Spring walk along the Speed

Today was one of the first warm spring days in a while. I took a break from marking and joined my wife and our dog Pippa to walk down to the river. While Lori strolled I hung behind to draw this massive old tree that still grows along the river. Something about this huge trunk that seems to twist and lean like a some old but still very strong old person always captivates me when I walk by. It's probably over 100 years old and like many of the trees that once lined the river it may not be here long. I will miss it.

Lion's Head Studio Thoughts

I’m writing this in the last minutes, maybe hours if I stretch it, of time in my studio in Lion’s Head. Outside it is dark but the squall off Georgian Bay is shaking branches of the huge old maples outside my windows, rattling a warning that the drive home won't be that easy, but because I teach tomorrow I really should leave tonight and not chance an early morning start. I know I would stay up too late working on the painting I started today and the morning would come dark and far too early. Yet it is so hard to leave. Downstairs logs are burning in the fireplace and the shelves are full of great books. It may sound idyllic and it is, but there are costs.

As I was throwing paint all over the large sheet of watercolour paper stretched on a board on my table I kept thinking how much art is subconscious calculation. We don’t think of it like math, and not being a math whiz I shouldn’t be comparing, but as I am playing with tonalities and contrasting colours in an intricate balance of luminosity and visual impact the thought kept going through my mind how calculating it really is. Part abandon and part focused rigid method, it is illusion making that is as taxing in thought as any science or task that is not considered creative in itself, even though we know all things are creative in their way.

My painting or my attempt is a response to the light that plays across the yard in the evenings when it filters through the ring of tall evergreens that border the yard. They are now tall enough that the lower branches are sparse and create a lattice of branches that is played against a very simple but almost iconic trellis that sits in a bed nor far in front of the trees. The trellis is not extravagant in any way, just a simple gate that gets lost in the frantic growth of flowers each summer, but in the winter stands like a marker of space and scale.

On the weekend I grabbed a piece of paper that had something already sketched out on the front and flipped it over to try to capture the light and patterns of blues, siennas and greens. Of course there is the full spectrum at play as well as tonalities and values so subtly balanced that they can and do drive me to distraction.

The question is how to take a relatively dull piece of paper and make it glow with the luminosity of the warm background against more luminosity of the snow both in shadow and in streaks of light.

And so both joy and frustration as countless brushes full of colour splashed across the paper, and now unfinished I must leave, for a few days, perhaps weeks. But it has been good to feel that joy of seeing something emerge from nothing and to play with the balance once more.

Tomorrow I will visit the AGO after class and head off to the floor with the group of 7 to marvel at how well they achieved it. And then I will try again.

unfinished start after 3hrs of play

Wunderkammer

Sometimes I like to just wander past the art at the AGO and let it talk to me, sometimes call me to stop, other times just wave me by. A very quiet conversation with the walls. But one stop I feel I must always make is to see the small study of knees by Michelangelo in a room shared by Ruben's studies from his Rome visit as a student. I know it is not a major work but there is something that speaks quietly from those lines. I love to listen to them.
In the rooms prior to the Michelangelo and Rubens are the magnificent carvings in ivory and wood. I love to pause there and wonder at the knowledge and control of those craftsmen.



The idea of Wunderkammer has always intrigued me. Here is mine if only for an interim.

Increible Day of Bouffon - Philippe Gaulier

the insane hairdresser

dwarf Varrick

Life gives its gifts in unexpected packets. Today's packet was thanks to our son Justin who had been participating in a Bouffon Workshop given by Philippe Gaulier at the Canadian Stage in Toronto. We were allowed to attend the last day of classes and it was a treat visually as well as provoking thought through the art of Bouffon. Magical.

fascinating trio I will develope further

characters I assume from the swamps of medieval Paris

most had arms tied off into stumps

The Master Philippe Gaulier

Bouffon Info on Wikipedia

Drawing

Draw lines, young man, draw lines; whether from memory or after nature. Then you will be a good artist.

J.A.D.Ingres”

No longer a young man or as good an artist as I would wish, it is how I started the year.

Yesterday, when my son visited with his daughter I took the opportunity to do a few sketches as he watched a movie. At first she slept in his arms, then awakened by the sound, became as captivated as he by the images moving before them. For her I’m sure they were just a swirl of colours and shapes, or perhaps something I am not even aware of, but for a moment her mind wished to absorb it all. In the same way I too was trying to absorb the swirl of shapes and forms in front of me, and to capture not only the physical, but also the moment that absorbed my attention and my heart. For me, that is drawing.

