Skull

I recently bought myself an anatomy book to help out with my life drawing. My sister tells me skulls have been 'in' for a couple of years, and as usual, being the laggard I am, I have only just recently bought myself a skull tshirt. Given this, I thought it might be appropriate to start my anatomy drawing skills with a skull, who somehow seems to look inordinately happy with himself. It must be those nice shiny teeth!

Saturdays

This is some of the work I've done in the class I have on Saturdays. It's always a total struggle to get out of bed to make it to class, but it's definitely been worth it. The first one is using tertiary colours, which were really cool to mix and to work with. The charcoal one is based on a 3D construction I did in class which itself was based on drawings of dead plant matter. Part of the piece I've then recreated into an oil painting which it sounds like it will be part of the student exhibition at Leith School of Art in December. My first time being in an exhibition, pretty exciting! It's cool to now look back and see where the Saturday morning class was headed and to have some output to show. I'm also glad to have such good lecturers!

Colour pastel

More life drawing, this time in colour pastels. I enjoyed drawing this model.

Pastel figure

My figure drawing class is proving somewhat challenging but I'm slowly getting into the swing of things. Last night we worked on 3 sketches of the same pose in pastels. This is the most finished one though as you can see her arm still has a bit of a way to go. I'm still struggling with tones, and mid-tones especially. I recently went to an exhibition of Astrid Trugg at the henderson gallery www.thehendersongallery.com/current.html. I really enjoyed her pieces, especially the boats (and was checking out her use of tones) and the way she collaged pieces of newspaper into her work, which I thought worked really well. I am also very much in love with one of the paintings showing at the moment at the Open Eye Galley but it doesn't look like they have it on the website http://www.openeyegallery.co.uk/. I'll have to find out the artist - I wish you could see it.

Starter nudes

I went to my first figure drawing class tonight, which was cool. We did contour drawings. I faithfully stuck to the not taking the pencil off the page, hence the wobbly legs and feet, but I always get a kick out of contour drawings, so maybe was also bit more creative that I was meant to be. I think my flatmate was a bit shocked about me drawing nudes, hence the "You draw naked people??!") comment, but drawing people is the best thing. Other news, went to see Impressionism & Scotland at the Royal Scottish Academy yesterday. Stand-outs for me were William McTaggart's "The Storm". Awesome, passionate painting, you have to see it full-size but for a little taste see http://www.nationalgalleries.org/collection/online_az/4:322/result/0/5139?initial=M&artistId=3308&artistName=William%20McTaggart&submit=1 . At first all I saw were the stormy waters, but then the more I looked, the more I picked out other things in the painting. There was this amazing figure of a woman in the painting, so small, yet you could see her hands tucked up tight to keep her cloak close, with the wind sweeping her skirts against and away from her. Other stand-outs for me were James Guthrie's paintings with their gold hues and dappled lights.

Portrait of a friend

This is a portrait of my friend taken from a photo when we were in Bristol lately. She wouldn't let me sketch her on the spot, so mmm, I've had to resort to underhanded means, but hey, my friend, if you see this and you want it deleted, no problemos. One of my flatmates recently let me sketch her while watching tv which was cool. It turned out differently, but had more hard lines in, which was good for me, because I want to put more contrast in my work. Other things going on - went to Vanity Fair exhibition last weekend. Very cool. There was some very cool 1920s/30s shots of celebs and there was one of the more recent ones which for some reason I really liked. It was of an artist wearing t-shirt and shorts standing front-on to the camera in his studio with his painting to the left and his art gear strewn around the room. I thought it was not so much "arty" but just very honest. I liked that. I've been writing some poetry lately and I've taken inspiration from this book of women Scottish poets I'm reading and find that there too, I like the poems which are honest. I don't think I'm doing a very good job of explaining this "honest" concept, so I'm going to go. Starting a figure drawing class next week, so hope to post some stuff from that soon. Adios amigos.

Cavalier No. 4

This is me capturing the Laughing Cavalier by Frans Hals, 1624. He was an unknown gentleman who was apparently 26 at the time he was portrayed. It doesn't have much in common with Hals work but I am trying these days to catch the vibrancy and the spirit of things otherwise I get too bogged down in the detail. I am completely, however, in absolutely awe of the old-school painters. They were incredible and it would be my dream to be able to paint as they painted. However, in the mean time, I read an article on Liza Minnelli the other day and apparently Judy Garland had said to her that it's better to be a first-rate version of yourself than a second-rate version of someone else. So that's the plan...just got to get there...somehow!

The green man

I have discovered a passion for bright colours, probably inherited from my mother. I think I must have loved them when I was younger too - this bright green gouache paint I bought last weekend reminded me of finger painting in kindergarten. I used to love that and still would if I could be 5 again! I tried something similar to finger painting with this painting, but it got lost, so I figure I need a canvas that can take lots of paint and some other tools to make what I want to happen in the future.

Well, I'm off travelling for a few weeks, so hopefully I'll have a chance to do a bit of outdoor sketching and will have something of interest to post for you when I get back.

