Sculpture Class Update

    In our sculpture class we've been working on 3 small portraits for homework. The first was just a facial action[mouth/eyes closed], the second one was a recognizable expression[fear/anger], and the third one we could do whatever we want. We've been critiquing them throughout the second half of the semester, and we have until the last day of class to refine them even further. So I don't have pictures of the first few yet, because I wasn't as happy with them. Once we've gotten them up to snuff by the end here, I'll get nice photos of all of them.

[Cody's homework portrait]

    We also had another whole class yesterday to work on our portrait from life. So now my portrait is starting to get some facial hair, and look a little bit more like the model.

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress]

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress]

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress]

    I'm definitely satisfied with how my sculpture is looking now. I've still got to bring the ears up to the same level as the nose, and eyes. I hope it ends on as strong a note as I've started. 

-Cody

[Allison's homework portrait in progress]

    For my small homework portrait, I chose to sculpt a forest elf. I made chunks of bark come out of the top of his head and sculpted leaves to place in there. This is an in progress image so It looks better now because I worked on it for a while after the photo was taken and the next day. I'm working pretty steadily in sculpture class on our figure models. I have a lot done but I'm refining details. 

   

   I've been assigned many projects to complete before the semester ends. I was freaking out about them previously, but I'm not as worried because I'm working efficiently. 

Happy [almost] Thanksgiving!

-Allison 

Speeding On By

    As we near the end of the semester I'm realizing just how fast my first semester at Lyme has been. We have about three weeks of classes left, and I have a lot more to do before it's up. I have a drawing to refine for homework, an interior painting similar to the one I'm working on in class, another project for intro to digital, and I'd like to round up some work to put into the Holiday Art Show to try to sell. 

    This is a concept that I got together for my last assignment for intro to digital. I like the idea, but I have a hard time working with the computers at school. I'd much rather use my set up here, my computer is much better at running photoshop, and my tablet is more familiar to me. 

[racing bike concept]

    I figured I'd share it anyways, I may come back to it myself once I have some more time to work for myself over the month that is break. I have a lot of stuff to get done then as well.

-Cody

Stilled Life

    So I've got a few days of work to share tonight. We are still working on our latest still life in painting from Wednesday, and we did a new drawing on Thursday.

    I felt like I didn't accomplish too much on Wednesday, I was working the entire time. My still life did progress, but I wasn't having as easy a time mixing the colors I was looking to use, or apply them in the manner I wanted to. It's getting there, and I'll have something done after our next class. How much I'm satisfied with it will be something else though.

[Cody's deep space painting in progress]

    Then in drawing we began working on cross contour drawings. Where we attempted to show the shape of forms by covering the objects in the drawing with a series of lines to give the illusion of turning, and changing planes.

[Cody's cross-contour skull in progress]

    So we started with a "regular" contour line drawing to get everything going, and block out the forms and shapes in the correct places, before we then gave the skull volume with the other lines.

[Cody's cross-contour skull]

    At first I was worried I'd "ruin" my original line drawing by adding the contour lines, but as my instructor pointed out I/my learning is supposed to be the product of these drawings in class. Not the piece itself, I am actually happy with how it turned out, and I'm glad we did this assignment.

-Cody

    My painting looks modified from the real still life. I had a hard time fixing the colors to match. I look at a space and i feel my eyes adjusting to see the colors, I would see blues, greens, and reds. But I couldn't figure out how to match the color on my painting. I know how to mix colors. I have a hard time seeing the color for what I need to mix. The white wall which was darker than some spots on the still like was a grey blue. I mixed a lot of vibrant colors first. I'm still getting used to oils. I prefer to use oils now though because I can blend things and create soft edges. I really enjoy Cody's painting. It fits into an impressionism genre, which he likes. Mine feels too boring or plain. I haven't finished yet obviously. 

[Allison's deep space painting in progress]

[Allison's cross-contour skull in progress]

[Allison's cross-contour skull]

  I've done some of these cross contour lines before in high school. I enjoy doing them as well. I was eager to start this project and we have to do a separate drawing of our interior assignment for homework with cross contour lines, That I'm not so excited for because there are no organic  shapes in the still lifes we are doing.

-Allison

"I make art, sometimes I make true art, and sometimes it fills the empty places in my life. Some of them. Not all." Neil Gaiman

A Day Behind, But Streets Ahead

    Sorry for being AFK[away from keyboard] for the last few days, I had forgotten my battery in the charger at home one day, and had missed sculpture last week, but I had my camera, with the battery in it today! So we've got shots of what we're doing in sculpture now.

    Starting with last week they had 3 different models in class: a younger guy with a particularly large head, an older gentlemen, and a rather normal lady. Allison had chosen the guy with HUGE features, and scared me into thinking I'd need twice as much clay as I had. The lady wasn't in for the first half of class and I needed my time I had with the model to get caught up, so picked the older gentlemen.

    I actually had planned on doing the lady, because I haven't sculpted a woman yet, I'm quite happy with the gentlemen I ended up with.

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress] 

    For just having started today I'm quite proud of where I'm at, I just put in my headphones and hit the road on this thing. He has so many folds, and lines it makes his face very complex, but distinct at the same time. It's easier to get a likeness on an older person where there are clearly defined features. As opposed to someone who's young and the likeness is in more nuanced details.

