Drawing Basics: Golden Rectangle, Golden Ratio

Golden Rectangle

Today I thought I'd show a quick an easy way to make the golden rectangle without having to calculate the distances from the golden ratio.

First what is the golden ratio? The golden ratio is what was once considered to be an ideal ratio found in nature by  in ancient  Greece and used by artists during the time Renaissance. This ratio is basically 1:618.  That means the shorter side of the golden rectangle is roughly 6 tenths that of the the larger side.

The golden ratio and rectangle are still found to be useful today by artists in varying ways and degrees, mostly in assisting with developing the compositional elements. Below I will show you how to create this rectangle using a simple step by step process.

Making a Golden Rectangle

Step one: Draw a square.

Step two: Divide the square in half vertically.

Step three: Find the distance between the top right-hand corner of the square and the midpoint of the bottom of the square. Draw a line diagonally across from corner to corner.

Step four: From the midpoint of the square draw a line along the bottom edge ending it at the distance you just measured. In other words move the diagonal line you just drew down to be on the bottom horizontal plane.

Step five: Draw a vertical line the same height as the square.

Step six. Draw a horizontal line from the new vertical line you just drew to the existing square.

Golden Rectangle, Golden Ratio.

You now have a golden rectangle.