Costumed Life Drawing

I really enjoy costumed life draw sessions. Since I like drawing goofy costumed characters from my imagination, being able to study the way cloth behaves on a real figure is right up my alley. And I love the relaxed, unpretentious, and friendly atmosphere at Helikon Life Painting.

Have to admit that I got burned-out on drawing and painting nudes in college and art school--nude pose was the only rule back then. And yes, it was great for learning the figure and anatomy, and I don't regret the experience, but give me a costumed figure any day at this point in my career.

In these sessions, I'm not into drawing and painting beautiful pictures to sell. I'm into studying and learning more about the clothed figure and trying out new media. Also, since seeing accurate values is not my strong suit, the exercise is definitely necessary and helpful.

I don't mind doing the occasional nude study...

...and these fishy-net stockings were cool to draw.

Partially clothed figures are always interesting...

...but being able to study a costume like this makes for a truly great session. This is Cayce, the director at Helikon Gallery and Studios, doing a three-hour pose in the medieval outfit from his own collection. There was so much detail to study that even coming close to finishing proved impossible, but what a learning experience!

Life Painting at Helikon Gallery happens every Saturday from 5 to 8 pm. Come and join us--here's the link on Facebook:

Weekly Life Painting

Thanks for reading!

The Chase

http://tomsarmo.com/

After a packed couple of months, my m.o. has always been to go fallow. Not on purpose; it just happens. I shut down creatively and productively for awhile. That time period varies, but it drives me crazy. Because of that, I'm always looking for quick ways to re-ignite the art-fire and get back to The Chase.

One time it didn't come back for a few years, and I'm not gonna lie--that scared me. It happened after a large show for which I had to create many works in a few short months. After way too much fallow time went by, I took a student's advice and changed media--I started working with clay, engaging in a different sort of chase. Eventually (nearly 5 long years later) I began to produce illustrations again. In the meantime, I learned a lot about ceramic clay, and I made some cool stuff.

http://tomsarmo.com/

This year it's happened again, and I decided to not only change media, but to suspend my inner-critic and experiment with media. Thanks to a bunch of un-critical fellow illustrators, I'm able to do it and also have a good time. The painting above is one recent experiment with life painting using acrylic. The life painting sessions at Helikon Gallery are a blast--mostly because the gallery director and fellow participants are chill and unpretentious. Some artists might need a competitive atmosphere, but not me--I want to enjoy camaraderie and the freedom to do the art I need without feeling like anyone's sneering at my efforts.

http://tomsarmo.com/

Above are some recent experiments with water-soluble oils at relaxing plein-air excursions--again, with friends who are lots of fun to be with...

http://tomsarmo.com/

...one of whom had an interesting encounter with an avian critic as we were leaving the field.

 (And yes, that experience seemed to get a bit of creativity going again.) 

http://tomsarmo.com/

Being able to hang out at weekly drink and draw sessions with a great bunch of artists also helps. Again, these sketches don't feel like my best, but they were experiments with unfamiliar media in an informal setting.

http://tomsarmo.com/

Just the kind of thing I need right now--the chance to explore, experiment, talk art--and get the field planted and producing again.

http://tomsarmo.com/

And because of all this, it's not taking me 5 years to re-plant the field. And I have to keep reminding myself that it's not about chasing success or contentment, it's about feeling success and contentment within the chase.

Thanks for reading!