Brockley Adult Education Centre, London, 26 April 2023

‘Hands and feet‘ was the theme of this class at Brockley Adult Education Centre. I always tend to be gestural with my hands when modelling, but what comes naturally when given no thought is quite another matter when closely scrutinised. We opened with poses of 5, 6 and 7 minutes before devoting 8 minutes to the study of hands.

Loose lines by Joanna McCormick.

I couldn’t do much about my bitten fingernails before the session, but at least I could trim the nails of my toes. Their time to shine was the next pose of 9 minutes. A break followed, after which we ended our evening’s exertions with a final 35-minute seated pose that once more positioned hands and feet to the fore.

Artwork by Dick Graham.

Hands and feet as subjects are notoriously the arch foes of figurative artists. Many a student at this class engaged with them only reluctantly, favouring the whole body or even portraiture. This was gratifying in a way; nobody likes to imagine they’re posing fully naked and contorted for students who are sketching nothing but appendages!