Page:Drawing for Beginners.djvu/136

 of the bones of the cheek, trace the long nose, the rounded nostril, and the curve of the soft mouth, the lips, and the swelling curves beneath the under lip, then reproduce the softer portions, until you reach the cheekbone again. Mark the position of the beautifully shaped ears, and drop a line from the ear-socket to the socket of the eye, checking this position with that of the brow and cheek. Get the angle of the eye, the lid, the shape of the beautiful eye itself; then give attention to the nostril, which we are apt to inflate too much in our drawings. Notice the softness of the muzzle and the shape of the nostril, and the way in which the fore-part tucks behind the sides.

Having sketched the main features, you can revel in the drawing of the different textures, the luminosity of the eyes, the soft delicacy of ear, nostril, mouth, and muzzle, the muscles and veins seen beneath the skin, the forelock, and the rippling waves of the mane.

Take a full brush of colour and, wiping it to a point, try to sketch a pony galloping, a horse rearing over a fence, or cantering across a grassy meadow. You can do much interesting work by your remembrance of horses in action. Obviously you cannot draw a horse in action from anything but close observation wedded to memory.

Study, too, pictures of horses. Look well at photographs in the newspapers, and copy those with the brush, remembering always the one great handicap of the camera, that the near things are distorted and made to appear too large. (This fact you have doubtless proved often for yourself when photographed with your feet crossed and pointing at the camera, giving the astounding impression that you have the proportions of a well-nourished giant.)

And behold! we have travelled all this way with but a passing glimpse at our most favoured pet&mdash;the dog! The study of dogs is a whole world in itself, from the tiny shivering black toy terrier to the magnificent English mastiff.

Sketches of dogs are inclined to be scrappy, as indeed are all the sketches of our active little friends. But first we