A few thoughts on drawing:

The quote at the top was taken from The Primacy of Drawing. It’s a large volume, a beautiful book I received from my wife this Christmas written by Deanna Petherbridge. From the scanning of the pages and the excerpts I’ve read so far it is probably the best book on drawing I have yet come across. I say this because Ms. Petherbridge no only has a great knowledge of drawing from the historical and museological side (should there be a word as such) but also is an accomplished artist and thus looks at drawing and the process behind it from the eyes and hands of an artist. To that I should add the heart too.

For me drawing has always been my greatest love. The magic that a line is capable of is of never ending fascination to me; and one of never ending challenge.

I teach figure drawing at a college in an animation program. When animation was hand drawn in the traditional,or classical way, it seemed obvious that skills in drawing were necessary. When computer animation came on, many foolishly predicted the end of the need for teaching drawing, much in the same way figure drawing had fallen out of favour in the University system.

I found it frustrating to express my concern for this attitude because I felt the reasons for drawing were deeper than just making an image. I felt there was a process in drawing that challenged the intellect, the faculties of observation and perception, and even of understanding.

äPerhaps they are all the same or very similar, for in that swirl of the moment where an eye is hit by the light reflecting from an image, where sensations go to the brain and the mind discerns elements both recognizable or new, filters them through prior experiences and emotions, or struggles to keep them fresh and untainted, and finally sends the appropriate impulses to a complex mass of muscles surrounding a structure of bone grasping a tool of relative simplicity or connected to the most intricate electronic devices and creates a mark or a series of interconnected dots that somehow communicate an idea or an impression to another human being and ends up telling a story: a drawing is born.

To me drawing is a matter of the eye, the hand, the head, and the heart and each playing its particular part in that magic that is drawing.

Happy Drawing to everyone!

The Primacy of Drawing by Deanna Petherbridge


Some Blogs I encourage you to visit - excellent artists each.

Daniela Strijleva http://danielastrijleva.blogspot.com/

James Robertson http://theironscythe.blogspot.com/

Dave Pimentel http://drawingsfromamexican.blogspot.com/

Vivienne sketches

My granddaughter is a pure delight to watch and to draw. Sadly I don't do that enough. The other evening we visited, this time with sketchbook. First sketch she was asleep and I was so focused on her head (fascinated by what must be going on in there I guess) that I failed to take into account her tiny hands which I ended up drawing in after. So much for good composition! The second was a quick sketch when she woke and before we left. She is absolutely attentive to everything around her, which I know is not unusual but fascinating to watch never the less. Family commented that I made her look like an old man but to me I think that I caught that gaze of wonder. Must do this much more often.

Sometimes we just gotta play!

I have a ton of work from both school and studio, and yet sometimes it is just fun to play. So still in my robe this morning I decided to sketch out a doodle of a house, throw it into photoshop and see what happened. The result: this year's Halloween card. Enjoy and have a great Hallowe'en wherever you frighteningly be!

Bad Day Drawing Technique

This comes from an email I wrote to a student of mine in first semester who's greatest difficulty is not knowing where and how to start a drawing. There are many approaches and this is but one, but it is one I have used with students for many years now. I use it myself in varying degrees, especially on those days when I hardly want to draw or just don't feel up to it. I call this Bad Day Drawing Technique.

Beginners are often overwhelmed by the complexity of what they face in the figure or anatomy. Even with eyes wide open, the mind shuts them to true observation and what essentially happens is that one is no longer observing or truly seeing, rather just looking.

If this is the case I suggest you follow these steps:

1 - take a moment to look and absorb what you are looking at.

There is no race or rush to hit the paper. I would rather see 20 sec of observation and 10 of drawing during a gesture than 30 sec of scribbling while madly dashing off in all directions hoping to hit something of which you have no idea what it is.

2 - get a feel for the gesture and reduce it to as few lines as possible.

Gesture is the feeling of the flow of the pose, the impression it gives of the attitude it projects. Start at the feet and grow it upwards or outwards. Don't just think of what it is doing statically: ie standing, sitting, laying down, rather of the feeling it projects / the emotion however subtle: fear, defiance, sadness, etc...emotions we call 'attitude'

3- mark or break down the proportions

Proportions are just relationships. Whether they are shape, or length or forms, they are just comparisons of one part to another to the whole. But you have to ask the questions to get the answers. In the beginning it may seem to pause your drawing, but it is necessary. If you were traveling through unknown terrain you would pause to ask yourself which way to go otherwise you would rush off in wrong directions. Same thing for drawing. you must stop and ask. No questions asked, no answers given, and the drawing is simply the visual answers to the questions you pose.

4- position the boxes

this requires a few things:

-that you are aware of the proportions of the boxes in the way they relate to the the parts they represent. If you are not aware or care it won't be right.

