Abstract:

In the learning process of observational drawing, contour drawing is one of the drawing modes that most develops the ability to be attentive. This process is one of the modes considered in the methodological conception developed by Vieira (2009) and was introduced in a pedagogical context by Nikolaides in 1941.

Contour drawing is performed exclusively through lines, which must not be corrected or deleted. The representation falls upon local aspects of the perceived object, which is constructed from the particular to the particular and is developed from one or more points of the image, progressing to adjacent neighbouring areas. The underlying attitude is one of tension, restraint, and control, which corresponds to a perceptive behaviour that is clearly distinct from that of other observational drawing processes.

The practice of contour drawing in a training and learning context promotes the discipline of perception, requiring on the part of the performer a persistent and continuous visual concentration, as well as maintaining the focus of attention on specific areas of the subject. This process gives responsibility to the act of drawing and contributes to keeping attention levels high, as perception is fixed on every particular aspect of the surface, thus disregarding information related to light incidence or colour.

Attention represents one of the most important mental functions of the human being and it is the subject of research by numerous scholars. According to Posner and Gilbert (1999), it is possible to distinguish between different types of attention. In making a contour drawing, the type of attention in question is referred to as “explicit attention”, since the focus coincides with the visual fixation on the contour of the shapes and every subtle change in the surface. Folds, protrusions or joints are observed, memorised and translated into graphic elements that the student makes on paper.

In everyday life, "explicit attention" tends to be automatic. Without realizing it, we move the attentional focus freely around the neighbouring regions of the visual field as we move our head and eyes. In contour drawing, the gaze is fixed on one point of the object to be represented, and then on another, which means that the attentional focus is intentionally controlled. It follows that, in this process of observation drawing, “explicit attention” is a deliberate mental operation, which presents advantages for developing the conscious mastery of the visual perception and manual dexterity required for the production of graphic images.

In order to understand how these skills are important for the beginner designer, several contour drawings made by students in their early learning process were analysed. This analysis showed that most of the assignments carried out have a great vocation to describe plastically and materially the elements that make up the spaces whilst conveying the identity of a place. Therefore, contour drawing constitutes a mode of drawing that encourages the observation and the consideration of aspects related to the properties of surfaces, the materials and the constructive definition of the elements that make up the space.

In view of the above, it can be inferred that the pedagogical practice that includes exercises of spatial representation in contour drawing offers advantages in terms of the articulated and comprehensive development of attention, as well as regarding the perception and the cognition of shape and space.

Keywords:

Observational drawing, contour drawing, pedagogical practice, explicit attention.