Tuesday 8 September 2015

Drawing Tuesday at Home

I reluctantly decided against   going to the National Maritime Museum  today to join the others  sketching - too long and awkward a journey at peak time.  However I was determined that I would do some drawing.   After the session   in the V&A  ceramics  collections, I had looked at the pottery I produced myself over 20 years ago in a new light.    Besides tiny thumb pots , I was obsessed with  coils and a luscious green glaze that produced varied  colours - they're a bit clunky  but  Ian likes them and they look good  from a distance on top of the bookshelves. From a sketching perspective I thought they would be an  interesting  challenge to try and  draw.





  2 hours passed very quickly ( it helped that the chair was comfortable and no craning of neck involved) . I can see now it's  not right ( I was so absorbed I didn't step back from it)  but there's areas I like . Next time I'd concentrate on a detail and pay more attention to the quality  and variation of the line.
 Sorting through books to pack, I came across my copy of  Elements of Drawing  by John Ruskin. I've  carried out some of the exercises in the past to improve observation,   so that even a simple pebble  can look monumental.  So I've decided  over the next few weeks to draw  some of the  small treasures I've collected over the years:  stones, shells, bits of glass and pottery,  the aim being to spend no longer than 30 minutes  on each.

4 comments:

The Idaho Beauty said...

I find time gets away from me too when I zero in on a subject to draw. How will you stick to the 30 minute rule - set a timer? That's a lovely collection - I see why Ian likes them. Challenging to draw I would think. But then would we get so absorbed in it if it weren't? Looking forward to seeing what you do with the stones. I have several palm-size ones with various striations set aside for sketching & possible interpretation in fabric. I had a go at one of them a long time ago - harder than I thought it would be. I should try again now that I've been doing more sketching. You may have inspired me!

Pheasant Run Studio said...

I am a ceramic artist & I think your "pots" are very imaginative.
Alex True

Margaret Cooter said...

oo yes, those pots are very good material for drawing!

Evergreen Mo said...

lovely blog. Isnt it great how time passes when one is lost in the creative zone.
Love the shape of the jugs. Like your drawing line