-you are aware of which way the planes (surfaces) are directed.

-you can actually draw and keep the proportions of the boxes consistent as they move through space.

5- Sketch in the skeleton

- if there is little time note first the places where the skeleton influence the surface (landmarks and joints). This of course requires a good understanding of the skeleton, attained only through repeated drawing studies.

6 - Pull the skin over the skeleton.

I suggest you work on each stage until you are confident with that one before moving to the next.

My experience has shown that this works. With dedication and perseverance I have seen some initially very weak students progress to high levels.

It's up to you.

Nanaimo Poster

Nanaimo B.C. has been the home of an exceptional childrens' book festival for over 20 years. I've been privileged to be a part of it many times and have numerous fond memories of those visits. When Robin Muller approached me to be part of a poster to celebrate the festival I was both pleased and apprehensive. The poster will be comprised of small images that represent what the festival has meant to us as presenters. With so many memories of children's laughter, festival hospitality, beautiful B.C. scenery and the chance to meet so many of Canada's top authors and illustrators, the task seemed daunting.

In the end I chose to represent a child buried in a book placed against the evening sky with a B.C. ferry and distant island glowing in in the setting sun's light. The place would be one of the original organizers of the festival, book store owner Thora Howell's lovely house and property on Protection Island. At the end of the Festival, Thora and friends would throw a lovely dinner for all the organizers and participants of the day's festival, and often we would sit and eat and talk as the sun set casting it's glow across the Georgia Straits against Gabriola Island. Just as often a ferry would pass by, glowing in the sun too. Just as a book takes you away, so does a ferry and for me it was in the end the perfect combination of what the festival was about and the memories it carried long afterward.

I'm happy to say this painting along with the others will auctioned next year to help fund future festivals.


Note: due to timing and space limitations the image is not longer part of the poster.

Bone Room Study

Visited the 'Bone Rooms' at the University of Guelph yesterday to do some studies. Who would have thought a beaver could look this good.

First drawing of my new granddaughter

This evening was my first chance to draw my new granddaughter. A wonderful experience.

Tonight's figure drawing

Joined the group over in Eden Mills for some drawing tonight. Took a pad of Borden & Ridley's bleedproof 14 x 17 inch paper for pens with a couple of 7B pencils. This was the last of three drawings for the night. Feels good to be drawing, only wish it had been looser.

Arm studies continued

This summer I will be giving two anatomy workshops at Seneca. The 7 week will be a master class in human anatomy with the focus on sequential movements. Here are some studies in preparation.




For more info on the courses: http://sca.senecac.on.ca/portal/aac_workshops/ .

Studies of Ed from today

Had Ed CZ over today for some studies of arm rotations. We all have good days and some not so good. Today I struggled with proportion, losing sight of relationships. These were the best of many frustrations. Too many weeks with no intense drawing has its toll. My intention is now to work back through the skin, through the muscles to the bone. I will post as I go.

More Lion skull studies

pencil, ink, conte and watercolour on ingres

Montreal MFA & Bone Room Guelph

I was in Montreal this weekend with regrettably little time to draw outside rough sketches of the architecture in Old Montreal during an early morning walk. Got a few minutes before closing in the Beaux Arts and had a moment to sketch this dragon from a painting by an Italian artist from the 17th century. I loved the way he made the belly feel as awful as that of a fat lizard or fish, and how he made the dragon's head different from what I'd seen before. Never got around to seeing my favorite Rodin before closing.



Today I spend a few hours a the Bone Rooms at the Vet College here in Guelph doing studies of a massive lion skull. I was amazed at the size of this animal's temporalis; his biting muscle. Absolutely huge. And I was equally surprised by the relatively small size of the brain. Pure hunter with only one way of thinking: the hunt. Hate to be the prey.

Tofino sketch

One of my favorite places in Canada is Tofino. I came across this sketch this evening and thought I would post it.

dragon from Dino

after that last entry today I started wondering what a dragon based on one of the dinos would look like. After a few minutes with photoshop this is what I came up with. It's pretty messy but fun anyway.

Dinos a the ROM

Fascinating in the way so much is similar to what we see now, and only a few million years apart. Wish I could be there for weeks, first study drawing what I see, then playing with it. Don't know why bones fascinate me so much?

conte on 18x24" newsprint

Armour at the ROM

My first semester students along with their other instructor Todd Sullivan and I spent the afternoon at the Royal Ontario Museum. It started with Dino's but for me ended at the armour display. Fun just drawing those elaborate cans men wrapped themselves in to do battle or just look tough. Can't help but think of the incredible skill of the craftsmen. Also can't help but see the similarities to the dryer pipes in my basement!