The Old Dairy, London, 20 January 2016

It takes more than sub-zero temperatures to deter the artists of Crouch Hill. More than 30 of them crammed into the function room at The Old Dairy pub for life drawing last Wednesday – certainly the most I had seen there. We started a few minutes late as it took so long to filter them all in.

The more the merrier, and indeed this is one of London’s merrier groups. There always seems to be a warmth about its vibe. Of greater importance, however, was the warmth emanating from two small heaters stationed next to the sheet I’d spread over pillows at the centre of the room.

We opened with the traditional 5-minutes, 4, 3, 2, 1-minute pose times, then followed with 10-minutes, 10 and 15-minutes to a short interval. I supped water and partook of chocolate biscuits while the artist hoards migrated to and from the bar in a hubbub of laughs and banter.

After the break I finished with 20-minutes reclining and 10-minutes standing. Same space, same heaters, but for some reason I failed to find the same warmth and thus shivered to a conclusion. It was no less an enjoyable evening for that. I’ll look forward to more work for The Moon and Nude next month at their other venues.