Wednesday, July 31, 2013

55 years later...

Christian Raby, a Parisian photographer who has a country house near me, is compiling a book of photographs of foreigners living in France.

He arrived with his lights and camera and most importantly, an old painted screen of the interior of a church that was used as a back drop in photographs a hundred years ago.

Christian invited me to use a prop, so I picked up my bear that I have had all my life and placed him on my lap. It was a slightly controversial choice: because I designed, wrote and illustrated books for children most of my professional life, some of my old art school colleagues refer to me as their friend who "refuses to grow up."


Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Paring down

I seem to be slowing down on book illustration, portraits, landscapes and teaching.

Painting the human form is what I want to focus on now, so after someone came to look intently at pictures in my gallery three times last week yet left empty handed in the end, it was extremely gratifying when the next day, someone else came in and immediately bought this picture.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

2013 Summer stage (workshop) impressions

The ubiquitous pear (apparently galleries are packed with 'em.)
After morning exercises executing The Wash, watermelons are the order of the afternoon.
Radishes make good subjects to practice skinny tails using drawing gum, and kitchen wrap textured leaves.
Helena sits down to a well earned lunch.
Everyone is famished after the morning's exercises so a good lunch is essential.
If students tighten up too much on our "Morandi day",  I make them close their eyes while I set up some objects. They then have three minutes to paint. Nothing like a little time pressure to get the creative juices flowing fast.