A new year, new figure drawings! I continued experimenting with oil pastel like I did in November, but I needed some time to get back into it. That’s why most drawings are in the same line as last year.

I feel the most interesting drawings of this session where the ones where I used the strokes of the oil pastel to suggest form. I think I could go much further in layering different colours, but the model is only standing still for five or ten minutes. Maybe I need a model that doesn’t move at all to try that?

As I feel more and more comfortable drawing in graphite, I’m looking for new techniques and materials to use in these figure drawings. I couldn’t find any tips or suggestions online, so I brought a material I hadn’t used in a long time: oil pastels.

At first I used them the same way I use my graphite stick: lightly blocking out the forms and gradually adding lines, forms and details pressing harder to get more contrast. Things got more interesting when I used multiple colours layered over each other, something I’d like to try more next time!

I completely forgot to photograph and post October’s figure drawings, here they are! I tried my hand at charcoal again, a material I have a love-hate relationship with. I love the soft shades you can create with it, but I find it quite difficult to work with.

Happily back to drawing the figure after the summer break!

Summer break has started, so there won’t be any more sessions in July. Enjoy these last ones until September!

A collection of my favorite drawings of this month. You notice I started to experiment with different mediums; I feel like graphite is getting too easy for me!

A selection of my favorite drawings I made at Modeltekenclub Rotterdam this month.

Last Monday I had the opportunity to draw from a life model again – something I did as much as I could when I was still studying. After my graduation I occasionally went to Schets Sessie 2.0 but these stopped in 2020. With things opening up again, I hunted the internet for new opportunities and I found one in https://modeltekenclub.nl/!

Apart from being good practice, I find it also really enjoyable to draw from life. Perhaps because I get the chance to work much larger than I regularly do.

I do hope more people will show up next time, though; I was the only one! An almost private modelling session is nice but I also go to meet new artists… Next week is the next session, who knows!