Final Portfolio Blog:

Brief Assessment of Achieved Objectives:

I feel that I accomplished many if not all of the curse objectives, such as translating a three-dimensional form to a two-dimensional picture plane; this was achieved when I observed the model in class and the shell outside of class. As far as comprehending the subject’s planar make-up, I feel I do have a better understanding now than I did at the start of class, but I also know that this is a skill I will improve with more time and more practice. I show a comprehension of planar make-up in my shell drawings; each time I revisited the subject I found new information to include in my drawing.  Using a linear approach opposed to a painterly one was difficult for me at first, but I definitely have gained a better understanding of how to do this through practice and critique, it has been beneficial for my work and allows for great detail.

I have accomplished a well-crafted clay model, I spent a great deal of time working on my model and it has helped me understand muscle structure. For example, I now know the leg has attachments higher up in the torso than I had originally thought, I worked on expressing this knowledge in my work by drawing the leg in the proper fashion so it appears more connected to the body. I have begun to utilize anatomical landmarks such as the sternum and the hipbones to distinguish where the plane changes will occur.

My mark making skills have improved as well, I am certain that this confidence has come from practicing both the gesture and contour drawings and I will continue to improve as I do more of this type of work. I also participated in class discussions, critiques and blogged about my experience.

 Improvements since Midterms:

I improved in the second half of the course after receiving feedback that I should show more cross-contours; I began to focus on that in my drawings. This conscious consideration can be seen in my last shell drawing, because the ink in my third shell drawing washed out many of my lines I took a more heavy handed approach than I normally would to ensure my line work would show up through the wash of color. I also tried a few different variations of my drawing style since I have always enjoyed drawings with a sketchy quality I tried be looser with my lines.

I was also asked to pay more attention to where the muscles attach throughout the body, in particular the pelvic region. I reworked my mannequin using additional information from an anatomy reference book and was able to see how all of the muscles grouped together to form the larger mass that I would be drawing.

How I will use what I have learned:

            I will use what I learned in this class to benefit me in my remaining studio classes at Stout, such as being able to include realistic figures in my work for my printmaking course. I will also continue to refine my drawing skills using my new knowledge from this class to complete an entire body of work for my senior show next spring.             

            Since I am an Art Education major, I have selected drawing as my concentration because I feel it is the underlying skill for so many other forms of art, and in order to instruct properly I must be able to express myself visually. This course has improved my observational skills, in that I have definitely discovered visual cues on the human form I wasn’t aware of before.  Gaining an understanding of the plane changes is what has been most beneficial for me as an artist. I feel more confident in my ability to draw the human figure, which is important for me because almost all of my work calls for human imagery. I will also be able to explain the figure to my students as well as help them make corrections in their own work. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50154511@N02/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50154511@N02/sets/72157624051631476/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50154511@N02/sets/72157623927323009/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50154511@N02/sets/72157624051726504/

The Human Skull

This past week we focused on the human skull, and 3 drawings will be due this Monday. Each one of the 3 drawings will depict a different perspective, the first one I did in class shows the skull at a ¾ front perspective. We were told to keep in mind that the “face” should only make up 1/3 of the entire skull, which I feel I accomplished. However I did have difficulty with the teeth. I think, because, while I was drawing I wasn’t drawing the skull at actual size, it is about 1/3 larger. I became increasingly confused when I reached the teeth and lower jaw. There are so many plane changes within one tooth and there is a lot more negative space between teeth then I had expected. I think it would be helpful for me to just draw the lower jaw while focusing on the teeth and how they connect to the jawbone.  

