The Life Room
The Life Room has long been a cornerstone of artistic education. It provides a dynamic environment where artists and students can engage in close observation and immediate artistic creation.
Since my first introduction to the Life Room at art school, I have always had a love of drawing the human figure. Aside from being a useful exercise in developing your technical skills and practising new techniques, each human figure has an intrinsic beauty and uniqueness that offers endless forms of expression.
Wherever I have lived (and I’ve moved around an awful lot in the last ten years) I always tried to find somewhere I could practice my life drawing. It wasn’t easy the past year in Eastbourne. I couldn’t find anywhere suitable for when I was free.
On moving back to London last week, the first thing I did was look for a good life drawing group. A quick search on Meetup found different classes each day and evening of the week. That’s the beauty of living in a big city. It has been a while since I’ve drawn from the model, and I couldn’t wait to get started.
Drawing has always been an essential component of my art practice. It starts with preliminary sketches, evolves into detailed renderings of each subject, and culminates in the careful planning of layout and composition on the canvas. Drawing is the indispensable tool that transforms a mere spark of an idea into a fully realized painting.
Drawing From Life
My experience during lockdown reminded me of the incredible value of drawing from life. During this time I spent each day drawing something around me, from empty wine bottles to kitchen utensils. I’ve never been one for still-life, but I found that forcing myself to study the subject, regardless of how boring it may seem, enabled me to eventually see a new level of detail. Normally after an hour of studying the subject, it felt like a veil had been lifted. I could see subtle variations in tone that I hadn’t noticed before. I find this is exactly what happens during a life drawing session, and it is why I prefer longer poses
The Human Eye vs The Camera
When you draw from life, you’re constantly translating a three-dimensional world with its rich, dynamic range onto a flat surface with limited tones. This process is part of the magic of life drawing. In contrast, when you snap a photo, the camera does all these calculations for you. However, it might interpret things differently, often missing out on a wealth of details that get lost the moment you press the shutter.
In my past experiences hiring models, I was always too conscious of their hourly rate, which led me to rush through as many poses as possible to maximize my reference photos. Reflecting on those sessions, I realize this was a mistake. Moving forward, I plan to include at least one long pose in each session. This approach also applies to portrait sittings, which is why I always aim for a three-hour sitting for a portrait commission. Even if I later work from reference photos, that initial sitting is a crucial part of the process.
A few notes for people who would like to try life modelling
For anyone interested in trying out life modelling, The Register of Artists’ Models has some useful resources online.
modelreg.co.uk/st_AdviceForModels
And for anyone who would like to attend a life drawing class, Candid Arts Trust has different classes (tutored and untutored) most days of the week. You can join via Zoom, or attend in person if in London.
