The Complete Barnstone Video Series

Whatever your goals may be, the content in the Barnstone Design Method videos will help you achieve them. The methods and principles taught convey essential, underlying techniques that are not readily available in most art education programs or classes today, making this set an invaluable resource for designers, experienced or aspiring artists and arts educators.

The Barnstone Digital packages follow the curriculum developed by Myron Barnstone to teach Drawing & Design. Mr. Barnstone’s Methods have proven to be successful over the past 30+ years in the amount of scholarship money awarded to students as well as the successful careers of a number of professional Artists, Architects, Educators & Designers.

Anyone wishing to purchase and study from the video sets is strongly encouraged to start with Drawing Lesson 1 and proceed through the material in order. Mr. Barnstone builds upon each previous lesson. The Figure Drawing and Color Videos would be best studied after all the Drawing material. Included are projects to reinforce all concepts and best practices with a critique of the assignments in the following videos.

Introduction to Drawing Systems

In the Introduction to Drawing Systems course, the student begins with a family of three bottles, learning how to assess the particular proportions and shape characteristics of their subjects. Like observing the proportional differences between people, the careful examination of bottles reveals a subtle anatomy of simple geometric shapes that creates the unity and variety for a harmonic structure, animating the entire composition. Delving much deeper in the complexities of form, students will learn to organize the three-dimensional volumes and surfaces, illuminate and render form in light and shadow, and organize their subject using the ancient geometric principles of the Golden Section. The most comprehensive drawing & design course available anywhere. Take your time and repeat and review as necessary.

Lesson 1: Introduction and Analysis of Bottle Design
Introduction to the basic principles and fundamental terms and ideas that are key to the Barnstone Method; observational measurement to assess proportions; construct a notional space; sight directions and coincidental relationships; apply triangulation; gesture drawing and analytical drawing procedures

Lesson 2: The Two Dimensional Bottle
Deconstruct complex forms into simple basic shapes; figure-to-ground relationships; rhythmic structures using linear parallels, radiating lines, enclosures, and arabesque; use of passage and vignette; aerial perspective; gazing direction; enclosures; vignette; negative spaces; gamut; how to identify visual errors

Lesson 3: The Sphere and the Cube
Conceive and describe the surface contours and cross contours of a sphere; construct the circle template and divisions within the sphere; tessellation, cross-sections, and dimensional truncations; invent complex interior 3D geometries

Lesson 4: The Three Dimensional Bottle Projection
Build complex 3D forms from basic volumes; construct analytical 3D volumes for 2D shapes; create concentric ellipses of various diameters in a plane; compose volumetric objects in a pictorial field with an implied 3D space

Lesson 5: The Sphere in Value
Understand and apply highlight, light, shadow, shadow core, reflected light, cast shadow, light and dark halos; rendering techniques; relate the light direction to the 3D surface volume of a sphere; apply passage and vignette; emphasize versus flatten surface volumes using light and value

Lesson 6: The Bottles in Value
Apply directional lighting to the surfaces of 3D volumes; differentiate cast shadow and form shadow; apply aerial perspective, zoning, and pictorial emphasis; Rembrandt lighting; value rendering

Lesson 7: The Golden Section and Root Rectangles
Distinguish and Construct golden section and root rectangle geometry; the armature of a rectangle, diagonals, crossing lines; the gamut; composition; deconstruct geometry into proportional armatures; establish spatial hierarchies; compose imagery into the geometry of a rectangle

Lesson 8: The Plant
Plan and compose a complex design subject; design visual pathways and gamut; arrange relative positions and overlaps; foreshortening; organize 3D arabesques; apply rhythmic structures to create coincidences and harmonize diverse parts of a design

Lesson 9: The Portrait - Geometry of the Head
Recognize and apply proportional geometry to the canon of the face and head; how and why to break down curvilinear into straight line information; formalization and stylization; create expressive distortions by manipulating the proportional relationships of a face to a grid

Lesson 10: An Overview of the System of Dynamic Symmetry
Comprehend and construct the following: Rebated Squares and Saint Andrew’s Cross; Root 2 rectangle, √2 (1:1.414…) - Theme of 2 and 3; Root 3 Rectangle, √3 (1:1.732…); Root 4 Rectangle (double square), √4 (1:2); Root 5 Rectangle, √5 (1:2.236…); Golden Section Rectangle (Phi), ϕ (1:1.618…); 1.5 Rectangle (1:1.5); Root Phi Rectangle, √ϕ (1:1.272…); Apply a rectangle gauge to analyze/re-discover the geometric construction built into a master artwork

To further enhance your learning experience, purchase the accompanying workbook: Introduction to Drawing & Design
Visit the Resources Page on our website to download FREE Course Cheat Sheets

Palette Control & Color Theory
Through a series of 7 lectures & assignments the Fletcher Color Control system is examined and applied to exercises.

Introduction to Figure Drawing
The previous information is expanded on & applied to drawing from the live model.

Golden Section - Unlocking the Secrets of Design
The Golden Section is art’s greatest mystery. Often referenced but hardly understood, it was the closely guarded secret that gave birth to everything from clandestine societies like the Masons to the painting guilds that dominated the Renaissance.

This complete box set includes the entire video series from Myron Barnstone.

• Introduction to Drawing Systems - 10 videos
• Palette Control & Color Theory - 7 videos
• Introduction to Figure Drawing
• FREE Golden Section - Unlocking the Secrets of Design

Each item is part of a lecture series and is recommended to be watched in the following order:

1. Drawing & Design Lectures 1-10
2. Golden Section Lecture
3. Figure Drawing Lecture
4. The Palette Control Color Theory Lectures 1-7.*

This video set is also available for purchase on barnstonestudios.com.

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