17th century men with attitude

I went to the Edinburgh College of Art degree show last weekend (in new shoes, so new blisters has meant no wandering this weekend!). I particularly enjoyed the Illustration room, which had some great visual diaries, together with books (both comic and children's books) illustrated and written by the students - some were really fantastic. I am rambling, however, I have noticed a tendency for the comic books I've seen to have buccaneers and I've also picked up the pirate theme in things I've seen elsewhere in Edinburgh. So I thought I would try my own hand at drawing buccaneers, with their flamboyant fashion and big attitudes. So far, I have found a few pictures of 17th century men's fashion to base the drawings on mainly at http://www.costumes.org/. These ones are just starters, but I haven't posted anything in my blog for so long, I wanted to post something so you know I haven't disappeared.

Titian

Today I did my usual Saturday afternoon in Edinburgh and went out hunting for an art gallery and something to sketch. I went to The Queen's Gallery to see the Art of Italy Renaissance exhibition and fell into the hands of Titian (or attributed to Titian) via the Boy with a Pipe (on the right). The work swallowed my heart whole. The work is so beautiful, the Boy is so beautiful and thoughtful, it amazes me. After the gallery, I traipsed down Calton Road and chanced upon this monument (on the left). Its only a quick sketch, as I'm trying to change my focus to expressing my impression of what I see not what's exactly there. Also trying to learn to cope with all the distractions of sketching in a live area, with people walking by having serious conversations about what to tell their boyfriend about stuff, crazy hyperactive people running and laughing, people taking photos and looking over my shoulders.

Royal Botanic Garden flowers

Ads, this is for you. I believe you left a little message on Facebook that you expected to see a painting of this photo I took and because your wish is my command, here it is. Hope you like it. Missing you, play my piano for me won't you, it's a bit hard living without it.

I went to artists gathering again last Wednesday - they had a Maestro swordsman/fencer speak on how to make swords and the reasons for different sword forms in different centures. Also had a free form fencing fight which was cool. I now know a pommel on a sword actually is there for a reason, as well as all the pretty swirly steel on rapiers. It means I will now watch my favourite medieval tv shows and movies with renewed enthusiasm and ofcouse, greater understanding!

The tissue box

Yes, inspired by a tissue box. I know, it makes you want to cry doesn't it... go ahead, grab a tissue, I know you want to. Mmm, I think it was the photo of the flowers, the way the petals opened and the creases in the tissue that compelled me to draw it. I would like to give credit to the photographer of the flowers, but unfortunately I can't as the name of photographer is not on the box. I went to an artists gathering the other night, where there was a script-reading and a forum after to give feedback on the reading. Very cool and very inspirational, not that it's related to the tissue box, except that it made me want to try harder so I can improve and maybe give people enjoyment of my art in an exhibition one day as the script-reading gave me enjoyment.

On site

I sketched this tree while in East Princes St Gardens this morning. A young Brazil man told me it was beautiful. If only I could speak Spanish! I'm proud of the wine glass because I used the idea in The Art of Travel with a Sketchbook (by Mari Le Glatin Keis) to use materials on site - so the wine is painted with the cab merlot I was drinking!

Have a little faith in me

Pencil. I was going to give this sketch a depressing title, but I think God just reminded me to "have a little faith in me". So I did and am and he's been good so I'm all good. Cheers. Think I'll go down to the shore this weekend if the weather holds up and maybe try to get some of those sea scenes.

Edinburgh beginnings

To my Pa, who wanted me to keep my blog updated and to my Ma, who keeps sending me parcels from home. Left - top of the Royal Mile, Right - Self-portrait (kinda looks like me - the nose anyhow!). Finally found an art supply shop in Edinburgh today, just past the North Bridge. Got an artist journal with different colour paper which I look forward to using. Also went to Museum of Scotland and got half way through and the fire alarm went off. Good what I saw though and early BC/AD jewellery was cool.

Contour at Airports

Blue ink on paper. Waiting at Singapore and Heathrow airports I thought I would try some contour drawings. Stumbled across Scottish National Portrait Gallery today. Portraits completely blew me away. Looks like I'm going to have to try drawing my own face again!

3 Fruit

4B Pencil. The standard kitchen fruit - apple, orange and banana. I wonder if people are made so that some like fruit green and some overripe and some inbetween so that none ever goes to waste. Not personally into overripe fruit but after staring at it for about an hour, felt obliged to eat it anyway! Haven't had much time to be creative with all the packing I've been doing but I'm very much hoping to do some real-life seascapes in a few weeks.

Set of 5 teapots

Oil Pastels on paper. People seem to like giving me teapots and I like receiving them. So I decided to do a little ode to my teapots and a bit of a dedication to those who have given them to me. You know who you are. Finished my visual diary tonight, so I think that it must be my visual diary and blog 1 year anniversary this month. I wonder what the new year will hold?

My Hand

Drawn with a Pitt Artist Pen. I never realised how many lines hands have. I think I could spend the next 50 years tracing every single line on my hand. There are so many, some shallow, some broken, some deep, some crossing over one another, some arch-like. Proportions aren't exactly the best on this drawing but I was trying to emphasise that palms, well my palms anyway, are bigger than they appear. Next project: a series of teapots in pastels I think.

Shores of the grey lake

Painting of the shore of the Grey Lake in Loughrea, Ireland using a painting knife and brush with acrylics. This is the first time I've used a painting knife. It's a bit difficult to see in the picture, but it enabled clear, smaller lines and a build up of texture, particularly with the grass and fence posts.