In drawing from your imaginary picture, look at it closely and carefully. Clear it up, classify its component parts into primary and secondary, that is, decide which is the most important and interesting part of the whole, and to what degree the other parts are to be subordinated to that, then analyze it into terms of drawing, i.e., vertical, horizontal, etc.
In the scenes given in this lesson as typical of the different zones of climate, some of the primary features were gained through observation, some through pictures supplemented by reading. Many of the sketches illustrating the other lessons, as well as those in the Introduction, will also give suggestions for this lesson, such as the illustrations on Alaska, India, and the continents. These need not be duplicated here.
In the scene from Siberia ([Fig. 34]), and in that of the dunes in the Sahara desert ([Fig. 35]), notice the form of both snow and sand drifts—their sharp edges and short and long slopes. The corn-field in northern New York ([Fig. 36]), illustrates the law of receding parallel lines—that they appear to converge as they recede, and if extended far enough, would seem to meet at a point on the horizon (the “point of sight”), a point immediately opposite the eye. A line drawn from the top and one from the bottom of each stalk in the front row, to the point of sight, will show this. Notice how the stalks in the foreground are brought out with more prominence than those farther away and outside of the direct line of vision.
41 48 49
[Figs. 37 to 40], inclusive, tell the stories of a lumber camp (Northern Michigan); logs of cotton-wood floating out into the Au Sable River (Adirondacks); a scarred and storm-worn pine tree, also one gashed by the axe of the wood-cutter. In contrast to the pine, notice the graceful elm of New England, in [Fig. 41], and in [Fig. 42], the banana tree of hot climates. [Fig. 43] is a scene typical of the hot belt (the Amazon region, where there is abundant rainfall), and [Figs. 44 and 45] show an oasis in the desert, also cactus, as another typical form of vegetation. [Fig. 46] represents a rice-field, and [Fig. 47] cotton balls and flowers.
[Figs. 48 and 49], showing a factory or “mill” in New England, and the New York State harvest scene, are typical of the cool belt, or temperate zone.