Telegraph Hill Festival life drawing taster session, 2017

Esther and I were modelling together again last week for the Telegraph Hill Festival. In 2016 we’d attended as part of a Spirited Bodies collaboration, but this time it was just the two of us posing in a Telegraph Hill life drawing group taster session. We were welcomed by our friend Frances, who runs the group, and were soon joined by a dozen artists; a healthy mix of old friends and first-timers. We started: 5-minutes both standing; 5 sitting back-to-back, 10 with Esther standing, 10 standing back-to-back.

Two 15-minute poses took us up to a break. First, Esther reclined whilst I leaned over her, resting on one elbow. There was some speculation that this would be painful, but it was fine for the amount of time. Afterwards, it was my turn to lay down while Esther opted to stand across me. During the interval there was a somehow inconclusive vote on whether the second half should comprise one or two poses. The compromise split was 10-minutes and 30-minutes. For the first, we sat looking into each other’s eyes.

For our final half-hour, I sprawled backwards on a giant faux-leather beanbag. My 6’4” frame must have overly dominated it, as Esther eyed what little room remained before deciding it would be more straightforward simply to sit beside me; simple maybe, but effortlessly elegant as always. I closed my eyes for some much-needed rest and lost myself in Frances’s excellent playlist. When our time was up, we gratefully accepted the artists’ applause, and I insisted I’d not fallen asleep. At least, I think I hadn’t.

It had been a nice relaxed session, as is appropriate for a free event at a community festival. Hopefully the first-timers will be encouraged by the experience, and become regulars at the Telegraph Hill Centre. Untutored sessions take place on Thursday evenings from 7:30pm to 9:30pm – why not give it a go? In fact, if you read this blog regularly but have never actually tried life drawing, then get down to your local group and check out what you’ve been missing. Now is the time.