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress] 

    By lunchtime I had caught up to most of the other people in my class, I definitely made good time building up his head and approximating facial features. I have to bring out the back of his head some to fit the size of his face, especially since he'll have a beard when I get all finished up.

[Cody's portrait sculpture in progress] 

    It's got a pretty solid likeness of him as of now I need to refine the ball on the end of his nose, and work on his mouth at the beginning of next class. After that maybe I'll get to his facial hair[eyebrows, beard]. He has a very particular head shape, and being bald means you'll see the whole thing, so I'm trying to get that spot on as well.

    My instructor was impressed with the time I was making while still doing quality work. I'm glad that I can see and work so efficiently, it's something I like to think I'm pretty good at. When we have drawing again on Thursday I'll get photos of what we did last week as well to share. Be prepared.

    Now I have to glaze/scumble on a painting for a little bit tonight.

-Cody

     I'm still working on some facial features. I work right to left on my sculptures. So every time you see my sculpture they are more finished or polished on the right sides. My model has a lot of distinct features, which is great to work with because you can catch resemblances really quickly. Although  they are so prominent, it's easier to see the mistakes. 

[Allison's portrait sculpture in progress]

 
     He also has LOTS of hair. So I wasn't even done with the hair in this point of the piece. I still have a long time before we critique them. I believe I worked pretty well, I could probably work slower though. I have three more weeks to work on this.

[Allison's portrait sculpture in progress]

-Allison

"I just do art because I’m ugly and there’s nothing else for me to do. " -Andy Warhol

Figure Thisss

    Allison got a chance to take some pictures of her portrait she's working on of the model from yesterday. We also have been working on some small portraits for homework and her second one is somewhat based off of our friend Ryan.

[Allison's homework portrait #2]

    I love how my self-portrait's head is snooping in the background of this shot.

[Allison's life portrait in progress]

    I'll be building up a basic head in the same manner as we did for our self-portraits that way when I get to class and go to catch up I won't have to start from scratch. I'll grab some shots of our other homework portraits as well.

    Today we started our next painting which is a "deep space" assignment, and we're working on a large still-life that simulates an interior of a room in say someone's house. The goal is to work with the ideas we've been working on to create a larger more convincing space within the painting. So by using things like overlapping forms, atmospheric, and linear perspective all in tandem the space being conveyed in the painting should feel believable. 

[Cody's deep space painting in progress]

[Allison's deep space painting in progress]

    

    I also gave a small presentation on H.R. Giger today for an assignment in the class, I think it's very funny to see people's reactions to artwork that isn't traditionally beautiful. I find his work very interesting actually, and his work has inspired some of the things that now inspire me directly. Like the Alien franchise[of which he worked on], and Halo.

-Cody

"She said that to me once. About being a machine." -Master Chief 117

To Put Things Into Perspective

    I've got some stuff from yesterday, and some stuff from today. Yesterday we had our painting class
and we completed our split-complementary paintings.

[Cody's split-complimentary painting]

    

    I had made sure to have covered the canvas by the end of the first class and get to working on the accurate colors, and fleshing out the forms. The only thing I wish I had more time to get more colors into the values within the drapery in the background.

[Cody's raised two-point perspective drawing]

[Cody's raised two-point perspective drawing]

    In drawing today we continued to work on two-point perspective drawings, which I'm finding very helpful. This time though we had to imagine ourselves significantly higher up in the air, so our vantage point was elevated. Raising our vanishing points, the point was to see as if we were looking down on the rooms we were drawing.

[Allison's split-complimentary painting]

[Allison's two-point perspective drawing]

    

    Allison can add any of her thoughts tomorrow. I may add more as well.

     I really enjoyed my painting this week, I moved to a different area and the lighing was much stronger. I sat down so everything was above eye level. It gave it an interesting view point, and I felt like it made it more dynamic. I wish I had more time to work on it. I will probably adjust some areas that seem flat when I was running out of time in class. Class feels less frustrating as well. I do reach points where I don't know where to begin. But once I get the ball rolling things turn out pretty good (well?)

-Cody and Allison 

"Oh, I know what the ladies like." -Sgt. Avery Johnson

It's Like a Mirror, Kind Of

    Today was the last day in class to work on our self-portraits for sculpture, we have until the beginning of next class to refine it if we so choose. I'm most likely going to work on the forms that make up the hair on top/in front of my face they're too regular at the moment, but there are parts that I like.

[Cody's self-portrait in progress]

    

    I worked on further fine tuning my features, and giving myself some more squishy parts on my face. It definitely bares some resemblance to me now.

    Allison's has come a long way in the last couple weeks, I'm sure she'll have a great looking sculpture by next Tuesday. I'm proud of her.

-Cody

     My piece is frustrating me, it doesn't look like me and it's got weird features. I'm always my biggest critic but this is really making me feel like I can't see what I'm doing. I need to focus more on the pictures. I'm just carving from what I think my face looks like, in certain areas. I need better photos. I have bad photos to work off of. I want to start over... But it's due next week and I have zero time to work on it. Eyes are weird too...

    

      I never have anything good to say, why is that ? 

[Allison's self-portrait in progress]

-Allison

"Don't make a girl a promise, if you know you can't keep it." -Cortana