Eighty-Two

This was a quick sketch but I feel that it captured the model, Isabelle.

Eighty-Three

Another model from life drawing. By this point I could feel myself start to calm down and draw.

In other art news, I just posted a collage on my therapy blog. This was an interesting assignment I made for myself, to illustrate breathing. I struggled with images of lungs made out of paper and paint but nothing felt right. The first conclusion I came to was that lungs are rather ugly. Then I realized what I was trying to say about the breath was not relegated to just the lungs, it was a fully body experience. How could I make that into an image? 

When I realized what I was really looking for was an image that made you feel like breathing when you saw it, everything fell into place.

Eighty-Four

Another model from life drawing. This one came out looking a little too doll-like for my taste. Setting out to learn how to draw heads is feeling harder than I'd hoped. 

What did Rob Liberace say about brow lines? What was it Sherrie said about looking for landmarks when you lose your way?

Eighty-Six

This is the last one I did and it's my favorite because it captures what the model actually looked like. When I first got to the session I was disappointed that it was a costumed, long session. But it was actually a good experience because with each drawing I got to hone in on capturing what the model actually looked like. Noticing, no, her cheekbones are more narrow than that, yes, her lips are softer, more like that.

Eighty-Seven

It was a long pose so I got the opportunity to draw the same thing again. It's interesting how she came out looking so different. I like the softness of this drawing, but I feel it needs more contrast, which I'm realizing is really hard to get when using conte on newsprint. But I like that she has softer features here than in the first drawing.

Eighty-Eight

I finally made it to a life drawing session. I could only stay for an hour and I felt very rusty but it also felt good to be there. 

Copying someone else's drawings is great because they're making all the artistic decisions for you. It was scary to be set free with a real face before me. But I could feel how the practice helped me to know what to look for when I was out there on my own.

Eighty-Nine

A sketch of a metal sculpture from a book of Buddhist Art. It's so hard to get time for drawing and when I do I'm flooded with the feeling of wanting to spend a whole day doing it. A yoga teacher once said in class, "Isn't it funny how when something feels good you say to yourself this feels so good I should do it everyday! And with that thought you take yourself right out of the moment.