figure drawing 101

It's been a long time again, hasn't it? I've been wanting to blog about this for a week or so now, so here it is now. I joined a (non-instructional) figure drawing class here in Floyd and yesterday was my third class. My first class, I was really nervous and didn't know what to expect and my second class I felt like I should slip out the back door and never show my face in public again and then my third class I stopped worrying and enjoyed myself.


I should say after my first class I felt a huge tension release, focusing for three hours on anything is like therapy to the mind. The second class I was too worried about "being good" that I couldn't relax. But yesterday I just didn't care anymore and I felt proud of my work regardless.

I haven't taken a figure drawing class since I was a junior in college and even then I wasn't really good. My proportions were always wrong, one arm longer than the leg, one eye dropped etc. but now even after letting my drawing supplies collect dust for so long its as if I've channeled new techniques and a better eye. Not that my drawings have accurate perspective (they don't) or are particularly realistic (far from it) but they have a quality in them that I like, especially the second one. I have a tendency to dwell in the details. My drawings tend to have a surreal quality to them and I can see potential in them. I can see growth happening and seeing my world more artistically with colors and lines, something I haven't done in a very long time.


Creating art, for me, is like putting a puzzle together.

Hitting the reset button

Oh my, it's been too long. Even before the last time I blogged it was way too long. I have two blogs and this one has been neglected for a very long time. And we all know there is nothing more entertaining than blogging about not blogging, so moving on...



It's now 2009 and I'm entering the age where time is getting so weird. I yelled to Josh the other night "it was 2003 six years ago!" six years seems like an eternity to me sometimes. If you ask me what I was doing in 2003 or the whole of the 2000's I really have to think about it going all the way to the post high school years.

If you ask me about 1993 I'm like "oh yeah, 4th grade! teacher: mrs. mc Clanahan, crush: jeremy, no wait, charlie?" and then the rest of the year somehow effortlessly unfolds.

And thats how it goes. So I did make some goals for the new years which if you're curious (is anyone still reading??) the2009project.net a blog I started with my long time lady friend ashley.

I a lot of people think that resolutions are so cliche' and they are, I just can't help myself. I evaluate the previous year and so much has happened and then I look forward and want to be better. And that's all I can continually hope for.

*******
This past weekend I finally went out to see the curious case of benjamin button which I talked about in the previous post. I loved it. It was thoughtful, hypnotic, and beautiful. It was my favorite of 2008 even though I saw it in 2009. I felt like I was injected with emotions and thoughts that sometimes get buried into everyday life.

Speaking of other favorites. I really started listening to the fleet foxes and sia right at the end of the year and I love them both. I can't stop myself from listening to them continuously which I know sometime in the future I will randomly here one of these songs on my playlist and automatically think "winter 2008". Thats how it goes with me. I can listen to a really dumb pop song like the jimmy ray one that came out in '97 and think about being on the internet for the first time and chatting with strangers until the wee hours of the night, or my obsession with Hanson. I probably shouldn't admit to that haha.







Oh! Christmas! I had a wonderful holiday, I decorated our little house with christmas decorations passed down to me from my mom, my aunt and my moms friends. Everyone was incredibly generous and it made me feel so good to decorate with things from christmases past.

My mom also started a new bingo tradition this year which was a hit. We had a really hilarious time especially when my aunt opened up a huge tube of lotion and Erick (my brother in low) said (loudly) "did you get a big tube of caulk?!" which of course me and Josh heard differently and fell off of the couch laughing.

Happy New Years! I will be more frequent with posting, I just needed a break and a chance to hit the "reset" button.