3rd Feb 13
Hey Guys - well finally I get going with information about my artistic learnings thus far - I've been here about 3 wks and this is the first day I've really been able to just saunter - and saunter I have - I've just been to the most amazing print gallery - Lautrec - Piccaso- Chagall- Durer - Mucha - Dali - Rembrandt -loads more but I've already forgotten who else - wish I had a better memory -  - lots of wonderful sculptures by Richard Macdonald - oh my goodness - for figure drawing aficionados - they are absolute heaven - take a look at his work if you don't already know it - I certainly didn't - you'd just want to sit in front of one for days and draw it - beautiful - I've drawn a few Rodins under instruction from my lady tutor Linda - she has managed to slow me down by pointing out at least 20 ways to look at something - and compare - I suppose I knew a lot of them - but when you get them all together - slowly with a hard pencil - that was key - I didn't have my usual heavy lines already taking over the page - I was encouraged to use a 5 H which was like drawing with a pointed piece of metal - so it certainly slowed me down - The envelope technique of starting was also advised - as I often go off the page  - although I have improved of late - this did prevent and curtail and contain - as I had to stay in the envelope - I'll be honest with you - I didn't find this easy - but - I shall try to maintain staying within the confines of straight lines drawn  from the farthest points round the subject - when I was in New York. - Minerva the boss of the Spring St Studio - also tried to get me to use this method - she called it the cookie cutter - Linda is with me now for 2 more months - so she won't let me off the hook - so presumably I will get it at some point -  she also instills in me to do small straight lines within my envelope - after much measuring and comparing - I wasn't allowed to curve - I was dying to of course -but I was only allowed to pay attention to  the tilts with small straight lines - we had a model for 3 hours in the same pose - I tried this on her - Laurie - Lovely - I didn't feel very flowy - but it kept my attention on where stuff was - I haven't posted anything as yet - so I will - when I go in tomorrow - I've just finished the 2 wk portrait course with David Kassan - and it was truly fantastic - the same pose for 2 weeks - can you imagine - again my portrait and this time a painting - had so much of his input I didn't think posting a pic would be that interesting - but of course in retrospect  it probably would - I've kind of demolished the features now - with a broader understanding of looking at it as a whole thing rather than separate entities - cos  this is what I do - home in on separate bits  - not unifying the whole thing -I think  he looks like Crighton the robot  from Red Dwarf - 

10th Feb 13
Well that was last week - and I still haven't posted anything - but I actually will tomorrow - cos I've started lots of different things - and now it will be a good record for me to see my progress - and lovely that those of you reading this will see it as well - 

I've started a portrait drawing which will be a painting - the model Luma is sometimes a mermaid complete with huge tail - I've seen pictures - I start painting next tues -meanwhile I will take the drawing to the printers and have it copied half size  - then transfer it to a board - with pastel powder on the back and drawn over with biro type pen

I've started a figure drawing of Simone which will also become a painting - 

I've  started a drawing of a still life of a jug - bell and a  little bird. - very weird is a still life for me - very weird indeed - all very inanimate - I'm sure I'll grow to love it

I've started 2 drawings of the same model Laurie - I've moved round a bit - so the second one is slightly different - might just make a drawing of this - not sure

19th Feb

So finally I set my blog up 6 wks into my stay ! - I think it's such a not me thing to do - I've just kept putting it off - bit like finishing my first drawing - then signing it and oh my goodness framing it - and it felt so great finally reaching those milestones -so this is another brand new thing I said I'd  do and haven't yet - so doing it I am - I have been outrageously busy - but I imagine this isn't a very time consuming thing to do - so I'll stop going on and actually do it 


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