For a number of years, I’ve been drawing &
painting regularly from a series of
very talented models. All
of them have been adept at deciphering my vague instructions. They’ve also been
strong and skilled enough to hold a tough pose with grace. Doreen, the subject
of these drawings, has been an especially dedicated and good-natured co-conspirator.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8jl7-QboRbQ5hM21ju2mpgS7r8P0cnQsb-9V73LJjKVdnqo-SaGiHIxG-l0sI7lYKF2PLbYaVJxKPg1orOqyaYIYUULIkJwNWaqRbHAz-dTVH2P_lxd5RXInC-5mU6VyuAvoT8FqHVpAr/s1600/%22Contemplative%22-mixed+media+on+paper,+12%22+x+9%22.JPG) |
"Contemplative"- mixed media on paper, 12" x 9" |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3-OF7-oLwe2-v5vwTcNhrBNF0IskaDmaSv5MEQPX8rrTmB3CiknDfUOTGKca9mIall42aSLq6eLUZOUwQrRN1Y9onDBnZ_C2KcMckuG3iX2f8LbmKs4nsCU_icMokiRAF9tccvd-OosVl/s1600/%22Imitating+Sleep%22-mixed+media+on+paper,+9%22+x+12%22++++++.tiff) |
"Imitating Sleep"-mixed media on paper, 9" x 12" |
People have asked about this mixed-media process. I came up with it through trial &
error, though, inevitably, others have probably gotten there before me. I lay down a layer of gray acrylic,
usually on Bristol, then draw the basic composition with black tempera in cake
form. The tempera lines can be altered with a clean wet rag or a q-tip. Highlights and value shifts
are added in white watercolor crayon, and everything is reworked with a wet
brush. Though the drawing ends up with some of the qualities of a print, it’s a fairly unstable finished
product (“fugitive” in artspeak) so I wouldn’t recommend it.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVZmj7qdF2yL-GGI4wHH83UILhMl7clZyaRblsIbP0iwjuFKmVfzTDgYZ9GLFfbT073WODAvFC9ZcObDHreZk2rxJLdzqvPEQEUa8EgV_zKNNVXpjKKDCvY6OcdhrBiY6DPBX_YBzYFYLx/s1600/%22Regarding+The+Viewer%22-mixed+media+on+paper,+12%22+x+9%22.JPG) |
"Regarding The Viewer"- mixed media on paper, 12" x 9" |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC2AwSvTN0586nH7Yp1YyuuTnG9pNBNcOXg_HFkxFyxmJMweFK2yfSHo-FOhi0zZU6O9HDo-ZukGzIUimwHDA77LAresuG7EMxu_QWv6Elj-AOKkFVgMYZPdH6HAuLccSkD9d4nFapFnNE/s1600/%22Doreen+In+The+Quilted+Skirt+2%22-mixed+media+on+paper,+12%22+x+9%22.JPG) |
"Doreen In The Quilted Skirt 2"-mixed media on paper, 12" x 9" |
For the six drawings included here, I've made good
use of a faulty road map. In life-drawing or painting sessions, I try to store up visual
information. Photographs are taken,
cropped or otherwise manipulated, then reduced to black & white. The
original drawings and paintings, the altered photographs, and my
less-than-reliable memory are all sources for the construction.
To get to the final image, the model interprets the role, the artist
misreads it, and the mood of the pose becomes a collective invention.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJYwulTRqngwCP50MtLPAzBRN8r1MoUaXtbNocKMcXI-QDw_0e5TjnfMQLWUDHoVLo6Fv69dl4W5dq7ZTCrleJ05RjMWPvWCN3fD-oIBwVm8OfLrwo5PWgKvcs027u0qwAtsy5pzz73-vb/s1600/%22A+Public+Privacy%22-mixed+media+on+paper,++7+1:2%22+x+5%22.JPG) |
"A Public Privacy"-mixed media on paper, 7 1/2" x 5" |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITtATOlcE1MpLtnFFI3d6xbvQPoIyP7WDsXGaV8kXSAnJ6gLM0LUd77_HE-L6TnV4NXh8nBM0N5eQg9lJDe1IdKSc_70h4u_hLrXNIf5z3fbOVX5arzmENx4_D0W12z8-0KNj5oPSNs3q/s1600/%22Doreen+In+The+Quilted+Skirt%22-mixed+media+on+paper,++++12%22+x+9%22+.JPG) |
"Doreen In The Quilted Skirt"-mixed media on paper, 12" x 9" |