• Make a collection of objects around a theme – choose from Festival, The morning after, Summertime or Workshop.
• Using a camera, move around your set of objects.  Look for interesting combinations of shapes and textures, and document them using photographs.
• Do the same with drawing using different formats.
• Repeat exercise of exploring viewpoints, but this time draw shapes to work with that are the same format as your viewfinder and create thumbnail shapes.
• Choose your favourite design.  You are trying to communicate an idea about your chosen theme.
• Draw this your favourite design on a larger scale proportionate to your thumbnail.

I am choosing the theme ‘Workshop’.  The workshop is an art studio, and the objects will be art materials.  I jotted down a spider diagram to get the ideas flowing, and although I did not choose all the art materials, I could select from an extensive range in the spider diagram.  It is also a lovely way to not miss out on an idea.

The objects I selected has contrasting surface textures and shapes.  They are simple objects but appear very interesting when taken at different angles.  The photos of different viewpoints can also be viewed from the side or upside down and not necessarily how it is displayed below.

I used pencil to do the drawings to explore different viewpoints.  I looked at the photos as well as the objects in front of me.  The sketches are rough but should give a general idea of the composition, tone and textures.

My favourite design is the pencil design in figure 7.  I want to communicate that it doesn’t matter if you have a comprehensive studio or a few drawing utensils; if you have pencils, you can create art.  Pencils are the foundation of any creative work.  The viewpoint is unusual, and I like the pencil tips cascading and pointing in different directions.  The two dipping pens and pencil extender are different from the pencils and invite the viewer to look further and make sense of the drawing.  

Figure 8 is the final drawing on a larger scale (17cm x 17cm).  A square format suits this drawing the best because of the composition of the cascading pencils, and it is also practical for web design, magazine layout and brochures. 

Overall, exploring different viewpoints and changing the viewpoint at the end was very insightful and helpful to come up with an exciting design.  I will continue using this technique in the future.