Life Painting (Old Masters' palette)

We had the same model and pose in Painting this week.  I finished my portrait with the Old Masters' palette.  I want to learn warm & cold next term for my independent study.  For our last class we can pick whatever we want to paint.  I've decided to paint the portrait Derain did of Matisse to complete the pair (since I've already done Derain by Matisse).

Life Drawing

This week in life drawing we drew hands beginning with our own.  Then we did one minute "fast hands" from the model.  Otherwise we did the usual warm-up gestures and then longer and longer poses.  The model was amazingly flexible.

More Colour

I'm behind in posting my colour exercises.  I'll leave off one (Week 8, Afterimage and optical mixing) that didn't seem to work out and post the next two.  Since we have two more classes this term there will be two more exercises.  Next term will be very different.  For one thing we'll be using acrylic paint.

Week 9: Interaction and Tonal Progression

Week 10: Colour Unity, Primary Triad

Genji

I've finally finished my project on The Tale of Genji for Art History class.  I made 11 panels in all using most of the techniques we learned during the term -- marbled paper, painted paper, stencils, lino cut.  There must be more but I forget just now.  Heat transfer did not turn out for me.  The women in class on Monday along with the teacher chose which 2 I'll put into the Open House.  Next term the class will be run in the same way so I'll pick a new theme.

The Tale of Genji has fascinated me for over 25 years.  I've always loved the section describing the house Genji has built for several of his women.  Each gets a corner and a garden.  There they wait for visits from Genji.  In other words, it's a beautiful existence but essentially they are trapped.  This reminds me of my parents marriage so I added stencilled figures of a man and woman.  Also I know that Genji chose Murasaki simply by her appearance at the age of ten.  A little while later he kidnaps her and eventually takes her for another of his conquests -- a story not unlike my own so I also added a stencilled little girl.

The pair for the Open House:

Life Painting

In painting class we've started the last project of the term.  We're doing a portrait of a live model.  I've never done life painting before.  We could chose which palette to use.  I'm using Old Masters this time.  I'll be able to practice the other, which the teacher calls "warm & cold," next term.  He explained that during our last class this term we'll have an individual critique and also decide on a project for next term.  I want to work with warm and cold.

Anyhow here's my portrait so far.  I asked the teacher if you can compose using diagonal lines.  He said you can and it's called X-focus.  The diagonals began with the folds in the blue sheet behind the model.  Next week I add colour.

Life Drawing

There are only two more full weeks of classes left.  I'm going a bit nuts on my Genji project but hope to pretty much finish this weekend.  Life drawing chugs along reliably and without homework!  This week we worked on feet.  These are some of my drawings.

Matisse!

This week in painting class my teacher picked out a painting for me to copy.  We had decided on a face with Impressionist colours as good practice before the next two classes when we will have a model.  He chose a Matisse portrait of an other painter, Andre Derain, which was painted in 1905.  The Matisse was done in oil but otherwise is pretty much identical to mine -- apart from the fact (which my teacher pointed out) that Matisse wouldn't have painted on cardboard!

Life Drawing

Another life drawing class.  I really like the class and I'm happy with my drawings.  I just want to get better and better.  This week's facial feature was the mouth.  That was the last one.  We're supposed to practise ears at home.