Local Events | Figure Drawing
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Figure Drawing From The Outside Looking In Daniel J. Montes
THE ART OF LEARNING Local events
As one who does not consider himself an artist... I had a unique opportunity recently. Linda Lisa invited me to a nude model figure drawing session held locally every month. While I took the normal art classes growing up including some drafting classes in high school and college and art 101, I never considered myself an artist. I haven't even pick up a pencil and drawn what was in front of me since college. I certainly had never been to a figure drawing session, nude or otherwise session, nude or otherwise. In my travels, I've seen plenty of paintings and sculptures of nudes in art, so I have no issues with nudity in art or in public. Even still, I have to admit I was a bit nervous going to draw live, nude models. First, and I think I mentioned this earlier, I haven't drawn sense I was in COLLEGE. Second, I'd never been to a figure drawing session. All I knew was that the model/models would hold a pose for a designated time (5 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, etc) and we draw them. Thirdly, my primary interest in going to the session was that I am considering modeling for these sessions in the future. Meeting the group of artists... So, here I am with about 15 artist and a couple that will be posing for us. Fortunately, I knew several of the artists. Two of the artists who were there are Linda Lisa's master printers Jesse and Sarah Hebert, one I've known for almost a year and, of course, Linda Lisa was there, as well. We all talked, mingled, had a drink and a slice of pizza until it was time to start. ( From what I understand, this is a very informal but very professional and comfortable format for a figure drawing sessions.) There were more artists than seats, it was an unexpectedly large group that night, so I took a seat on the floor at Linda Lisa's feet where she sat on the couch. Sitting there made me both more comfortable and more nervous at the same time. Comfortable, because I trust her. Nervous, because I realized after I sat down that she could see what I was drawing from over my shoulder. I'm sure it never occurred to her to look at my drawings or that sitting the way we were would make me nervous. And after reading this blog to her, she laughed and said it hadn't. She laughs each time I read the updated version of this blog.
Before The Break First Gestures by Daniel Montes
The figure drawing session... Time came and we took our seats, the lights were dimmed and focused on the models for their first pose. We did several 5 minute poses and then a 15. As we had first time models, we took a break so they could stretch and get ready for longer poses. During these first poses I felt very rushed. But, I'm guessing from all the moans and groans from the other artists when time was called, that this is normal. My hand would not draw what my eyes were seeing and my brain was telling it to draw. It was quite frustrating and I was all too happy when they called for a break. I was miserable. During the break I had an opportunity to hear some of the same frustrations I was feeling from some of the other artists. Linda Lisa and I talk about my frustrations and she gave me a few tips on how to deal with them. Mainly, she told me how to get the basic form and movement lines down and to focus on one part of the body or one model at a time rather than trying to have a complete drawing of both models with lots of detail. Basically, she was teaching me how to do guesture drawings. Armed with the guidance I gained from Linda Lisa, I went back in for the second half of the session with more confidence!
After The Break Gestures by Daniel Montes
I moved away from starting at the head/face and working my way down, to ignoring the face completely and drawing the movement and shape of the bodies. As my hand and eyes began to work together more readily, my drawings became more complete, more fluid and more accurate to what I was seeing. Soon, I was completely lost in whatever part of the models I was drawing. Each time the end of a pose was called, it was like waking from a meditation. As I drew, I was no longer seeing models, but lines and shapes. The difference between my first half drawings and second half drawings was quite dramatic. In the end I was quite greatful to Linda Lisa for the advice and the encouragement she gave me during our break.
20 min Figure Studies by Daniel Montes
After the session, I reluctantly showed my drawings to Linda Lisa. She was so impressed that I showed them to a couple of our artist friends there. They too were surprised at my drawings. In the future, I hope to have the confidence to show my drawings to other artists at these events and to see their drawings as well. Linda Lisa, myself and several others helped the host clean up and rearrange the space so it would be ready for its normal, everyday use. Afterwards, several of us stayed outside and talked for several hours. As Linda Lisa and I are quite social, this was a great addition to the figure drawing session. All in all it was an amazing experience! With wonderful artists and models, pizza and a drink or two, everyone seemed to have a great time. I look forward to the next local artist event my work schedule will allow me to attend and I hope that this blog will encourage you to search out local artist groups and get to their events.
As always, feel free to share your own experiences from local artists events, comment on my experience or ask questions below. I look forward to getting to know you and hearing your stories.
I welcome your stories, comments and questions below.
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