Transitioning

This morning I went to the figure drawing session (it’s three days a week, and I will force myself to go to EVERY session). The model is amazing and I think I’m starting to warm up again. It’s been a long time since I’ve done figure drawing, so my goal is to get comfortable with drawing the body and practice the techniques and tricks the artists here have already shared with me. Here are some selected sketches from today’s session:

Charcoal on paper, 17” x 24”, 2011

Yesterday I did a cityscape Au Plein Air and realized that I really don’t like to do cityscapes. It was peaceful sitting outside looking at the beautiful view and painting, but for some reason, I didn’t feel a drive to paint or a connection to the image as I painted it. Last night as we ate dinner, I saw the light reflecting off of the building as bright yellowy orange against the deep blue sky – so I took a picture. Today I painted this, although I’m not completely convinced that I like cityscapes, I did have some fun with the clouds and the colors:

Benvenuta, Notte, Oil on canvas, 12” x 9”, 9/2011

I need something to draw me into a cityscape image. I will try to figure out what it is while I’m here, but in the meantime, I’ll continue practicing my figure drawing and think of other projects to keep me moving. I think that in order to be successful here in Umbria, I need to just do what I want...whatever passing idea, despite everything, is an opportunity to grow.