First Class

I just got back from the first drawing class. I had to pay $3.75 for parking and I expect I will have to pay again on Thursday since we have NO idea when Fred’s car will be ready to be picked up but it needs a lot doing to it. I may be optimistic in thinking that it will be available by next week!

This instructor is very  well prepared. She gave us a handout with every assignment and every piece of homework on it. She also gave us a sheet with how our grades are computed. There will be two quizzes {one on Thursday} and a written paper. There will be two drawing classes with a model and one visit-as-a-class to the local art museum. We also have to visit the museum by ourselves and choose a painting to write about. She told us that nearer the date for the paper, she will give us a very specific list of questions she wants answered in our written paper.

So, what did we do? First, she discussed the concept of "blind contour" drawing and did a demonstration for us. This is when one draws only around the outline of the object without looking at the paper one is drawing on. This was very interesting to do. We drew the same object with four different color pens with the drawings superimposed over each other. The first two were just ordinary lines and the next one was a dotted line. This definitely had the effect of slowing me down which is what she wanted. The final one was done with our non-dominant hand, in my case, the left hand. We did two different objects with this. Then she discussed the fact that one could assign an adjective to a drawing and showed us some that she had labeled "agile" "dainty" and "angry." She said that perhaps we would label them differently but she wanted to show us that lines could convey a feeling. We then got some dried leaves and had to draw them with four different adjectives in mind: "delicate, angry, bold", and my favorite "silly." When I got to that one, I got an HB and a 6B pencil and sketched it with a double line. It then reminded me of a kite, so I put a tail and a string on it and made it into a kite!

The final assignment was to take off one of our shoes, draw it first as a blind contour and then in as much detail as we could {but with no shading–just with lines only.} I never realized how complicated my walking shoes were! {and how grubby they are, too!} Homework is a list of ten terms to memorize {for a quiz on Thursday} and four little line drawing to be done all on one page in our sketchbooks…

And I got home to find Fred had fixed a meal!

Until later..