"Focused"

"Focused"

16"x22", Charcoal on Paper

© 2013



Following the Midterm submittals in my Fall Semester Life Drawing class, we were required to draw a couple of self-portraits. If it had not been a mandated homework assignment, I might never have tried drawing a self-portrait and would have missed a very revealing experience.

Our instructor suggested we tape on the mirror an outline of the drawing paper we were going to use. In my case, this was a mirrored sliding closet door. I diligently taped an 18"x24" rectangle on the mirror's surface. With an adjustable height floodlight to my left, the easel and drawing pad to my right, and a drop cloth beneath the easel and me, I "stepped" into the rectangle. I marked where I was to stand, the location of the easel's tripod legs and the floodlight's tripod legs with blue tape. Then I focused on my reflected image. I explored every detail of that image and tried to capture it using only a a small piece of a chamois, a paper stump, a kneaded eraser and a stick of burnt wood.

"Coiled"

"Coiled"

16"x22"

Charcoal on Paper



Our Fall Semester Life Drawing instructor, Cynthia Grilli, chose a variety of models whose body types and poses would progressively challenge us as our drawing confidence and ability grew. During the unrobed 3 hours of short 2 to 5 minute poses, the quite flexible model pictured above twisted into one coiled form after another.

The two hour clothed afternoon session lead to the portrait shown.