Notes for Life Class Students & Models

*84 pages. Available as .epub
 
These notes are a handy text only edition of my book Notes on the Nude. They express my personal approach to depicting the nude figure and to working in accord with the model. They are not meant as a course of instruction or an academic thesis, they were jotted in the heat of the moment and suggest rather than define. The notes are meant to inspire a new generation of artists to pursue the challenge of working from the nude model and in turn, inspire a new generation of models.


Dionne first came to my studio as an aspiring art student. But as is often the case, those with no prior intention of modelling become some of my best models.  Modelling serves as a masterclass in understanding the trials and triumphs of an artist’s work and moreover, to being part of the creative process.

A session begins with five minutes of catching up on the week’s events. Then, in complete silence we get down to work.  With a good model, words are superfluous. There are no set poses. My model is free to stretch and turn as she pleases. My task is to get the result of one stretch down on paper before she turns for the next. It is not easy. Digging ditches would be less exhausting. And the same goes for the model. At the end of the session, we are rarely sure of what we’ve accomplished. It is too soon to judge.