How to Draw on a Paint Canvas
- 1
Select a soft graphite pencil. The hardness of the graphite, indicated by the number on the pencil, should be 0 or 1. Make sure that a fair amount of graphite is exposed at the end, but the end should not extremely sharp. If it is, run the pencil lightly back on forth several times on a piece of paper to dull the point without blunting it too much. - 2
Place your pencil on the pre-gessoed canvas and draw your basic major shapes. Rough out the general composition and layout of the painting in simple shapes. For instance, if the main subject of your painting will be a horse, mark this out by lightly drawing a skeletal frame of a horse, consisting of two large circles for the hips and shoulders, bent lines for the legs and a large oval with a smaller oval in front for the head. Rough out any background shapes like trees with quick vertical lines or cylinders. - 3
Add more detail to the drawing on canvas. If you are drawing people or animals, add their facial details as well as expressions. You don't have to worry about erasing any guidelines or creating a perfect drawing because you are simply going to use these lines as a framework for your painting. When you have finished roughing out all the details, you can tackle the painting with a firm foundation in place on the canvas.
