The three levels
The three levels have an increasing degree of difficulty: In level 1 the emphasis is on flat shapes and structures. In level 2 attention is paid to composition and the suggestion of 3D/plasticity. In level 3, perspective plays a greater role.

Materials
Standard size drawing paper (eg A4/A3), a nice drawing pencil (HB/B/2B), colored pencil, a good eraser and a sharpener. Of course you can also use other materials such as fine liners are fine but not necessary. Digital drawing (e.g. on an iPad) is also a possibility

  • Share Basic pencil for free with others, at home, school or on a holiday.
  • Choose a topic from one of the levels that interests you or use the search function
  • Do you prefer lessons on paper? Each chapter and loose image can be downloaded and printed
  • Explore stories and masterpieces of art.
  • Do you have a question about a lesson? Send an email to info@basispotlood.nl

The idea behind these lessons:
Initially I mainly created drawing lessons for children/young people from about 9 years old. From this ‘threshold age’ they become more critical of their work, which unfortunately is too often and wrongly interpreted as a loss of creativity/spontaneity. In basispotlood.nl I have tried to make lessons suitable for adults as well. The source of my lessons is the art of drawing itself, from masterpieces from art history to imaginative illustrations and comics. Drawing lessons and art appreciation in one! Of course some of us, young or old, have more talent than others (just like with sports, language, arithmetic, music, DIY, etc.), but with good examples and exercises everyone who wants to can learn something concrete and get satisfaction from it at every level. Basispotlood.nl is not a method with a strict order. Basispotlood.nl offers the freedom to browse through the three different levels and make your own choices, even separate exercises. I have deliberately chosen pencil as an accessible material and mainly drawing in line, which emphasizes visual communication through subjects that stimulate your own imagination. Of course, there is nothing wrong with using other materials for my lessons. With great thanks to the designers of Hollands lof Haarlem who designed the website.

About the author
Rogier van der Erve (1953) graduated from the Rietveld Academy Amsterdam in 1991, specializing in drawing and free graphics. In 1993 he obtained his first degree in drawing/art history at the HKU. Since that time he has worked as an art teacher for 20 years with children in the upper years of an elementary school. From 1994 to the present he works as an art teacher in secondary education exam classes havo/vwo in Rotterdam.