Learn to Draw
A downloadable version of this software with more features and exercises can be found here.
This online tutorial includes three types of interactive exercises. The Exercise A includes copying reference cartoons. With exercise B, you will make cartoon-like drawings from photographs; and Exercise C is designed to train visual memory.
There are two ways to do these exercises. You can draw on paper or on the screen, using your mouse. It is somewhat difficult to draw on the screen, because a mouse has a lower precision than a pencil, and because most people are used to draw on paper, but not on computer. On the other hand, drawing on the screen has its benefits. Your result drawings are digital; you do not need any art supplies. You can print as many copies as you like, place your art on your website, attach to your email and so on. Many professional artists including Scott Adams, 'Dilbert' creator, draw directly to the monitor. Which method should you use? Try both. Whichever makes you happier is the right one for you. If you draw on the screen, you can use the exercises interactively, as the program will check your drawing for accuracy and report your score. The higher your score, the more progress you make!
If you draw on paper, you will need pencil and an eraser. You will also need a paper with a grid. The easiest way to make it is to click on the link 'Print grid paper for this project', and print the result page. The cartoon that you need to copy is located on the left side of the page. Most of the cartoon is hidden (the introduction section explains why). You can see only a portion of the cartoon. Copy this visible part into your drawing, click another area of the cartoon to make it visible, copy it and so on. Depending on your browser, you may need to click two times to make any change.
If you draw with the mouse, the program will check your drawing for accuracy! Use the grid on the right from the reference cartoon to draw. There are two buttons there that you can use to select either a pencil or an eraser as a tool. The line width can not be changed; it may be different from the one on the reference, but it will not affect the score. At any time, you can press 'Score' in the right lower corner of the grid, and the program will check your drawing for the similarity with the reference. Each grid cell is scored separately, so you will always know which area needs more work. When you click 'Score', your drawing is also saved on our server. You can bookmark the current page, and return to it in a few days. Depending on your browser, you may need to click on the grid to activate it.
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