Drawing from the previous week

Last week we focused on drawing the human hands. In small groups we took turns modeling and drawing hands. I found it to be very difficult; each finger has three different large plane changes and then smaller less obvious plane changes within those. I spent a lot of the time trying to decipher the negative space between the fingers and feel did fairly well on that part. The part I had the most difficulty with was the plane change from the thumb to fleshy part of the palm; I also didn’t understand the foreshortening of the thumb. Amy was able to help me see how the thumb really looked to the viewer, as well as the planes on the side of the hands. I think I will be able to do this when I overemphasize the planes. I was also having difficulty with the nails; I felt they looked too feminine for the male hands I was drawing. To draw a more masculine nail I widened them at the tips and squared them off at the ends. 

3rd Shell Project

This past week our third shell drawing was due (out of class assignment). 

This project was definitely a learning experience for me, having never worked with the medium of ink before, as stated in a past blog. It was beneficial to experiment with its qualities before I began work on the final piece. I found I really enjoyed the uncontrolled aspect of absorption and the different colors that appear by revisiting portions with a wash. There is an element of control but there are little moments throughout the piece that could only occur by chance (as stated earlier) that I am really happy with. I am most happy about the area where the larger lip meets the first spiral. I need to work on the opening of the shell because it comes across as being a little flat due to the heavy outline. In the next piece I will need to be mindful of outlines as well as working from a new perspective.  

This past week we had the advantage of working from a male model. It was beneficial to see the differences between the male and female form, for instance the male hips appear square and are set perpendicular to the ribcage. In contrast the female hips are tipped slightly forward and appear more rounded. The male also had a pronounced muscular system, which in all honesty was hard for me to depict. Due to the fact that I have been solely drawing the female form in the past few weeks, I had gotten used to seeing a long and lean muscular structure. Viewing the male model I could decipher the fleshiness of the muscles, but when I tried to draw them a bulky quality came across. I need to practice drawing the male form. 

 

Ink Shell:

Last class period was more exploratory than usual because I was trying a new material; Ink. The study of the shell in charcoal was done first and is only about a half hour drawing.  Then I spent time exploring Ink and it’s qualities. I have enjoyed this process because there is an element of chance, depending on the amount of liquid used. I usually have a very controlled style of drawing but have always appreciated the sketchy quality a drawing can have and with this drippy medium I have no choice but to be more gestural. I think I will continue to use this medium. 

In the past few weeks we have concentrated on the lower limbs of the human form. We were to sculpt the lower leg muscles on to our mannequins and then use this new visual knowledge while drawing. Once one has an understanding of the muscles that make up the leg, it becomes much easier to draw it.  I can see now how the thigh protrudes forward and tapers in towards the knee and then the calf extends beyond the knee joint in the opposite direction (dorsal) and tapers towards the ankle. 

More recently we have done a longer study of the foot and ankle.  I spent a lot of time trying to figure out toes because there are so many different planes on one toe it can be confusing.

Mid Term Portfolio

Life Drawing this semester has been helpful in developing my understanding of the human form. The gesture drawings done at the beginning of class have been somewhat challenging for me because I have always had a very slow observant way of drawing. I have learned to become more gestural with my line work in order to record the desired form in the time given. This quick work has taught me to observe the underlying bone structure. I am also gaining an understanding of the subtle changes of plane across an organic figure.

            I want to continue to improve my ability to draw the human form in a convincing way. Drawing is something I really enjoy doing but a lot of the work I am interested in drawing at this point involves people and expression or movement. Prior to this class my drawings of people have looked more abstract than I would prefer. Working from a live model has truly been the biggest change in my drawing.

            The mannequin work has also been a challenge that seems to be paying off, the actual placing of the muscles on the form is extremely time intensive. I can now see some things I didn’t see before, such as how the legs truly come away from the body and how the back comes away from the spine.  Drawing the shell is a strength of mine because I have previous experience with still life drawing. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48599455@N05/with/4452886763/

This week in drawing we added onto the human from the thigh to the knee. We discussed how the leg really starts at the crest of the pelvic bone and then moves away from the body. This is something many artist struggle with initially because may begin to draw the leg coming away from the torso at the same plane as the groin. This week I was working at getting the rib cage and pelvis to line up in the appropriate fashion and I am beginning to see how that truly benefits how I draw the overall form. 

