I was only able to go to one of my three classes this week because I was not well. This bummed me out because I missed one week out of a five week pose that I was just getting a handle on the block in. Not to worry, I’m ok and will be rolling again next week on the figure.
I did get ALOT done on the Bargue leg done in class and at home. As per the way of things, the more you do the more there is to do. I am especially happy that I am finally learning how to begin laying in a shadow shape. This caused me a little anxiety because I felt lost looking at the shadows. Just like last time I was pretty frozen when I got into class and Lisa gave me some instruction on shadow shapes and the quality of line to use when laying these things in but more than that she was like – just put something on the page. You gotta put something there so I have something to help you with. Then we got into looking at the smaller movements and some manageable adjustments I could work on if I was indeed overwhelmed. Last time she told me to put something on the page I blocked in the entire foot including the shadow shapes, this time was not much different. I found myself blocking in the entire knee and tackling the long shadow shapes of the calf.
I like to make a teacher happy. She says I should do something, then by George I will get that thing done. I respond very well to clear direction and I think that is part of what really appeals to me about the classical way to study art. It is very clear, very direct and disciplined. Passion and imagination have their place. I am constantly using my imagination to better understand how to see, to distinguish negative space, to assign meaning to the process and activity. Passion drives me to do the work, and to work at home and to always improve. The passions and the imaginations are contained within the walls of good practice and discipline. For myself this is helping me to progress at a much brisker pace than when I was at an unstructured University program.
This week I am also including a drawing I am working on of a friend’s Mother at a young age. It is from a reference photo. I enlarged the photo in the scanner and then used the same techniques that I use doing the Bargues employing the plumb line, level and my eye to draw the image. It has more interpretation in the atmosphere and mood than the work I do strictly for school. I am actually going to push the drawing a lot further using subtractive marks and some abstraction in the atmosphere to convey mood. We’ll see… gotta play somewhere.
It is EXCITING to see how much I have grown in just three months in this program. I would NOT have been able to do this drawing three months ago. Just no way.
SW 