How to draw graffiti on paper: basic principles

Although many people associate graffiti with tasteless vandalism, this is also an art, they can be practiced without breaking the law. "Graffiti" means "writing", this concept was first used in ancient Rome. Today this term is used more freely, but it still generally means literary writing or drawing. Over the years, there have developed distinctive features that can instantly identify graffiti, even if it's an improvisation on a sheet of paper. As in any art, there is no one true way to draw graffiti. You should develop your own style. How to draw graffiti on paper is the first question that faces any novice graffiti artist. Graffiti on the walls is an improvisation in the rarest of cases. It is advisable to have an idea beforehand how this will look in general. Professional graffiti artists have entire albums with sketches, and not all of them are necessarily implemented in "field conditions".

How to draw graffiti on paper with a pencil

Materials and tools. To begin with, you can do only a sheet of paper, a simple pencil and an eraser. But you can cook and markers (to draw thick and thin lines), markers (give a juicy color), colored pencils (do not give a bright color, but contribute to the development of the motor skills necessary for drawing).

Start with the theme of the drawing. All the graffiti look modern and dynamic, but some of them are funny, others are slightly aggressive, and still others seem to say: "Bind on stronger! We gain speed! ". Determine the mood of the picture and mentally distribute the light and dark areas. It is not necessary to achieve the effect of volume, but without contrast, no graffiti will play. Start the drawing, taking care, first of all, that there are not too many details. The abundance and effect of 3D in the drawing is best left until the time when you gain experience. Inspiration can be found in comics.

The first thing to begin with is the structure of letters. It is very important. Before you take up the pencil, you should be aware of how well you understand the scheme of future letters. Very many beginner graffiti artists take a pencil and begin to paint bloated in different directions fantastic letters, in which arrows stick out from different sides. This is not true! Graffiti should not resemble porridge. And that it does not turn into chaos, one's imagination must be disciplined. The structure of letters is ordinary printed or written letters, and if you are wondering how to draw graffiti on paper, you need to start by drawing the most common letters! You can print different fonts by taking samples from Word, and then trying to draw familiar letters in different styles. And only after you have drawn the foundation, you can start creativity. Changes in the letter must follow logically from its classical outline. Avoid absurdities, like: "here I attach the arrow, but here I add smooth lines." "Here" and "here" should be clearly defined, based on the structure of the letter. At first do not get carried away with jewelry - they should be minimal!

The first drawing in the style of graffiti

The training is over, now try to write your first word in graffiti style. To do this, set the drawing area, outlining it with barely noticeable lines from the top, bottom, left and right. This can be a regular or irregular rectangle, it can have smoothly curved or concave sides. It is better to start, of course, with the right rectangle. Then mentally, or with light strokes, determine the space for each letter. Draw the letters themselves - simple, without ornaments, leaving between them enough space for their further detailed elaboration. The simplest design of letters is the bubble style. How to draw graffiti on paper in such a cartoon style? Circle the already drawn simple letters far enough round with a soft and smooth contour, and internal elements - such as the "P" or "B" window, make it very small. Letters will turn out as if they are made of rubber and inflated.

How to draw graffiti on paper in different styles

In fact, there are a lot of styles, and nothing prevents you from coming up with your own. Here we describe several styles for an example.

1. Letters, as if cut down by an ax. One of the most common and easy to learn beginners. In order to draw such graffiti, it is enough to print out the word written in ordinary typeface, for example, Arial Black is bold. Then, focusing on the font, circle each letter with a new outline, increasing some parts of the letters more than others. Letters should become heavy, cumbersome, lines chopped, exaggerated. At the same time, make sure that the letters are stable, as if standing on a pedestal. They should not fall on their side or dance.
2. In the Gothic style with stains of paint. To learn how to draw such letters, you can also print a sample and carefully analyze it. Letters in this font have a predatory, prickly appearance, with sharp protruding parts.
3. Style ribbon. The letters seem to be lined with ribbons, with characteristic creases and folds. A fairly simple option for beginners.
4. Wild is a wild style. Typically, this style is drawn by advanced graffiti artists. The letters are so tangled that they can not even be read, but the drawing looks unusually dynamic.

How to draw beautiful graffiti? In addition to experience, the only thing that is needed for this, no matter how strange it may seem, is moderation. Even the brightest and craziest picture contains one thought and clearly expresses it. Avoid chaos in the sketch, when the viewer does not know what to think. If you take a bubble style, clearly follow it, if you are full of unspent energy, embody in graphite your thoughts about speed, but only about it. And, constantly practicing, you yourself will not notice how gradually your drawings become more complex, but they do not turn into a vinaigrette.