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Contour Drawing

Art
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A drawing method that follows the visible edges and shapes of a subject.

Detailed Definition
Contour drawing trains attention by asking the artist to trace an object's outer boundaries and internal edges with sustained observation. It often produces lines that are direct, searching, and slightly irregular. In poetry, contour drawing can describe writing that follows the visible particulars of a scene without rushing toward interpretation. Such poems let close description reveal character, atmosphere, and emotional pressure through accumulated outlines.
Example
Example in poetry:
A contour drawing follows the outer edges of a subject, and a contour poem can similarly trace a thing through close observation; A poet might describe a hand by following the curve of each knuckle rather than naming the hand immediately; In a contour-style poem, the eye moves continuously around a chair, leaf, or face, recording shape before interpretation; Write one unbroken sentence that traces the outline of an ordinary object from top to bottom
Additional Notes
Contour drawing trains observation by tracing edges carefully; blind contour drawing is done while barely looking at the paper.
Also Known As
Outline Drawing Line Drawing
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