Drawing? Or Sketching?

The words "drawing" and "sketching" are commonly used as synonyms. Yet they actually do denote different things. A visual sketch is usually meant to be a quickly-made image intended as a visual notation or impression and may comprise only a few shapes or lines; a drawing is a considerably more finished and detailed. Drawings are in general more tightly rendered; sketches are more loosey-goosey.

A drawing in the strictest sense is a picture of something that gives formal and accurate representation of the object being viewed. A completed drawing takes considerable time. In contrast, a sketch provides a looser image and more general idea of the object. One way to think of the difference is to look at a machine drawing or an electronic schematic then study an amusement park caricature. The machine drawing probably took hours to days at least, even using computer assistance, but is an accurate graphic description of a machine. The caricature took only a few minutes to show prominent (recognizable but exaggerated) features of a person.

Al Hirschfeld, "Jerry Garcia," ink, 1995

Drawings are not sketches, but sketches can be called drawings, the latter the more general term. Drawings are made with all kinds of media and in all kinds of ways. Although "drawing" implies detail and a formal approach, it may as easily be broadened to define all kinds of image-making, detailed or not.

Although most caricatures are sketches, they can be drawings instead. The caricatures of Al Hirschfeld are prime examples of masterfully-drawn caricatures, each compact, inimitable drawing carefully considered and executed. Mr. Hirschfeld (who died in 2003 at 100) claimed not to know how his drawings developed and said they simply happened somehow looking more like the individual than the person did. Regardless, these are fully drawings, complete in themselves, and not quick loose impressions.

"Head of a Warrior, after da Vinci," silverpoint, 2011

On the other hand, a drawing is most commonly not a sketch. This copy of a famous silverpoint by Leonardo is a finished drawing, complete to nearly the most minute detail, especially in the helmet and face. This copy was drawn in silverpoint as well but limited to the head and helmet; the original is a bust. Nonetheless, note the detailing of helmet, hair, and head. This is a completed drawing and clearly not a sketch.

Attributed to da Vinci, "St. Sebastian," ink on paper

Sometimes, the experts can confuse us. Here is a pen and ink sketch of St. Sebastian, the one who is commonly shown pierced by many arrows. This image figured in a recent item about its discovery. This has been called a drawing in many of the articles written about it, and attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. It was certainly done by a left-handed artist so the attribution could be accurate. On the other hand it is is clearly a sketch--fast (study the pen strokes), loose (ditto) and incomplete--not a finished drawing. This is a sketch study for a larger work and not, strictly speaking, a drawing.

Does any of this matter, in the end? My take is probably not. The representation of this sketch, Leonardo or not, as a drawing has more to do with marketing and less to do with description of the art. Is it worth less if you call it a sketch? I suspect not, since most of the value in the piece is its authorship.

In my own case much of what I do in watermedia is sketching. Sometimes I make a finished work in watercolor or casein, intended to stand alone. Most of my drawing is actually sketching too, though sometimes a portrait sketch happens in whatever medium I happen to have at hand, including pixels. Paradoxically, I always think of those as drawings.

Here is a drawing of Della, my granddaughter, done from a reference photo and personal observations. The drawing was made using Sketchbook and a Wacom Cintiq tablet. Despite visible construction marks and other features that could classify this as a sketch, I think of this as a focused drawing. It eliminates unneeded details to concentrate on her central features and expression.