Drawing Robin on 19/01/2012

I've frequently enjoyed exploring the pose before me by moving an HB pencil across the paper, perhaps not lifting the pencil from the paper, and gradually seeing the outline and the details of the pose emerging on the paper. I have then felt the necessity to emphasise certain lines, perhaps with a charcoal pencil and to push in dark tonal areas with charcoal which may be rubbed in with the finger.

These first 'exploratory' lines are important. But what if they should become fundamental to the drawing. What if they are executed with a more provocative mark? I bought myself a box of 'fine liner' felt tipped drawing pens and here are four drawings using these. In the first two I have have added some charcoal tonal emphasis.

The model is Robin, who is a professional life-drawing model and was formerly a dancer. She fully engages with the challenge presented by our tutor Paul Fowler as she climbs up into the ropes at Extreme Poses at Pegasus Art in Stroud.

Drawing Michelle on 17/01/2012

At Angela Palmer's studio at Brockweir in the Wye Valley. 

Three fairly conventional drawings but to start with something new which I am very pleased with: two ten minute poses which I juxtaposed and overlapped so introducing what I might call 'a degree of ambiguity through transparency'. I like how the result suggests two figures holding each other and the one gazing perhaps lovingly at the other. 

In this first drawing I am deliberately using only three ways of mark making: a lightly applied HB pencil (to explore the forms), a charcoal pencil (to focus on specific outlines), and willow charcoal (for limited dark tone areas).

Here I'm concentrating on the journey over the landscape of the left side of the pose.

I tried here to feel the weight of her body.

And the finally moving across the studio and close to the model to look down over her shoulder. Again I am placing an emphasis on part of the pose by only lightly suggesting the rest of the body.

Drawing Robin on 12/01/2012

In the ropes at Extreme Poses.

Three approx 30 minute poses, charcoal on A1 cartridge paper.

Then some experimentation with line and tone but keeping them apart.

Drawing Robin on 05/01/2012

Four 30 minute poses at 'Extreme Poses', although I found I was actually drawing for less than half the time available for each one. 

The first is a technique I have come to really enjoy. The pencil hardly leaves the paper and the marks made are initially exploratory and then gradually they become more purposeful as the pose and the forms which make up the pose are discovered and become clearer. 'Lost edges' to the right and left sides of the drawing help to focus on the central journey up through the drawing which is given emphasis with the darker shaded areas and some firmer lines. 8B pencil on cheap A1 cartridge paper. I was very very pleased with the outcome and with the process experienced in making this drawing.

This time a 6B pencil but attempting to introduce firmer more confident lines with less searching.

Having completed two pencil drawings a strong desire to change medium. So, charcoal on gesso treated A1 cartridge paper. Blocks of darker tones using a thick charcoal stick are then brushed across, then replaced with more charcoal which I then tended to spread with my fingers. Points of emphasis were added with more charcoal.

This pose exactly covers the issues which I love to deal with, and which I summarised in one of my warm-up exercises in my last posting: i.e. the composition of the pose, perspective, advancing limbs or in this case feet which one is encouraged to slightly exaggerate, the head gesture, and also helping the beholder follow a journey through the composition, which in this case I hope one perhaps starts with the feet, circles clockwise around the curled body and ends up in the cave under the right armpit [I would love to know how many others see a journey in this way).

And finally, not really knowing what to draw with, and also feeling quite tired, I picked up a 2B pencil, added a little brown conte, emphasised dark tone with charcoal, took up the pencil again and introduced some shading, and finally some thin ink lines to qualify the shapes. Again lost edges and a journey up through the pose were incorporated. This combination of drawing media I feel has some potential but the result here is messy and uncertain.

Warming-Up for the New Year

It's been almost four weeks since my last life-drawing session with lots of Christmas activities taking place, so I thought I better warm up my drawing skills prior to my first session which will be at Paul Fowler's 'Extreme Poses' at Pegasus Art in Stroud on Thursday January 5th.

But no live model! So I flicked through various images I had previously downloaded from various websites and chose ones which I felt would help me recall where I had got to on my life-drawing journey.

The first two poses are taken from two websites with straightforward titles: the standing figure from 'Simple Nudes' and the seated reclined figure from 'KindGirls'.

Then two poses from an amazing model known as Alex B. She is a professional model who is also a photographer, and on her blog she promotes herself but also raises important issues through discussion: www.alex-therealdoesnoteffaceitself.blogspot.com, and a blog I regularly follow. This is essential viewing and reading!

Finally, two responses to a an actual life drawing by D. Jeffrey Mims called Waterfall. I chose this because for me it embraced a number of issues which I love to deal with, i.e. pose composition, perspective, advancing limb(s) which call for slight exaggeration, head gesture, and its nearness to the poses we are presented with by Paul Fowler at 'Extreme Poses' on a Thursday.