デッサン

でっさん
noun
(pencil or charcoal) drawing; sketch; dessin
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Presentデッサンするデッサンしない
Present politeデッサンしますデッサンしません
Pastデッサンしたデッサンしなかった
Past politeデッサンしましたデッサンしませんでした
て formデッサンしてデッサンしなくて
ている presentデッサンしているデッサンしていない
ている politeデッサンしていますデッサンしていません
ている pastデッサンしていたデッサンしていなかった
ている past politeデッサンしていましたデッサンしていませんでした
Conditional ばデッサンすればデッサンしなければ
Conditional たらデッサンしたらデッサンしなかったら
Volitionalデッサンしよう—
Volitional politeデッサンしましょう—
Potentialデッサンできるデッサンできない
Passiveデッサンされるデッサンされない
Causativeデッサンさせるデッサンさせない
Imperativeデッサンしろデッサンするな
1. a drawing study, especially one done in pencil, charcoal, or another monochrome medium as practice for capturing form, proportion, light, and shadow
Borrowed from French 'dessin' rather than English 'drawing'. In Japanese, デッサン specifically refers to a study drawing made for art training — typically a black-and-white rendering of a still life, plaster bust, model, or human figure that focuses on accurate observation of shape, volume, and shading. It is the standard word in the Japanese art-school context for the foundational practice of drawing from life. デッサン can be used as a noun, and as a する-verb meaning 'to do a study drawing'.
毎日(まいにち)デッサンの練習(れんしゅう)をしている。
I practice drawing every day.
美術大学(びじゅつだいがく)の入試(にゅうし)にはデッサンがある。
The art university entrance exam includes a drawing test.
鉛筆(えんぴつ)一本(いっぽん)で果物(くだもの)のデッサンを仕上(しあ)げた。
I finished a still-life drawing of fruit using just a single pencil.
デッサンの基礎(きそ)をしっかり身(み)につけないと、自由(じゆう)な表現(ひょうげん)も難(むずか)しいと先生(せんせい)は言(い)っていた。
The teacher said that without solidly mastering the basics of drawing, free expression becomes difficult.

Borrowed from French 'dessin' (drawing). In Japanese the word is restricted to the academic, technical sense of a study drawing — typically a monochrome rendering done as training in observation, form, and shading. It does not cover casual doodles or finished colour artworks.

USAGE:
デッサン is the standard term in Japanese art education. Students at art high schools, art universities (美術大学(びじゅつだいがく)), and prep schools (美術予備校(びじゅつよびこう)) spend long hours doing デッサン of plaster busts (石膏像(せっこうぞう)), still lifes, and live models. It is also widely used in beginner manga and illustration tutorials.

Used both as a plain noun and as a する-verb: デッサンする 'to do a drawing study'.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • デッサンを描(か)く: to draw a study
  • デッサンする: to do a drawing study (as a verb)
  • デッサンの練習(れんしゅう): drawing practice
  • デッサンの基礎(きそ): the basics of drawing
  • 人物(じんぶつ)デッサン: figure drawing
  • 石膏(せっこう)デッサン: drawing from a plaster cast
  • 裸婦(らふ)デッサン: nude drawing
  • 鉛筆(えんぴつ)デッサン: pencil drawing
  • 木炭(もくたん)デッサン: charcoal drawing
  • デッサン力(りょく): drawing skill, the ability to render form accurately
  • デッサンが狂(くる)う: for the proportions/anatomy of a drawing to look off

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 素描(そびょう): sketch, drawing study — a literary native equivalent of デッサン, less common in everyday speech.
  • 下絵(したえ): rough sketch, preparatory drawing — refers to a preliminary draft for a finished painting or print.
  • スケッチ: sketch — borrowed from English; usually a quicker, looser drawing, often done outdoors or from life as a study or memo, without the rigorous focus on form and shading associated with デッサン.
  • 落書(らくが)き: doodle, scribble — casual, unstudied drawing; the opposite of the disciplined practice implied by デッサン.
  • 絵(え): picture, drawing, painting — the general native word for any kind of two-dimensional artwork.

CULTURAL NOTE:
In the Japanese fine-arts tradition, デッサン is considered the essential foundation of all visual art training. Aspiring art students in Japan often spend years in dedicated prep schools (美術予備校(びじゅつよびこう)) practicing デッサン before they can pass the entrance exams of leading institutions like the Tokyo University of the Arts.

general
Added 2026.4.12 10:47
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