3rd Entry for June 28, 2011

These 3 studies occupied the balance of the time I worked with Z-  that day.
Each is done with hard compressed charcoal on different sheets of Japanese paper, all roughly 18 x 24"
Each was roughly 30 - 35 minutes in initial drawing. followed by an hour or two of background shading later.

5th Entry for Mar 24, 2011

These are two 15-minute studies, done with 8B graphite on sheets of 18 x 24" Japanese paper. I was very happy with how these were turning out, but got called away on some other business after they were done, so the drawing evening ended on a high note.

For anyone looking for beginner or intermediate life drawing instruction, I am starting 10-week classes in the next few days at the Toronto School of Art.
Also,  if you want to get a better grasp of drawing simple solids (blocks, cylinders, etc) and applying perspective principles to drawing objects, there is also a Tuesday morning 10-week class starting next week called `Structural Drawing' , also at the TSA.

More details are on their website, http://www.tsa-art.ca

7th Entry for Mar 13, 2011

These were two 20-minute poses, which ended the evening.   E- 's work was strong, and his miry, more mature frame lends itself to this sort of shading.
Both of these were done with 9B graphite on a Japanese paper called  `etchu pure Kozo ' - It was a thick, slightly rough paper, but I really liked the surface of it. It was by no means a cheap paper, but it totally handled like one. It was a nice - and still rare - feeling to be fearless on costly paper, but I found this one's surface really friendly to how I like to work.
Alas, it is also discontinued, at least for the moment, as I discovered when I went back to The Paper Place a couple of weeks later. But at least now I know a feeling I am looking for, in terms of texture. On the down side, the paper was a little on the greenish side of a cream colour, rather than a warm colour, which isn't my favourite.  But by this point in the evening, the drawing was flowing pretty freely, which was a nice high note to end on.


Drawing from life can be a very engrossing, meditative high, and if you want some guidance in life drawing, I'm offering classes in Spring term at the Toronto School of Art, both at beginner and intermediate levels.   It starts in about 10 days, and you can get full details on courses of mine - and many others - here.

2nd Entry for Mar 1, 2011

These are two 20-minute studies above, and one 15-minute one below.
 All are 8B graphite on 18 x 24" sheets of Japanese paper.

4th Entry for Feb 22, 2011

The upper study of H-  and A-   is a 20-minute one, with 8B graphite on 18 x 24" Japanese paper.

The one below is 25 minutes, with the same materials.
There was a nice rapport between the two of them, and while it verges on cliche, the interplay between A-  's lean-ness and H -   's fuller forms worked well.  Drawing two people together like this is something I really enjoy. It happens very rarely, but when it does, it requires all my focus to keep all the shapes in sync with each other. That worked pretty well at points on this evening.

8th Entry for Feb 20, 2011

The evening  (and my drawing `trifecta' day) wrapped up with a 15-minute study and a couple of 20-minute ones. The 15-minute standing one at top is graphite on cartridge paper, and the two 20-minute ones below are graphite on two different Japanese papers.  All are on sheets about 18 x 24" in size.

The lowest one is, in my estimation, an especially strong drawing, for me. I'm quite happy with it.

3rd Entry for Feb 20, 2011

Over the three hours of the Sunday afternoon, I worked on two studies. Above, the first was roughly 2 hours, and leans on the side of being overworked. I had an idea of the fabric that S-   was sitting on acting as a sort of light map `foil for the values in the rest of the drawing, but i hindsight itlooks a little old-fashioned. I also struggled more with S-  's likeness, and it shows a bit.

The lower one was 40 minutes, and is more fresh in its handling.

Both are done with 8B graphite, on 22 x30" Japanese paper above, and on 18 x 24" paper below.

6th Entry for Feb. 14, 2011

 

 

Above is a 15-minute study on Japanese paper, below that a 20-minute one on cartridge paper, and the lowest one was a 20-minute study on Japanese paper. All are roughly 18 x 24",  and all are done with 8B graphite.

3rd Entry for Feb 4, 2011

These two studies finished that evening. The one above was 15 minutes, done with graphite on 18 x 24" cartridge paper.
The lower one is graphite on 18 x 24" Japanese paper.
 
For Toronto area drawing afficionados, there are two current things to note:

Firstly, I have a piece in the John B Aird Gallery's Drawing 2011 exhibition. It runs Monday - Friday, 10-6 at Bay and wellesley, and has lots excellent and varied drawing on exhibit. More details here.

Second, next weekend - Feb 26 & 27, I will be having an open house at my studio, to which people are very welcome to come visit. Keep an eye out here for further details.

2nd Entry for Jan. 27, 2011

From the top, these are a 10-minute, a 15-minute and a 20-minute study. The top two are on cartridge paper, and the lowest one is on Japanese paper. I had fairly good luck that night, I felt, getting the lok of A-   .
All are done with soft (8B or 9B) graphite, and all are about 18 x 24".

3rd Entry for Jan 20, 2011

These were  20-minute studies, that ended the evening. The one above is graphite on 18 x 24" cartridge paper, the one below is on 18 x 24" Japanese paper, also with soft graphite.

5th Entry for Jan 9, 2011

 

Above are two 15-minute studies, below are two 20-minute ones. All are done on sheets of 18 x 24" Japanese paper.  The last one, with the extremely foreshortened view, was the one in which I most felt like I was using my preferred mix of Conte crayon and newsprint yet,  and the paper is so much more archival.

5th Entry for Nov. 29, 2010

These are two 30-minute studies, done on 18 x 24" sheets of Japanese paper with 8B graphite. It was nice to have the longer time to work, and the session was small, so I got some input into how B-  was sitting in the upper pose,
I was very happy with how the face worked out in that one.

5th Entry for Nov. 28, 2010

These longer poses finished the evening.  The upper two are done with Prismacolor art stick on 20 x 30" sheets of cartridge paper, while the lower two are done with graphite on 18 x 24" sheets of Japanese paper.

2nd Entry for Nov. 28, 2010

In the afternoon I switched over and worked with E-   , in the other available studio ( I liked the fairly simple lying down pose that she was in).
The upper one is a 1.5 hr study,  done with Prismacolor art stick on 20 x 30" cartridge paper, and the lower one is a 1-hour study done on an 18 x 24 sheet of  Japanese paper using graphite.

I like the boldness & crispness of the upper image, while the greater amount of light in the lower image has a clarity and gentleness about it.

1st entry for Nov 28, 2010

On the Sunday I was over at the TSA for a bit of the morning (I  did allow for a bit of sleep-in time.). I worked with C-  for the first part of the day. The upper image was done with Prismacolor art stick on 20 x 30" cartridge paper, and the lower one is 8B graphite on 14 x 17" Japanese paper.

3rd Entry for Nov. 25, 2010

 

These are 15-minute studies. The top two are the Prismacolor art stick on 20 x 30" cartridge, the next two are 8B graphite on 18 x 24" Japanese papers, and the bottom one is an aquarelle graphite stick on 20 x 20"  cartridge paper.
The Prismacolour stick is interesting - it feels and handles almost like a litho crayon, and has a rich, deep value range. The dark values on it do tend to blow the graphite out of the water, though the graphite is more amenable to subtle handling. Neither feels quite as at home in my hand as a piece of Conte crayon, but I'm liking some of what they produce.

2nd Entry for Nov. 21, 2010

Above are two 15-minute studies on 20 x 30" cartridge paper, and below are two 20-minute studies on 18 x 24" Japanese paper. All were done with 8B graphite.