Rewind: Louis Netter on Reportage Drawing

Dear subscribers,

It was a pleasure to host Irish-American artist and scholar Louis Netter during our December Live Zoom.

Netter’s upcoming book, “Reportage Drawing: Vision and Experience” promises to be a must read for any artist and sketcher who wants to harness the full potential of observational drawing. The book is the culmination of the academic research he conducted for his doctoral degree at the Royal College of Art in London.

I really enjoyed chatting with Netter, who touched on many interesting subjects during the 60-minute conversation, including

• his own art journey from disillusioned art student in Connecticut to enthusiastic reportage artist after meeting an Italian teacher named Mario Minichiello in England;

• the perils of comparing reportage drawing with photography. Reportage is a conduit of experience, he said, not the “red-headed stepchild” of the media;

• the obsession with accuracy and detail in the early reportage drawings by the sketch artists of the 19th century illustrated newspapers;

• the daring work of Jill Gibbon, who draws secretly in arms fairs throughout Europe;

• the importance of developing a shorthand and visual memory to build up fluency as a reportage artist;

• current reportage drawing opportunities such as working with non-profits, festivals or in areas where it is difficult to take photographs.

We also learned that Netter likes to draw with very limited tools, mainly graphite sticks.