Studio Life

Summer has drifted into a nearby raincloud and I have taken up refuge in my wonderful new studio. I have been a while adjusting to my new surroundings, working within it and have spent more than any sensible amount of time revolving in circles like a crazed dancer wearing a smile too big for my face...Just because I have the space to do so!


My dreams of finding a life model have been teased, resulting in just four sessions so far, but my enthusiasm hasn't flagged and I remain searching. The 4 sessions I have been fortunate enough to have were enlightening and I believe I used them to their full potential. I analyse...I analyse a little too much mostly but it does ocasionally have it's rewards and my life sessions have benefited hugely because of this trait. After each life session I studied my works hard - Daily - Until the next. The more detatched I became from them, the more I could see how I could go forward . I was able to see my fears reflecting back at me from the paper; feint lines looking scared to death of both me and the surface filled my pages. On a positive note, the form was better than I had hoped for at this early stage but all that fiddling with minute details meant I got very little from a 20 minute pose.


With my second model I decided to change my tools and replaced my delicate HB pencil with a stick of charcoal, my clean white sketchbook with coloured sugarpaper. I felt charcoal would help 'free' me up and the inexpensive surface would keep me from treating the whole thing too preciously. It worked! My 3rd and 4th sessions were such fun and I really felt I was getting somewhere, learning something. It's still very early days and I have a long way to go but I can see growth in just those few sessions and that is all I can ever hope for from my art.

Now if only I could find a local model!