalgamation of lines that resemble the subject, albeit abstractly. Blind contouring is usually presented as a drawing exercise, used primarily to improve hand-eye coordination and train the eyes to see rather than remember. Often, blind contour drawing is the first form of drawing presented in introductory life drawing classes. Though traditionally it’s required that the pencil maintain contact with the paper the entire time, variations exist that allow the artist to lift the pencil off the paper multiple times. Both have particular benefits and yield a distinct visual result.
Beyond an exercise, blind contouring has a lot to offer as an art form. Seeing a complex object as a single line requires us to compress the object’s visual information and allows us to see what lines and edges differentiate it from the rest of the world, while maintaining eye contact with the subject limits improvisation and eliminates pressure to make ‘good’ or realistic art. This combination leads to a unique result, with a simplified but detailed drawing that is both an abstraction and direct representation of the subject.
Blind contouring is a pressure-free way to document and make sense of an absurd world, making it the ideal pandemic exercise- even if it’s more than that.
