Fridays

Yesterday Ronette continued to make us work on gesture drawings in 30 seconds and 1 minute; I prefer 5 and 10 seconds for these and get bored. It so happened that yesterday's model is also a friend of mine, and I tried different kinds of lines, mainly to fill the alloted duration. The curly lines, to me, symbolized her speaking voice, the side of her personality she shows me, as well as our sometimes tenuous friendship. She's a good model. I'm also learning how to draw with the eraser more.

Anabelle ran out of paper and taped an A3 sheet on the bottom of a A2 sheet, allowing room for a long drawing. She said because we use the A-shaped papers all the time, she automatically/mentally frames the figures in that proportion. I don't think much when I draw; I just don't like heads and feet so when I've no room it's a bonus, though after intensive head and face study during Term I, I find I include them more often than I did in the first three years. My drawings are, in my fourth year, still mediocre to WTH at best, but I don't even "hope to do better one day," because it's being there and doing it that gives me the most pleasure.

Next week we're going to collage figures. Pat P said she doesn't like collages because it's out of her comfort zone. I don't like collages because my glue proficiency stopped at Age 4 so all my stuff end up sticky and wrinkly and horrible, as do my hands, clothes and sometimes face and hair, but not because it's outside my comfort zone. Come to think of it, nothing I do in Ronette's class is outside of my comfort zone; either I don't have a comfort zone any more, or more likely being in the Friday morning class is my comfort zone. I'm game for anything she instructs us to do on the one hand, and can ignore anything I don't understand or don't feel like trying on the day. I feel detached because I'm busy being in the moment if that makes sense. 

I'm a weaver and my bad drawings don't threaten me, though for many in class painting and drawing are their primary methods of expression and self-criticism often get in their way. I understand because this is what happens with my weaving, and it's a valuable lesson to observe their self-flagellations, but much more fun to celebrate their successes especially when they/I can spot what worked.   

Anabelle, Sam, Catherine and I might have a small exhibition in 2014.