Walker

Alice Neel, American 1900-1984

Charlotte Willard 1967

Oil on canvas

Collection Walker Art Center

I enjoyed how the room, Benches, and Binoculars were set up. With some of the paintings placed high on the walls the viewer has to look through the binoculars to see the details in some of the paintings.

I picked this piece because I really enjoy portraiture and the vibrancy of this particular painting caught my eye. There are layers and layers of color, such as the pinks and reds of the chair, the washes of blues and greens on the wall, and even the hints of blues and olives in her skin tone it very interesting. There is also great use of textures, such as the striped leggings or the mountain of curls atop her head. I also enjoyed this piece because of her subject matter, the way the woman, Charlotte is sitting and making eye contact with the viewer gives the impression that she is listening to the viewer or they are involved in a conversation.

Her expression I can’t figure out, it maybe it is the face of satisfaction or quiet listening. Her interesting look makes her into a character, she is a slightly older woman who is wearing slightly large pieces of jewelry and, I can’t tell, she may also be wearing a wig. Suggesting that maybe her personality is a little over the top. 

This week I struggled with my cross contour lines, I wasn’t spacing them in a natural way. I also used too many in different directions making it appear more web-like. I really want to get good at this because I find these types of drawings very beautiful. I think the images of the body and the use of cross contour are the most interesting when you can see several attempts at one line or one form, but still appear unified.

This image of a woman I found at a very interesting website called, http://www.tmcgrafx.co.uk/galleryIlli.html, is actually the personal portfolio site of Thomas Crielly, and if you get the chance you should check it out. 

Shell

My Shell is known as a Channeled whelk, it scientific name is Busycotypus canaliculatus ,it  is a very large predatory sea snail. Snail is a common name for almost all members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells at adulthood. Gastropod literally means 'belly foot' which refers to the fact that its internal organs are covered by a thick muscular tissue or foot which it also uses to pull itself across the ocean floor.

Some sea marine gastropods such as this one have a soft tubular anterior extension of the mantle called a siphon through which water is drawn into the mantle cavity and over the gill and which serves as a chemoreceptor to locate food. In many carnivorous snails the siphon is particularly long,

Several species of whelks are common along the USA Atlantic coast, but this species is specifically found from Massachusetts to northern Florida. Channeled whelks prefer sandy, shallow, intertidal or sub tidal areas, and can be common in these habitats. They tend to be nocturnal and are known to eat clams.

These shells typically reach 5 to 8 inches in length. They are smooth and generally pear-shaped, with a large stepped body whorl. The channeled whelk has five to six whorls with very small "beads" along the whorl edges and like most whelks; the channeled whelk's opening is on the right side. 

Work Cited:

http://www.eatoutzone.com/Whelk.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channeled_whelk

http://www.assateague.com/channel.html

http://oceanica.cofc.edu/shellguide/shells/channelwhelk.htm

Over view of past week

Life Drawing

My experience in drawing this past week concentrated on cross contour line. The homework dealt with study of the shell, doing a blind contour drawing and then a continuous contour drawing. The focus of the in class assignments was the torso, specifically the spine. The image I chose to post is one of my in class studies, I spent a great deal of time observing the figure before laying down marks on the paper. I did find it helpful to exaggerate the curvature of the spine especially in this foreshortened pose. 

Blind Contour Drawing

Blind Contour Drawing 

Feb. 1st 2010 in class.

(30 min. no looking at the paper.)

5 descriptive WORDS:

Value: Fine-Medium Light

Speed: Fairly Slow 

Character: Chaotic

Pressure: Fairly Consistent

Other: Confused Mass

01/27/10

Andrea Bowen
ART-301 Life Drawing 1 sec. 001
Spring 2010
Applied Arts
Instructed by Amy Fichter

First time blogger
Art Education Major
Goal: To be able to draw the human form.