happy new year!

I just read a quote by Eva Zeisel, a well know ceramic artist and designer, who just died, at 105. When she was asked how to make something beautiful, she replied, “You just have to get out of the way.”


Wishing you all a happy, a healthy, and a productive 2012!!!

drawing f '11 | style

"I like your style" is the ultimate classroom compliment. An identifiable look, a masterful technique, gets everyone's attention. After 15 weeks, it is not surprising. There is always growth. Yes, even for a novice, whose start is fraught with trepidation. Loosen your grip on the charcoal. Stay focused, and notice every bump and curve. If you are bouncing around, that's normal. Enjoy the ride. Stretch, try new methods, trust your unique viewpoint. And pat yourself on the back. The clarity of the sketch, the coordination of hand and eye, along with the fluidness of the pencil, is a natural bridge to your own personal style.


With her lively hand, the clothed model is an avenue for Hannah to create character.

Aditi creates a pensive mood, with her usual soft touch, by adding shadows, in her second self-portrait .  

Jay embues these expressive drawings with his enthusiasm for charcoal.

Jay's first figure drawing

Nina's sensitivity, and attention to detail, serves her well, whether using pencil or charcoal.

Nina's first figure drawing

Marii's love of line shows even in her hatching.

Kushboo's use of a blind contour, gives texture to her drawings, even when she returns to the first assignment.

Kushboo's first figure drawing.

Melissa adds life to her sketches around NYC.

Paul enjoys using the eraser as a tool, to bring out the light.

drawing & painting I '07 | student work

Jeremy's work reminded me of past summers. Looking back, I came across these two students' work, which combined painterly techniques with vivid color palettes. I have included their drawings, as well. Enjoy!

drawing & painting I '10 | gallery show

Jeremy Nakamura, a former student, from my summer intensive, is in a group show at the Salomon Arts Gallery in Tribeca. (This is the only painting that I managed not to overexpose with my flash.) 

drawing f '11 | perspective

This guided tour of Washington Square Park is led by Marii, for her landmark assignment. Note the simplicity of the arch. How many of you would be caught up in all the details? Yet remember that this is a sketch, only meant to give a sense of the place.

We know where we are in relationship to the park entrance. The gate, the light and the fence, help to bring us in, while the grass and the trees are lightly indicated. There is no fight, for our attention, between the foreground and the background.

There is just enough information, along the path that we notice the railings. 

Again, we know where we stand in relationship to the fountain. Marii emphasizes the light poles, to show perspective, and downplays the water, trees, etc.

Enjoying the new revamped fountain, which gives students, tourists, and kids easier access to the water.

Here we are across from Parsons. This in fact was the first sketch, when as a class, we went outside our building.

drawing f '11 | gesture

The gesture is about self expression. It is the willingness to take risks, to let go, to dance on the paper, to rotate your wrist, to move your entire arm and body, to keep the flow, without lifting your hand up off the page, all while varying your line. Press down, lighten up, move from the side to the tip, back to the side again. Enjoy yourself. Put your brain on the back burner. It is NOT about making any of it look real. 

[Mary Claire]

[Cortny]

[Melissa]

[Ogonna]

[Jessica]

keeping a sketchbook

Over vacation, with the weather getting chillier, why not drop into a museum? The learning process is ongoing. Carry along a sketchbook and analyze your favorite art works. Let them be your teachers! The following sketchbooks (Summer Intensive Studies I '11) are for inspiration. Have a happy holiday!

I

Drawing f '11 | Composition

Shoes tell a story. Much like the people who wear them, they show a sturdiness of character, combined with years of wear. In a class on composition, shoes are employed as actors. Now, imagine that a drawing is a single frame in a movie. Keep it simple. We are not filming the entire movie, on one sheet of paper. Who is the focus ? Would it be a spiked-heel Angelina Jolie or patent leather Brad Pitt? How about camera angles? Up close or panning back? And who is the lighting director? In class, it is me, whereas at home, the student has total directorial freedom. 

Mary Claire set up a Mexican standoff. I can just hear the dialogue!

Just to get a good camera angle, Camila sat on the floor. With perspective, the sandal feels more distant because of the size difference. There exists a relationship (or maybe, a recent breakup.) More contrast in values is needed.

Hannah played with camera angles in both class and at home. In her second composition, the whole page was considered.  Cropping added to the drama. Was this a friendship gone sour? A lover's spat? The fainting diva could have been a tad smaller (to show some distance.)

Cortny tried two variations, and also included cropping. Though the second drawing was more fully realized, the top sandal looks to be a size 11. Foreshortening is called for here.

Melissa created a soft, caring relationship between these shoes. So where are they? There is quite a bit of white space surrounding these lovebirds. A light-handed environment would add to the storyline, and a darker value would show some contrast between them. As in life, how realistic would it be for these couples to be so harmoniously--gray? 

 Tippi maps out some dramatic cast shadows, found in a film noir. While the diagonal works, the moccasin needs to be on equal footing 

Erin creates a strong diagonal with a challenging angle--the underside of the boot is beautifully rendered. Again, there needs to be more variation in values. 

The pattern, on Rhonda's rain boot, plays a secondary role to the block-like structure of the boot. This is the same when an actress wears a printed dress. Do you want to notice the dress or her? Show the curves. Keep the pattern to a minimum.