A Singers Life and a Pathetic Oil Attempt

Jakki Ford / Conte pastel on tan toned paper / 14x11

 Jakki is a local entertainer who has the voice of an angel and played some of her own CDs as background music while we drew her. She wore a large yellow feathered piece in her hair and was a very elegant and personable lady.

Amber / 18x14 / oil on gray toned linen panel

Last Sunday was Art Mash at the NV Museum of Art. Amber was the lovely model. She wore a navy blue gold spangled outfit and was seated on a lime green settee among a profusion of brilliant colored pillows and throws. I did my best but could not capture her beauty or the relaxation of her pose. I do feel I was successful with the foreshortening of the figure so all was not lost. She was a most lovely model but I am still finding life painting to be so nerve wracking. I look forward to the day when I succeed in conquering these jitters!

Truth and Sincerity

Owen / 18x24 / ebony pencil on cream paper

After a lifetime of drawing and painting, I remain awed at the marks left behind as my pencil nervously moves over the smooth grained surface of the paper, connecting here and there, linking blank spaces, creating hard tension and soft grayness. The hand of the artist is so apparent but this is, in the end, a pictorial equivalent of the model. I have been thinking a lot lately about the model, about how much more he/she is than the curve of a nostril, the line of the mouth or the play of light across the skin surface. And so today, as I guided my lines, I tried to hold foremost in my mind the truth of this sitter, the unique aspects of his life and personality as shown in his face and posture, I desired to try and draw him with utter sincerity and respect for his uniqueness in the universe and without flattery. 

A Lesson in Life

Jolene 1 - graphite on newsprint

Jolene 2 in ebony graphite on newsprint

Jolene 3

This morning I arrived just a few minutes late to the portrait session to find the model already posed, the lighting in place and the studio crowded with artists in deep concentration. Tip toeing to the far corner of the room, I found the only place to set up my newsprint tablet. Unfortunately, it was directly behind the studio light focused on the model and the corner itself was very dark with almost no light to draw by. Complain, complain, complain - I learned a lesson - get to the studio early on Wednesday mornings! I like to do several sketches although most of the other artists work on one sketch the entire time. I was unable to move my easel more than a few inches so ended up with 3 very similar sketches. I will get myself moving earlier next Wednesday morning in hopes of a better spot!

Also working on a British steeplechase scene - oil on linen panel 18 x 24.

Figurative Drawing from Life

A frenzy of sketches - 1 minute each

20 minute pose / ebony graphite on newsprint / approximately 20 x 14

40 minute seated pose / ebony graphite on newsprint /  20 x 16

45 minute pose / graphite on medium brown paper with charcoal white highlights / approximately 24 x 18

A better life drawing session today than last week. I seem to have regained a bit of confidence, thank goodness :).