Monday, July 27, 2009

Looking Inward


This is an 11"x14" oil sketch on canvas, painted this morning, based on a small sketch I did from life in 2003.

20 comments:

  1. Not to refer everything back to me, but this did make me think of Saturday yoga class. And naked would not be an option.

    So now I'm curious about the models. Are they usually artists as well? Or is this a profession?

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  2. AH, modeling is its own profession, independent of whether the model is also an artist. Not infrequently the models seem to use yoga or ballet as inspiration for their poses, but they are also constrained by the directions of the person running the modeling session.

    There's a movie by a local model (she's a filmmaker) about the experience of modeling:

    http://www.stelliumproductions.com/

    which I have not seen, but which Shanna (VIEW) used to assign to her students before they began drawing from life (see comments to my July 1st post).

    I also came across this interview with a model about her book on the topic, which has a good description of the basic rhythms of a typical modeling session:

    http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101622536

    Peter Steinhart, in his book, The Undressed Art, has a chapter on the job from the model's viewpoint, "Working Naked." The thing he zeroes in on, which I think is quite correct, is just how much of a collaboration between artist and model life drawing is.

    Are you continuing with the yoga?

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  3. Yes, I am. And I wasn't nearly so sore after this weekend class.

    Someone lives near me with the license plate: Artmodel or maybe it's artmoddel. I'll try to run into him or her; perhaps it's someone you know.

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  4. I was of course about to mention Parker's amazing documentary in reference to hiker's comment, but you did it for me, Jean. It is a must see. I know Parker well, as she has modelled privately for me many times and her video is great.

    I love your loose brushwork on this painting, Jean,

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  5. Thanks, Shanna. This particular pose fascinates me with its spiral of triangles. It's inspired me to go to today's drawing with renewed interest.

    There's something about the idea of art modeling that captures the imagination. I'll be interested to hear about what you learn, AH, if you do befriend the owner of the art model plate.

    As for the yoga, AH, I'm very impressed. Are you getting that kind of blissed out feeling from it yet?

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  6. Only when it stops.

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  7. "back when" the models from PCC seemed to have been picked up at the downtown LA Bus Station. We didn't really need a lesson on decorum. Most of us were kind of scared of our models. One elderly woman with tinted red hair must have been in vaudeville. She had an arsenal of hats she used when posing. She also wore thick pancake makeup. The make-up would gather like dust on her fake eyelashes. She'd fall asleep easily and when she'd start falling out of her pose, one of the students would drop a book (respectably) Without skipping a beat she'd be back in position.

    I liked her.

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  8. The loose brush stroke here (or maybe the palate choice) reminds me of the early work of Roger Herman.

    He was a big influence for me

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  9. PA, lately, the models I've been drawing have been much younger and in uniformly good shape (especially the guys, who have been working out--a lot--and have muscles on their muscles). I guess this summer the person doing the booking has definite preferences(?), but from years ago, at PCC I think, I remember Lila (?), a tall, very thin older woman with white hair who always wore large earrings when posing.

    I checked out the Roger Herman website--new artist to me--and really see similarities in his stuff from the 80s.

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  10. It makes her the perfect end-of-July girl.

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  11. Yes it does. (PA's story was rather hilarious.)

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  12. AH, there's apparently a yoga class where clothing is not an option:
    http://austinist.com/2009/07/29/hello_my_name_is.php

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  13. I don't know how you found that, but "happy baby," ooolala.

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  14. Very boldly done. I like it.

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  15. Nice pose, and I like the strong brush strokes.
    Good Looking Down sketches!!!
    Greetings.

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  16. Hi and thanks, Annie.

    I just visited the Posemaniacs site that you mentioned on your blog. That site has many fun features. I may do some kind of drawing from it, but mostly it's just fun to flip through.

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  17. Well I'm late to the game because I've been away on vacation, but I really enjoyed this discussion of modeling. It's something I know nothing about.

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  18. Welcome back.

    I really just know about modeling from the artist's perspective. The few times I've posed for someone other than myself, I've been astonished at how long even a minute can feel. I'm not surprised at the number of models who nod off; the surprising thing is that more don't.

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