Artwork

My art classes operate on a six week term which is a nice opportunity to change focus. The classes just keep running without a break, but we renew and pay every six weeks, and I've been doing something different each time. After the foray into charcoal portraits I thought it was time to get back to some watercolours, so the first three weeks I painted this house, which is at the end of our street, back towards town.

Here it is half way through! I love that the teacher makes us take photos of the progress, it is good to look back on.

This is the original photo. Some artistic license may have been involved in the composition and colours ... this house also has alpacas but I am NOT up to alpacas yet. Oddly shaped.

I did use the charcoal skills in the art group drawing session though, where we had a (fully clothed) model reading a book. These two were both the same guy, and neither are particularly like him. I really didn't capture the essence, but it's hard to see unless you know the person in question. 

But it was fun, and as ever I enjoy seeing what other people do. Mine are quite careful, compared to the others, I need to loosen up.

Heatwave

We've had a nasty heatwave in Australia where temperature records were broken (again) and even our shady corner got uncomfortably warm. I took off to the coast for a few days where it was still hot but you could always jump in the ocean to recover. I took absolutely no photos but it was very very nice - especially because school went back for a new year!!! Hahaha I do not miss that, not one bit. Other than swimming I had a sewing frenzy - including some fabric that I'd lifted from the quilt shed, they are happy to be rid of it - and read some of the two dozen books I got at the book fair.

Art classes continue on, and I continue to attempt faces. This is Susan Sonntag. It is not terrible but also not very good. The teacher makes me change things if they're not right (not something I do for myself, I tend to throw it in the bin) so I spend the full two hours smudging away at my latest victim. And the next week I did this bloke, who was a life model from many years ago. 

It doesn't look like him at all, it's hard to describe how it manages to be both the shape of his face and a completely different person. Sometimes you capture the essence and sometimes you really don't. 

We also had a friend to stay for a few days which was a real treat  ... he parked out front and made the cottage look MUCH classier than it usually does! He took my husband for a few spins with the top down but I have informed him we are much too poor for a mid-life crisis convertible.

Johnny Depp

Art classes have re-started and I have decided this term to focus on faces, because my faces are dreadful and some actual instruction would help. So I spent two hours creating this woeful mockery in charcoal from a black and white photo of poor Johnny Depp.

I feel like I should write to him and apologise. The reason why I am focussed on faces is because my mission during the break from art classes was 'a nude a day'. I didn't quite make one a day but got close ... and they were pretty terrible, especially if I tried to draw the faces. I ended up sketching a lot of bums (much easier) and backs of heads. Here is a representative sample: I'll start with the better ones.

These look like people. This second lot are a bit rough but also look like people ... no faces though.

These ones don't even look humanoid, they look like misshapen aliens.

It's all a bit difficult - there are websites that have reference photos for artist's models and a lot of the poses are far too complicated. Swords? No. I have enough trouble with arms.