Drawing the Figure at the Lafayette Art Museum

11" x 14"

It's difficult to explain to a non-artist how intensely enjoyable it is to look (gaze, stare, scrutinize) an object, landscape, or figure for an hour or more without stopping.  However,  it's almost unimaginable how FAST the time flies by when I'm drawing or painting it. That is interpreting the subject on paper or canvas with pencil marks or brush strokes,.  If I wasn't drawing the subject, it would probably be impossible to sit and just look at a figure for an hour. But when you draw or paint it, you're constantly comparing, adjusting, asking yourself, "Is it too big or too small, too high or too low, too dark or too light?  What part do I want to emphasize?  How will I lead the viewer through this?" and on and on...

10" x 7"

12" x 12"

Then there's the beauty of the mark itself to consider, i.e. the calligraphic stroke, be it pencil, pen, or brush and the sweep, looseness, pressure on the paper.   

10" x 7"

10" x 7" 

In the beginning, there is the gesture of the figure to consider, especially in a quick 8 minute study as in the two figures above.

11" x 14"

14" x 11"

And one of the MOST IMPORTANT things to choose are the MATERIALS AND TOOLS I'm going to draw or paint with.  After all, the materials I choose are what the viewer will actually see and possibly own and live with.   When drawing, the pencil and especially the paper is crucial.  The paper needs to be responsive to my touch, beautiful to see (as the drawing itself will cover very little of it) and yet tough and erasable.  That's why I always draw on Twinrocker handmade paper.  This paper has a sensitive, natural look like the marks I'm making on it; it's not mechanical looking like machine made paper.  Consequently, it's much more fun to draw on than machine made paper, and the result shows it.  Twinrocker paper is also completely archival, cotton rag, and light fast so the drawing on this paper, colored with pigments, can hang in someones home without ever fading.  Sometimes artists think handmade paper is too good for them or too expensive, but a large sheet of Twinrocker drawing paper, in a Text or Heavy Text weight is about the price of  lunch.

Well, I guess I sound like an advertisement, but if you purchase one of these drawings, you'll see what I mean.   All these drawings are priced at $45 which includes packing and shipping in the lower 48 states.  You can see them in a larger format and other work as well on my web site  www.kathrynclarkfineart.com  .  I'm happy to  say that soon, all the drawings and paintings will be available for purchase on my web site with PayPal, hopefully within the next few days.  I'm trying to make it easier for people to purchase works without having to contact me.  Thank you for all the comments and thoughts you've sent.  I enjoy them very much, and remember I'm happy to answer any questions whether it's about art, ideas, materials, or techniques.  Please share this with friends who may be interested.  And thank you for viewing this blog.