Week 16 – Attend a Creative Class or Workshop
Being around other creative people is very important. It provides an opportunity to share skills, knowledge and expertise.
Workshops and opportunities for learning new skills or progressing with existing ones are springing up all over the place. But which ones to join in with or attend regularly?
Life Drawing
A good friend and printmaker happened to see a life drawing session which was being held fortnightly in a village hall just a short drive from home. We decided to go together initially.
It’s a lovely warm hall, plenty of natural light, a good group of fellow creatives all fascinated and challenged by life drawing. Everyone’s style is different and for 3 hours we can focus and work without interruption. However we do stop for a coffee break and a chance to look at each other’s work and approach.
Regular Attendance
I began attending this group fortnightly in February and at each session we begin with 3 or 4 poses of 2 minutes. Quick observation and mark making is needed to begin with. This is followed by 2 or 3 poses of 5 minutes and then we move on to poses of 10 minutes, 20 minutes and after the coffee break 30 minutes.
I do enjoy the challenge of life drawing from the human model. Sometimes it does not go well. At other times a series of quickly drawn lines can capture so much life, form, emotion, strength, movement and beauty.
Looking and Learning
I thoroughly enjoy the sessions and it’s reassuring to see the other artists attending regularly. There is a relaxed atmosphere and when the drawing begins the intensity of concentration and creative energy is all around the room. Sometimes I get over anxious about the timed sessions and how much I want to achieve before the timer goes off. But today was different. I found time to focus on specific aspects, in particular, the head and how it fits onto the neck. The angle of the hands and how difficult they are to draw. The importance of our feet.
The head, hands and feet = the mind, making and mobility.
Looking back over my drawings I can see considerable improvement. My observation is much better and I am not afraid to move a line or change its angle. All too often there is not enough space on the paper for the legs and feet. But no time is wasted. Every minute is used to capture an aspect of the human form.
