Aneta on Stool, pen and ink with graphite, by Kim Blair

 Aneta on Stool with Teal Scarf
12x9 Ink, graphite and colored pencil study
on acid free paper
 Scribble Gesture Drawing/Study
Scribble Gesture Drawing/Study


I think I freaked out the young man sitting next to me at the Figure Drawing Session... he kept glancing over at my sketch book as I let my hand fly all over the page with my scribble gesture mark making during the quick poses.  He left at the break... I hope I did not scare him away thinking he was sitting next to a crazy woman.

Oh, well... I had fun letting my inner child out to play again!

This time I added some 4B graphite to the longer pose for the shadow areas along with some teal blue colored pencil for her scarf.   The softer graphite sticks work better for me than conte or charcoal because the graphite does not produce dust, but I still have to add a sheet of waxed paper over the drawing so that the graphite does not smudge onto the next page.

*Click on the images for a closer look.




Life Drawing Studies, Pen and Ink, by Kim Blair

Figure Drawing Study
 Aneta in Chair 
12x9 on acid free paper
 Pen and Ink with Ink Wash

 Scribble Gesture 
Pen and Ink
Scribble Gesture
Pen and Ink


Life drawing is one of the best ways for an artist to hone their drawing skills.   Pen and ink 'scribble' gesture drawing is so much fun to do for the 'quick poses' at the beginning of the evening, and this is the perfect time to experiment with various drawing implements/mediums while your drawing hand is limbering up for the longer poses.

The playfulness of the line created with the 'scribble' gesture technique really speaks to me... must be tapping into my inner child.  As you can see in the longer study 'Aneta in Chair' I incorporated a less frenetic, but still playful line quality with the pen and ink tonal wash.






Collage, Paper Poppy, by Kim Blair


Paper Poppy
8x8
collage on acid free paper


The name of this collage, 'Paper Poppy' (shown here in a close-up photo along with another shot showing how the collage sits on the page) seems fitting since poppy petals often resemble crinkled crepe paper.  This piece was created from a photo I snapped a few summers ago of a gorgeous peachy pink toned bloom with royal blue pollen hugging an olive green center.   Nestled beside fuzzy green foliage this poppy plant needed to be staked in a wire garden hoop in order to support the profusion of blooms swaying in a gentle summer breeze.

I like the soft, feminine feel of this collage.

(If you click on the image you can see the bits of rice paper adding even more texture to the pastel petals.)

Yes, all this came from my magic shoe box...




Avocado Ripple, Collage Painting, by Kim Blair

Avocado Ripple
8.25x9.5 collage
 on acid free paper 

I looked in my magic shoe box of collage papers last night... and look what appeared... an  Avocado!

 After perusing the various colors and textures amongst my treasure trove of papers I was inspired to create Avocado Ripple... but I must confess that it was inspired by Avocado Gold, a previous avocado painting I did a couple of years ago.   The ripped green paper utilized for the avocado flesh gives it a similar 3D appearance that I enjoy creating with oil paint and a palette knife.

If you click on the image for a close-up look you will see that I used some graphite for the shadow edge of the striped fabric where it drapes over the edge of the table.  

Who knows what else is hiding in that shoe box?


Hand Collage, Collage Painting, by Kim Blair

Hand Collage
9x12, mixed media on acid free paper
NFS

I have been trying my hand (no pun intended) at collage art.  One class in the drawing course I completed this past fall at the University of Alberta included one session on collage... we did self- portraits.   That session proved to be very inspiring and I have since been working on a sketch book that will be devoted entirely to collage images.
Yes, there will be some self-portraits, along with some general portrait work, plus a myriad of images taken from life and my imagination.  The freeing aspect of collage is the very fact that it is often cut or torn paper combined with various mixed media applied to some form of support.

It can get out of hand... (again no pun intended), so I have set myself some parameters for the cut and/or torn paper component of my collages.   A shoe box in my studio is about half full of various Japanese and other assorted coloured and printed papers, maps and phone book pages... so I will not and I repeat 'will not' (emphasis is so that I hear myself) purchase any new collage papers until the box is empty!  This self imposed limitation on what I can utilize may make me more creative.

By limiting my choices I am liberating my brain to be as creative as possible while making good use of the materials at my disposal within the 'magic shoe box.'  Of course there is no limit on paint, inks or drawing implements.

Each collage will be different, and I thought adding them periodically to my blog postings would spice things up a bit...  along with the life drawings I will be posting, so be prepared to see some new art on my blog.

* Click on the image to see the various textures close-up