Albemarle College, London, 24 January 2015

Return to college. It had taken two years, six months for my first college life model booking to arrive. A mere ten weeks later I was back for my second, posing again at Albemarle College on their first Saturday after the winter break.

Once more Susan was tutor and four students were attending – albeit one out, one in from last time. We’d made provision for me to be working from 9:45am to 1:15pm, but in practice it was more like 10am to 1pm with a 15 minute break an hour from the end.

To get the students warmed up after weeks away, Susan called for four contrapposto studies. As my natural standing position always appears to be contrapposto, this was not too tough a call. For added variety I faced west, north, east, south in poses lasting 5, 5, 10 and 10 minutes.

That done, we moved onto the main work: a single long seated pose of an hour before the break, resuming for 45 minutes after the break. First I would be sketched in rough outline, then given colour with yellow, red and blue oil pastels to be used for light, mid and dark shading.

Works had progressed very nicely up to the break.

Upon resuming, more intense colour blocking was added using oilbars and the whole was brushed into life with white spirit. I was comfortably stationed with no numbness, aches or strains but as with any long spell in one position, my muscles sighed at the variety when eventually they were allowed to move.

I had not seen this kind of artistic development before. The students would be adding background and finishing touches after I’d left so I was rather sorry that I wouldn’t get to see the completed compositions. I had a prior engagement at the opposite side of the city, however, and only an hour to get there.

A life model’s work…