Life Drawing

This was my first experience of drawing from a live model and probably the highlight of the week.

I had drawn the nude figure from photographs before, but working from a real person was completely different and much more challenging.

The workshop was about observing the body, proportion and movement, while learning to draw more freely and trust what I could actually see.

RESEARCH & PLANNING

Unlike some of the other workshops, I did not do specific artist research beforehand. The investigation really happened through the practical exercises and learning to observe the figure directly.

EXPERIMENTATION & DEVELOPMENT

OUTCOME

There was not one final outcome for this workshop. The series of drawings shows my workings directly from a live model and experimenting with observation, proportion and gesture.

REFLECTION

What did I enjoy? 

First time doing live life drawing and definitely the highlight of the week; a new challenge, full of possibilities. Hopefully more workshops to come on Thursdays. 

The corrective drawing exercise
I really enjoyed the corrective drawing exercise, although it became quite difficult towards the end as more and more corrections were added. Some of my peers were excellent drawers and made a lot of the corrections, which was interesting to watch. Ironically, it probably produced my most striking outcome of the whole day!

What did I find challenging?

I made the same mistake as I had in the drawing exercises. I was quite timid and too worried about getting things right instead of relaxing and going with the flow. Hands, feet and faces were particularly difficult, although I was quite pleased with the overall shape and proportions of some of the figures.

What did I think I may have learned?

I need to be more confident and less precious about my drawing skills; after all the workshop was not about producing a perfect figure. I would have got much more from the exercise if I had worked more freely and trusted what I was seeing. I want to do more of it and will go to the Thursday's evening workshops.

Are there materials / techniques / processes / approaches from the project that you would like to investigate further? 

Definitely charcoal. Looking back, pencil was probably too safe; charcoal would have helped to work more boldly and given the drawings more energy and impact. I definitely want to try life drawing again using charcoal, making larger, more confident mark

What would I do differently if I had to do the project again? 

I would worry less about producing a “good” drawing and concentrate more on capturing the body, movement and gesture. I would also choose charcoal rather than pencil and be much bolder from the beginning.

Did I document the work in progress and / or once complete? 

I documented the drawings once completed, including the collaborative corrective drawing exercise.