[pcc_life] Adventures in Art

Getting into the swing of things in my art classes.

Watercolor I went swimmingly today. The day's project was to take three primaries, mix a neutral (or as close as could be done) with them, and do a monochrome study with them. There were many photocopies of faces and I took one from the '30s (watching all those old black and white movies has had its effect).

It came out rather well. The biggest gain was the increasing awareness of how to work with watercolor, how you can build up areas with successive layers of paint and how you can use a wash to create a background.

Life drawing is a pleasure. I have never drawn from a living model before, and was somewhat intimidated by the prospect of being in a room with a nude woman who was a stranger, regardless of the context. Never mind. It was fine! A few minutes of critical viewing and it was all about drawing and technique.

While I didn't learn the model's name, I did find out a little about her. She'd been modelling for art classes for about seven years, and it showed in her attitude and manner; when it was time to go to work she simply doffed the soft clothing she was wearing and got up on the dais and did what she was supposed to. I'd say that her obvious professionalism contributed in no small way to eliminating my fear of being in a new and strange situation.

I grew a great deal, artistically. My gestural studies were found Very Good Indeed by not only the instructor (Gene Flores), but The Model.