"Paintings have a life of their own that derives from the painter's soul." Vincent Van Gogh

Friday, April 19, 2013

Back to the Drawing Board - New Life Sessions

1 minute warm up poses in sienna Conte crayon
 I forgot how nerve wracking the 1 minute poses are, and I felt soooo rusty and a little nervous with so many weeks between life drawing sessions. I tried just for the gesture - the emotional component of the pose - in these very quick sketches. It amazed me at how short 1 minute actually is!.

20 minute pose / graphite on newsprint / 24 x 18
 Gary was the model and it was his first time posing for figure drawing. He posed for the portrait workshop a few months back. He did a very nice job and held his pose well. If I thought the 1 minute poses went by quickly, this 20 minute pose went even faster!

45 minute pose / graphite on newsprint / 24 x 18
 This was an interesting pose to me - I was directly in front of the model as he was raised on a platform, sitting on a stool with his feet on another small stool (no time to draw the stools - lucky I had time to draw the fabric under him although he still seems to be floating in space!). In any case, in tying to take my drawing a step further, I tried exaggerating his forward hand and feet. Not sure if it worked or not.
45 minute pose / graphite on newsprint
I loved drawing this perspective - directly at the models head, seeing only a small portion of his face. I loved the shape of his legs and the glimpses of feet. It was a challenge and was a lot of fun to wrap up this first session.


Untitled / 16 x 20 / oil on linen
And today I began an equine painting - this is the first pass after about 2 hours of work.

14 comments:

  1. Bonjour ma chère Susan,
    Tout d'abord un très grand merci pour votre délicate attention avec vos bons mots laissés sur mon blog. Ils me touchent beaucoup. Mille mercis encore.

    Je suis heureuse de vous retrouver et d'admirer de nouveaux dessins et peinture.
    Il n'est jamais évident de capturer en un temps record un corps avec nos émotions...
    Cependant c'est un excellent exercice pour aller à l'essentiel.
    Je pense que vous y réussissez plutôt bien.
    Quand à votre peinture avec ce mouvement toujours extraordinaire avec vos chevaux, j'ADORE... Les nuances de couleurs aussi sont étonnantes.
    Gros bisous à vous

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    1. I always enjoy reading your thoughts so much, MartineAlison, and appreciate greatly that you take the time to respond to my work. Many, many thanks to you.

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  2. You always amaze me with your life drawings, Susan! I've tried it and it always turns out to look like stick figures so therefore, I will enjoy seeing them when you do them!! I love to see all the shadings where the muscles are...you do such a beautiful job and I hope to see more!! And as always your work with these horses are outstanding.. I can always feel the movement of these horses in your painting!!! I love the looseness and subtle colors.

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    1. I am still working on the shading techniques - I tend to want to scribble them in and need to slow down and approach them more thoughtfully. I also think I need to work on deepening my darker values. I must admit, I do love drawing the body contours. Seeing the figure "flesh out" on the paper is almost like magic! Thanks for the vote of support regarding my horses. I just love painting them. And I want to say that I am very impressed by your recent equine work!

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  3. Yes, your life drawings are so you. They have wonderful character to them. I think I could pick out your work in a crowd of paintings. They are unique.

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    1. I am so fortunate to be able to attend these intermittent life sessions. They certainly give me a feel for the nuances of the flesh and a greater appreciation for trying to interpret them with graphite and paper. Art is a journey down a long and winding road and I am loving every step of the trip!

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  4. Susan!
    You and your life drawings rock! Great art and tremendous display of skill!
    Love the poses also! Bravo!
    Now, I absolutely love, love, the fantastic colors and wonderful movement in your latest equine work!
    Thank you so much for painting and posting for all to enjoy!
    Also, thank you for your concern for Boston and its hurting people!
    Art on my friend!
    Michael Boston Strong!

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    1. Thanks a million, Michael! Your words always brighten my day!

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  5. Oh my goodness, a one minute sketch! I would drop the pencil and have resharpen it and run out of time.

    So impressive, how you always manage the foreshorten angles so well I'll never understand.

    I'm still building up courage to paint a portrait for the first time.

    Looking forward to the development of the last painting.

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    1. Those 1 minute gesture poses are so nerve wracking, John, but do help to settle me down and loosen me up for the longer poses to follow. Are you thinking of attending some life drawing sessions? I highly encourage it! Portrait painting is cat of a different color altogether but with your artistic skills, you will catch that cat by the tail I am sure!

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  6. Hi Susan!
    It's good to have you back. ONE MINUTE!!! It takes me that long to type it. :)
    I love the 2nd 45 minute pose, too. And your horse ... he looks like he is leaping into Spring! Gorgeous!!!

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    1. The instructor doesn't believe in 2 or 5 minute gesture poses - 1 minute is all we get! I am trying to get used to it, but they are a challenge! Thanks, as always, for your kind and generous comments!

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  7. Amazing result after such a short time !

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    1. Thank you, Jane - I do believe I am developing some confidence in life drawing after attending these sessions. They are a dream come true for me.

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Your comments are welcome and brighten my day!