Field Trip

Yves Klein, Untitled Fire-Color Painting, 1961

For Life Drawing one of the places that we went to was the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. One of the exhibits that that was interesting was Yves Kleins work. To me it was exciting to see certain pieces of his. For example the Suaire de Mondo Cane (Mondo Cane Shroud), where blue female body prints were pressed on to gauze. This was one of the pieces that I had studied in sculpture. Being able to see what you have studied in person makes it more real in a sense then seeing a print or image of the actual piece. While in sculpture, Yves Klein was one of the artists that I liked. He was able to capture some of the movement in the bodies by just the imprint. His work reminds me of when kids make hand print. Each is the same but still has an individual quality.  His body pieces are relevant to life drawing in the way that it’s done with bodies but it also creates a sense of life in the piece itself. With our drawing we try to understand how to draw and also give it some life in the way the model moves and poses. 

 

 

 

Yves Klien, Suaire de Mondo Cane (Mondo Cane Shroud), 1961

 

We also went to the Bell Museum of Natural History. They had many taxidermy animals where they were displayed in their habitats. The main reason for going to this museum was to draw from the exhibits. We could either draw from the taxidermy animals or from the bones that were also on displayed. I had picked a deer vertebrae to draw. I thought it would be interesting and would help me with my shell drawings. It was harder then I thought it would be with the complexity of the shape. They had many interesting things that could help our life drawing work.

Deer Vertebrae

This week we started out by getting the leg muscles assignment. Doing the muscles this week had to have a different approach where we had to keep the muscles thinner or trim them down to get the size right and able to fit them all on there. When doing the some of the foot muscles, I didn’t realize that a lot of them over lap each other and to attach to different toe bones. 

 

By learning the leg and foot muscles led us into focusing on drawing the only the feet of the model. I was able to approach it with like any other long pose drawing where it was helpful to measure to try to get the lengths and angles right. To me it was a little weird to just draw the feet but it was also beneficial that we only had to focus on one aspect of the body and try and draw it. 

Also are shell drawings, we finished them for this week and also able to practice for the next one. One the second shell drawing I got some feed back on how to make it better by changing up line weight and work on the atmospheric perspective. Later on in the week we got the chance to practice working with the ink. I like taking a little bit of class time to work though how the best way of working the ink into the drawings and to capture the shell. I still need to practice more trying to figure out how to push the drawing in capturing all the nooks and crannies. With working on it in class I was able to get some areas to start to work were others need more time to get there with layer different darkness’s to achieve the right depth in the drawing. The hardest thing I’ve come across using the ink is controlling it. I’m use to being able to control the median, but with the ink it has a mind of its own. Its frustrating and kind of nice just letting it do what it wants to give it different feeling that I  hadn’t planned.

 

Midterm Portfolio

1st Half of Semester

The first half of semester for me was mostly trying to figure out the basics and how to translate them to paper. The main purpose for taking this class was to improve my drawing skills. By drawing in class I think I have improved a little were the figure is being drawn more accurately. Learning how to draw in the basic understructures helped me to give the body form while drawing it. Drawing in the spinal column, rib cage and hipbones gave it reference points as a way to draw the body more accurately. With these reference points I was able to measure out angles and distances to give the body form. Also another technique we learned was using contour lines to show the way the body’s curves.

Gesture Drawings

With my gesture drawing I have noticed that they are a good warm –up before we start longer poses. I still need to work on going fast in the shorter times so I can draw more of the body and give it more of sense of life and movement. They show the basic spinal column and rig cage in the shorter times and gets more detailed as the time lengthens.

Long Drawings

The first section of time is used to figure out how I want to draw the pose and then start over to make it more accurate. This seems to help when I start measuring angles to get everything in the right place. Then adding contour lines also helps to give the body more of a form when drawing the hills and valleys that are formed from the muscle underneath.

Shell Drawings

With the shell drawings was difficult at first as I was trying to figure out how I was suppose to start. With this first attempt I learned that I should use less outline and create more of a long axis. Of course the drawing could use more line value from the start as I did most of it at the end with an eraser.

Manikins

The manikin is fun to do and gives a break to drawing for a little bit. Learning about the muscles can help to better understand what I’m trying to draw. At first I didn’t realize how hard they were going to be but as we get more muscles I feel I that it’s getting easier.

2^nd Half of Semester

For the second half of the semester I want to continue improving. By working on line value and weight, I can create distance in a drawing. I also want to continue improving on my accuracy. By using the techniques I have learned this far. With this will help to give more of a sense of life and movement to the bodies that I’m drawing. 

Flickr Account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/55371768@N05/ 

We are still working on gesture drawings and I still need to work on my line work. I keep getting my lines too dark and the same values. In order to hold our pencil in a different way then the way you would normally write. We taped a long pencil to our charcoal and stood farther back from our paper. It helped a little standing back which I wasn't able to put as much pressure on the end creating a lighter line. (First two gesture Drawings). We also tried a technique were we referenced other points on the body in order to get the right angle and length to make the drawing more accurate. It took me some time to get the hang of it. As I went on I was able to get more accurate drawings. ( Last three).

Week 3

On Tuesday, we reviewed our work on the manikins. It was harder then I thought it was going to be, trying to figure out where the muscles go. I didn't realize that we were to group them together but I had separated them individually. It makes more sense after we went over it in class. We get time to redo it and make it more accurate. Then on Thursday, we learned about the rib cage. Drawing the rib cage along with the spinal column helped to get the body's form. Being able to create the curves and movement of the body. We incorporated these into our gesture drawings. We kept increasing the time we got to draw in the rib cage and spinal column. To me it seemed harder to as the time got longer. I focused more on getting it right. With less time it was more about placing it and getting the movement of it. Though working with the gesture drawings I still need work on line weight and contour drawing.

In class we worked on contour drawings of our shells. It was are to figure out if you went far enough or too far when doing the blind ones. We also got to draw gesture drawing from a model. Once I figured how I could capture the pose, it came easier and harder. It was hard for me to get the right angles when doing the shorter time poses.

Intro

I’ve always been interested in art when I was younger but not till college did I start focusing on it and improving on those skills. I'm majoring in Industrial Design at UW-Stout and taking second semester junior classes. With this degree I would like to design things that are for the home, for example kitchen appliances and possible furniture.  My favorite courses I've taken involved creating 3D works. I like drawing concepts out and able to see them take a 3D form. I'm taking life drawing to improve my drawing skills and to learn more about the anatomy of the body. I would be able to uses these skills to better my design work to better express my ideas to others. Also by learning about the anatomy of the body I can better able to design pieces that would be more ergonomic. When I graduate I would like to join a company were I would be able to design things for the home. 

Some of the work I've done in my Industrial Design beginning classes.