Another week of classes under my belt and still having way too much fun. I got to try the potter's wheel in ceramics and came away with a very healthy respect for how difficult it is to do. I haven't given up yet but by the end of the day, "throwing" pots was starting to sound like a very apt description of what I wanted to do with them. However, I did manage to make a few cylindrical pots without them careening off the wheel like the proverbial drunken sailor on a merry-go-round. Fibre Arts was great and I am almost finished my Tree house.
Drawing class was fun with several hours of drawing a still-life tangle of chairs, mannequin parts and paper ribbons - very humbling exercise. Our homework was to draw a knotted mess of something, staying true to what we saw, and then adding other details from our imagination inspired by the drawing. What was I thinking ??? - I chose a tangled mess of wool rovings and yarn. It looked like a root to me which led me to create "Root Ball" - this is a large piece about 40 inches tall.
Then came painting and another task that is definitely outside the box for me. We each quickly painted 10 large sheets of black to white gradients using different techniques and textures. We pooled all of these and cut them into pieces to create a collage based on a black and white photo. Another big piece on board that is 48 inches tall. This was a very interesting exercise and I learned a lot about how to deal with contrast - mainly what I would do differently next time, but there are some things that I really like about this piece including the impact of the tiny church even though it is dominated by the tower.
Notice the recurring theme that everything in painting, drawing, and fibre is BIG? This relates to another general observation about art school that I hadn't thought about - it is very physically challenging for us more than mature students. Between hauling massive supplies up and down stair cases and fighting with clay, I am feeling like I have had quite the work out this last week. I am very thankful I did not opt for sculpture - I can only imagine how heavy that stuff must be. On one trek up the stairs, I commented to another student that there would be a market for art Sherpas - I felt pretty bad because he insisted on carrying my portfolio to class. On top of that, each studio class is 6 hours long and usually involves standing on a cement floor or contorting yourself to make things - and then there is another 3-6 hours of homework. I am pleased to say that I feel stronger, more flexible, and no back pain - very pleasant surprise!
Time to go pack up my supplies for next week!
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