Wednesday 31 July 2013

The middle of summer school

On Wednesday, our class was looking at how bones affect the figure.  We had an excellent model, Mark, who had previously done portrait modelling but had never done life modelling.  He was absolutely excellent, because he could remain really still.  We started by drafting the figure in pencil ( not my best media), and shaded in where we could see the bones under the flesh.  We then looked at a skeleton and drew in the bones in colour, thereby indicating which bone parts affected the figure.  We tried this out with the sitting figure, standing figure and lying with an arched back. The drawings I produced were not my best, but it was most enjoyable and interesting.

On Thursday I had a frustrating day.  This is how it goes sometimes.  I thought I was going to really enjoy it because we were drawing with tone, but we ended up rubbing into our work, doing "careful shading" which does not do it for me.   I like heavily textured work with charcoal, with considerable tonal value, but I found careful soft shading pedestrian and lacking in spirit. We were working with longer poses which creates different problems.  I simply could not get the proportions right and got very frustrated, but continued working at it and finally managed to pull it all together.  Our model, Selina, was holding the same pose for 3 x 30 minutes, but I discovered it is very difficult for her to get exactly back in the same position, which did not help me with my drawing!

However I had been so inspired by Sheila's work that I bought a huge box of water soluble crayons to try out tomorrow when we move into colour.  I just hope I can use them to good effect.  Time and time again I wish I had done either GCSE art or a foundation course to learn how all the different media work, so I have a raft of knowledge with different media, and at least know how to use them properly and with imagination and skill.  

And because I am so enjoying this art class environment for summer school, I have booked a 2 day class at City Lit, Drawing and Monoprints, later this month.  I produce so much more work when I am in the class environment, and I really enjoy looking at other people's work.


Tuesday 30 July 2013

Exciting holiday at summer school

Shirley and I are on holiday for a fortnight.  We went to Durham for a week for some tourism in an ancient city, and are now staying with Aunt Joan for a week's life class at Great Missenden.

I woke this morning horrendously over-excited about class.  Monday we were drawing in charcoal, considering proportions.  Tuesday we were considering movement.  Our class has a wide variety of drawing styles and experience, and this is what has given me a ligtbulb moment.  I think I might have had my money's worth from the course already because of this.  Two people in particular are using the media in a different way to what I have seen before.  One lady, Sheila, is using water soluble crayons to outline the drawing then working into it with brish and water, then redrawing with crayons and/or water soluble media.  The effect she gets has wonderful, joyful colour movement - which would work really well with digital print, thereby combining the qualities of hand drawing with digital media!  How ace is that!  I have recently thrown away a small set of water soluble crayons that I had had for c30 years because I had never been shown how to use them well/appropriately/artistically!  Art Van Go are at Missenden this morning so I am hoping to get some more (the old ones were likely time-expired anyway).

Another chap, Philip, is absolutely brilliant at simplifying his images.  He can define a body with just a few stunningly beautiful lines, with brilliant colour choices, sometimes combined with fantastic use of simple use of graphite stick.  If I could master this (a big "if"!) it would work well with screen print, and maybe with combined digital and screen print.

I am also thinking about how the drawing style and media matches or actively portrays the energy of the imagery, and/or the artist.  Philip is very quiet, his work is incredibly talented, and words associated with him, for me, are Considered, and Thoughtful.  The word for Sheila's drawings is Joyful.  Another lady's work is Sensitive and Delicate.  My work is Bold and Gutsy.

I could chew the fat and write for ages this morning, but need to get on and go to class. Life is just so exciting!

Thursday 18 July 2013

Back from holiday (briefly

I am back from holiday - Jim and I cycled from Lands End to John O'Groats (almost).  We rode 924 miles to Inverness, then I had to return to London for my university exhibition at New Designers, and to get new wires for my teeth.  Unfortunately I fell over in the garden and badly sprained my ankle, so could not return to Inverness to finish the journey. 

New Designers was most interesting - it is the art & design graduate show for the UK.  If I am honest, my university, Herts, does not compare well.  Other universities have a much stronger showing, partly because they are very selective about who they accept on their courses, they have a higher teaching content in their courses, and they are very selective about who is picked to have their work displayed at New Designers.  Whereas Herts takes people with lower academic attainment (and therefore recruits both the "surprise stars" and lazy, idle "I'm only here for the beer" types), has a self directed learning style and allows any student from our course who can supply their share of the funds to participate at New Designers.  However 3 of us went round the show together to consider how we would stage our show next year, by noting what was good and bad about other universities' staging. 

I have also attended Tate Britain's Lowry exhibition.  Absolutely wonderful.  Much more varied than I had expected.  Not just industrial landscape but commenting on the life of the working class - fever vans, football matches, VE day celebrations, evictions.  The substance of daily life in the North.  I wish my one of my in-laws, Mrs Pitt, could have gone to see it.  Mrs Pitt worked in a mill until she emigrated, and although she now has Alzheimer's and is looked after by my sister-in-law, I am sure Lowry's pictures would have triggered her memory.

I have discovered my result for my Degree Planning module - 75%.  I am pleased and relieved with this.  I found this module very difficult - partly because it is self directed.  I have had no written feedback, which hacks me off somewhat.  We get little enough interaction with the lead textile tutor/assessor, but to find out one's result online, and hear NOTHING from this tutor, I find disrespectful.  However, a visiting lecturer who was present at the meeting with the External Verifiers, has passed on that their comments were that I "had found my voice" (pomegranates were naff; yokes and women's work was good).  Thank goodness.  I was quite worried when I had staged my display - there was a wide range of work that I had tried out, but most of it was pedestrian; had faults in the making and was generally uninspiring.  The Yokes took it to a different level - there was a meaty concept; it was an art piece; it was hand-drawn imagery integrated with hand stitch; it was simple.

I have booked various classes for the summer holidays and beyond: life class; lino cuts; mixed media; also lectures on history of embroidery and tapestry and why women choose to work with these media.  I am also starting to read more widely about women's work, textile and memory.

Yesterday I was talking to a friend about how to use some of my fabric samples, and started thinking about aprons and how their styles have changed over the years.  Then I thought about the 7 ages of man (Shakespeare) and considered the 7 ages of woman, as represented by the changing role of women over the last 70 years.  I have had a quick look at apron patterns, and thought about my nan's apron (like a sleeveless coat), my mum's apron (half apron); my school apron (full length, no bib, crossed straps and with bias binding); my school teacher's apron (full length with bib); baby's apron (just a bib).  More research to follow.

I have also looked at Annabel Rainbow's work - very interesting nude imagery applied to quilts.  Lots of social comment about under-valued women's work is.  Just my sort of thing.