PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

A couple of years ago I founded Miira Artist Tools out of a need to invent tools to help me be a better instructor. One of our products, Miira for iOS, is a powerful mobile app that I believe changes the way the artist sees the natural world. I've had the privilege to work with a remarkable young artist, Katie Prior, who has studied drawing and painting with me for several years at the CCA. When we began to develop our mobile app Katie was eager to be a beta tester. Her input was instrumental in making the Miira app work even better.  Katie's story about her experience using the Miira app will be eye-opening and I believe will influence your perspective and approach to your work. I trust you will enjoy this story and I invite you to download the app, try it and  share your story with us too!  
Enjoy!
Leslie Lienau

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Using the Miira app to create an envelope
by Katie Prior

Standing in front of a blank piece of paper, with the expectation of drawing my very first drapery study, I really didn't know where to start. I know about drawing shapes and the light and dark, but it was still overwhelming. I decided to use the Miira app on my iPhone. I started with the outline; sliding the guides on the app to create an envelope, a simplified outline, around the study.  I then transferred the envelope to my paper, making sure that all the angles were correct.

I used Miira’s overlay feature to check that the envelope on my paper matched the actual piece of drapery. Having the envelope correct to begin with saves tons of time later, so that in the middle of blocking in shadows you don't realize that one fold should be another inch to the left. From this point, I was able to draw in the shapes of light and dark.

I've spent many hours on this study and it's almost finished. The Miira app has helped me many times along the way to confirm the shapes and angles in my drawing.

Katie Prior is a second year Youth Atelier student at the Conservatory for Classical Art in Edmond, Oklahoma. Her preferred means of expression are computer pixels, vine charcoal, and the written word. www.katieprior.com