I’m in Portland, taking a 3-day figure drawing intensive with Fran O’Neill. Saturday was Day 2 of my intensive, and though about mid-day I was cranky, I ended the day on a high. I did not want to stop.
I learned a new way of drawing. Isn’t it thrilling that I can draw for so many years, and still learn something totally new. People underestimate the potential of drawing, I think. It’s just the same old burnt stick and paper, but the approach is new and interesting to my puzzle-loving brain.
In recent beginning figure drawing classes, I’ve been teaching League students how to draw with sight sizing, envelopes, construction lines, and what I call “straight line measures.”
Beginning Figure Drawing, student drawing
What I learned today is related to this process. I’ll call it a close cousin. In the hands of Giacometti, it might look like this:
Euan Uglow 1951-52
Antonio Lopez Garcia put white marks on fruit and leaves in a tree so he could measure properly, and then he painted those marks in the painting.
Peri Schwartz
This measuring process also might be related to to Ann Gale’s paintings, only she chooses not to have her image resolve.
My measured study (I think this was 40 minutes), vine charcoal on 90lb Arches coldpress paper, 4 pages glued to 56×40″ size
While somewhat frustrating to not “get it right” on the first round of marks, I felt this was a very fun game, and one I could play for a long time without getting bored. I also thought the effects of my measurements (the pentimenti) were beautiful. I thought they made the drawing more engaging, and gave the viewer pathways and interest points around the drawing. I did not want to stop drawing. It was such an enjoyable process, and unstoppable because it had not yet “resolved.” The only reason I did stop was because the models got up and walked away and they were locking up the building. Darnit.
One of the best and most influential comic book artists of all time, Jean Giraud was born in Paris France in 1938, and drew under the pen name Moebius, after the German mathematician who created the Moebius strip. The French artist was famous in America for illustrating series such as the Silver Surfer parables published …
Some Pretty Paintings A collection of figures and flowers in paintings and prints Show opens January 5, 2019 Show up through January 27th Artist Talk Saturday, January 5th (3:30-4:30pm) Opening Reception to follow (5-7pm) Smith & Vallee Gallery 5742 Gilkey Ave, Edison (360) 766-6230 Open Daily 11-5 www.smithandvalleegallery.com If you’d like to have one of these original drypoint prints for yourself …
I met Keith Pfeiffer in one of the last classes I taught in person, before the quarantine. The class was on color and light. We practiced producing a sensation of light by replacing white with color (above), how to get vibration from complementary hues, vibrant vs neutral effects, and how to dim or compress the …
[image_with_animation image_url=”9700″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] Topophilia (From Greek topos “place” and -philia, “love of”) is a strong sense of place, which often becomes mixed with the sense of cultural identity among certain people and a love of certain aspects of such a place. Today is the second of a series of Topophilia Creative Exercises, this …
Measured Marks
I’m in Portland, taking a 3-day figure drawing intensive with Fran O’Neill. Saturday was Day 2 of my intensive, and though about mid-day I was cranky, I ended the day on a high. I did not want to stop.
I learned a new way of drawing. Isn’t it thrilling that I can draw for so many years, and still learn something totally new. People underestimate the potential of drawing, I think. It’s just the same old burnt stick and paper, but the approach is new and interesting to my puzzle-loving brain.
In recent beginning figure drawing classes, I’ve been teaching League students how to draw with sight sizing, envelopes, construction lines, and what I call “straight line measures.”
Beginning Figure Drawing, student drawing
What I learned today is related to this process. I’ll call it a close cousin. In the hands of Giacometti, it might look like this:
Euan Uglow 1951-52
Antonio Lopez Garcia put white marks on fruit and leaves in a tree so he could measure properly, and then he painted those marks in the painting.
Peri Schwartz
This measuring process also might be related to to Ann Gale’s paintings, only she chooses not to have her image resolve.
My measured study (I think this was 40 minutes), vine charcoal on 90lb Arches coldpress paper, 4 pages glued to 56×40″ size
While somewhat frustrating to not “get it right” on the first round of marks, I felt this was a very fun game, and one I could play for a long time without getting bored. I also thought the effects of my measurements (the pentimenti) were beautiful. I thought they made the drawing more engaging, and gave the viewer pathways and interest points around the drawing. I did not want to stop drawing. It was such an enjoyable process, and unstoppable because it had not yet “resolved.” The only reason I did stop was because the models got up and walked away and they were locking up the building. Darnit.
More tomorrow!
Related Posts
Moebius
One of the best and most influential comic book artists of all time, Jean Giraud was born in Paris France in 1938, and drew under the pen name Moebius, after the German mathematician who created the Moebius strip. The French artist was famous in America for illustrating series such as the Silver Surfer parables published …
Some Pretty Paintings: Red Chair
Some Pretty Paintings A collection of figures and flowers in paintings and prints Show opens January 5, 2019 Show up through January 27th Artist Talk Saturday, January 5th (3:30-4:30pm) Opening Reception to follow (5-7pm) Smith & Vallee Gallery 5742 Gilkey Ave, Edison (360) 766-6230 Open Daily 11-5 www.smithandvalleegallery.com If you’d like to have one of these original drypoint prints for yourself …
March to March; Keith Pfeiffer’s Quarantine Posts
I met Keith Pfeiffer in one of the last classes I taught in person, before the quarantine. The class was on color and light. We practiced producing a sensation of light by replacing white with color (above), how to get vibration from complementary hues, vibrant vs neutral effects, and how to dim or compress the …
SAL Challenge: Topophilia – Place and Time
[image_with_animation image_url=”9700″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] Topophilia (From Greek topos “place” and -philia, “love of”) is a strong sense of place, which often becomes mixed with the sense of cultural identity among certain people and a love of certain aspects of such a place. Today is the second of a series of Topophilia Creative Exercises, this …