Well, I have not been good at keeping up a blog! I have had about 20 modeling sessions since my last post (and a nice vacation trip). A number of university classes, one student project and sittings for a portrait class in Edwardian costume. With the exception of one ( later..) they have all been very routine. It seems I have been doing a lot of classes that are focusing on long poses. I really enjoy short gestures; they can give you a good work out, and you really feel you stretched all your muscles. But...long poses it is! I did an interesting student photograhy project. Five nude males and one clothed female, recreating and reversing the gender of some old masters paintings. I haven't seen the outcome yet. The artist is going to hand color the prints. When I get a copy, iI will post it ( with her permissoin, of course).
I find such a difference in teaching styles in the classes I pose for. Some instructors talk non stop for 3 hours, criticing and talking art history, some quietly critic work, and one just leaves the room for the pose and returns later to discuss the work.
Now the exception to business as usual. It really didn't effect my work, but .... At one of the Universities there is an overview drawing class, including basic drawing , still life, and figure drawing from a nude model. I got a call from the administration the day before asking me to bring something tight fitting to wear instead of posing nude. That is perfectly fine with me, as I always have something in my "model kit". The reason, however, was that a Muslim girl ( college age) was in the class and objected to nudism for religious reasons.She went to the administration with her objections. The instructor was, shall we say, a little less than happy about it when i spoke to her, but we did the session dressed ( actually in a wresting singlet). What strikes me odd is why would you take a drawing class that features drawing from the nude figure in the syllabus, if you had religious objections to it. And then , of course, the rest of the students did not get to draw from a nude model.
