Because pencil drawing is a flexible medium, it is perfect for the would-be wildlife artist who wishes to attempt to draw horses. Horses are magnificent creatures and as such, it can be a very difficult task to capture their essence in any medium and in pencil drawing, this offers a challenging project for the artist.

 

There are some main points to consider when trying to draw horses and these are:

 

1. Take time to study these animals in their natural environment before even attempting to draw them.

 

2. Because horses are such a powerful animal, their muscle tone and skeletal structure is crucial for the artist to observe so they can translate their physical movement to paper.

 

3. Think about the general composition of the drawing too.  Whilst your horse is likely to be the main focal point, will you have other subjects within the picture? Think also about the placement of those subjects too.

 

4. Take both a camera and a sketchpad when out watching horses. Make sure you have captured their true inner essence when they are galloping or cantering. Horses are particularly magnificent when jumping over obstacles so ensure you have a photo that will capture this occurrence and note the muscle tone and fluid movement.

 

5. If your picture is going to be a portrait, then concentrate on the size and shape of the horse’s features; are the ears pricked as if listening and what does the horses eyes look like? Each horse looks very different, size, shape, coloring and with very distinctive eyes. With pencil drawing, an emphasis is on shading and fine line detail. Do not be scared to experiment to find out what works best.

 

6. When pencil drawing, we should pay special attention to the horses mane as it is a key aspect of the horses physique. Note how the mane cascades over the horses face adding depth and character. Remember that not every line needs to be drawn to signify volume and density of the mane. Sometimes what you leave out of the drawing is as important as the details you add in.

 

7. To be able to do pencil drawing proficiently, it needs a great deal of practice however; it is a technique which shows very visible indications of improvement. Drawing horses is not an easy subject but when done well, it can become an extremely satisfying artistic moment.