My second booking for Life Drawing in Leytonstone, at The Plough and Harrow pub, came almost exactly one year after the first. Whereas the first was arranged on the afternoon of the session itself, however, this had been comfortably in the diary for some time. I arrived nice and early to find Jenny – the group’s organiser – well on the way to having chairs, lights, heaters, art materials, tea and biscuits all set out.
A steady stream of artists arrived right up to our 7:30pm start time. As at my previous visit, one of the regular artists – Bill – was already comfortable in a grand chair when I arrived. Other regulars followed, along with several first-timers. Jenny greeted them all individually, with particular attention given to those who had never drawn here before. It meant we were a little late getting underway.
There would be three poses in the first half: 10-minutes, 15-minutes and 25-minutes. I decided to stand for the first, kneel for the second and sit on the floor for the third. My standing pose was particularly elongated as I reached up, with one arm hooked above my head; I set my limbs asymmetrically at awkward angles while kneeling; the sitting pose was conventional but still with lots of angles.
For my single long 50-minute pose after the break, I sat upon a chair and deliberately kept myself compact, with legs and arms folded in to contrast the earlier open-limbed poses. The group worked silently save for Bill’s occasional uncompromising muttered self-criticisms. He’s a character, and showed me a couple of his drawings afterwards. I wasn’t sure about the accuracy of those drips in the kneeling pose!
Not having had much sleep over the previous evenings and still with a journey home of more than an hour ahead, I regretfully declined to stay on for a drink. It had been good to see Jenny again, having missed spotting her at the Monsterlune fashion show in February, and to hear about her latest art projects. Same time next year, perhaps?
My train and tube connections worked out kindly for me on the way to this booking yesterday, but to scant advantage. I arrived 25 minutes early and found the building locked. Patrick – the group’s organiser – arrived five minutes later, and he too was surprised by the lock-out. Artists were also obliged to wait patiently in the pleasant evening air until a key-holder could be summoned.
Once inside, artists worked quickly to help Patrick set out chairs while I slipped into my lightweight gown. We even had a couple of minutes spare before our 7pm start. I kicked off with a 15-minute standing pose in which my right arm was raised to hold a ceiling beam, then followed with another 15-minute pose, seated, wherein both arms were wrapped tightly around my thighs.
The thigh-clasping pose left me with a delightful array of pink blotches on my arms, my legs and even where my forehead had been pressed on to my knees. I flaunted these colours over the next half-hour in an angular seated pose that took us to the midway interval. When the artists returned from their extended tea break, a single 35-minute semi-reclining pose took us to a finish.
I sat upon a pillow, on the floor, with my head lolling heavily on my arms, which were crooked across a chair. The lower half of me was comfortable but during the last ten minutes a curious disorientating numbness crept into my arms. Not for too long, nor too debilitating, mercifully. It was a nice, natural session and – like the artists – I left in good spirits.
Unexpectedly, the last time Esther and I were booked together to model at The Prince Regent we ended up running the session. This time the twist was revealed in an email sent by Lisa – organiser of SketchPad Drawing – a fortnight before:
Hi Guys
I have been approached by a production company asking whether they can be part of and film the session on the 23rd. They would only need one of you to be filmed so separate modelling until they have finished.
They would want us to be starting at 5.30pm and going through till my usual finish – You would get paid for your time but I am wondering whether that’s something you are interested in?
I’m not sure it works but thought I would pass it by you. Their film will go out to a teen audience on YouTube – not sure how that works yet either re full nudity – anyway
let me know xx
thanks
Lisa
Both of us would have been game, but I couldn’t get there from my day job until a little after 6pm. Whether I was present or not was immaterial, however, as Esther was the perfect natural pick to represent the profession of life model for an audience of young people. Her work as Artistic Director of Spirited Bodies has seen her nurturing the new and the nervous for years.
When I arrived, Esther had already completed an interview (clothed) – educating the production team in nuances of gender politics that might otherwise be overlooked. Lisa was setting out more easels in the room where filming would take place, and artists were starting to arrive. Esther undressed and began a sequence of 2-minute poses while filming focused on David, the young guy who would later try modelling.
As an artist he was tentative, not wholly comfortable, but took the challenge seriously and had an honest go at it. Lisa offered him coaching advice as she moved Esther on to 5-minute poses and slightly longer. When the time came for him to model naked, however, he needed no extra encouragement, just practical advice on how to channel his enthusiasm into the creation of interesting sustainable poses.
So, while artists in the production room had drawn Esther solo and were now drawing David solo, I passed time in the adjoining room scribbling notes for my blog about our last work together at Mall Galleries. By now, other artists were arriving and setting up around me for the regular session that begins at 7:45pm. Come that time, I got into an open-ended solo pose myself.
I’d been in pose for about 5 minutes when Lisa looked in and – after checking with me first – declared that it would continue for a further quarter of an hour. The idea was that this would be sufficient time for the production team to clear away, allowing Esther and me to pose together. In fact they were still packing up when Esther joined me for the next informal 10-minute pose.
Having finished this swift duet, we found the YouTube crew had departed at last and we could rearrange the two room layouts. The plan was to set up two tables in the doorway that connected the rooms, and then rotate the semi-circles of easels to face our new location. There was some scepticism (partly from me) but Lisa was confident and, of course, ultimately proven right in her approach.
Our initial seated pose was not the most sumptuously comfortable arrangement for either of us, but it was intoxicating fun simply to gaze at each other for 20-minutes, exchanging happy little mutters. We had time for a 10-minute pose before the break so we reprised one from two days before at Mall Galleries, with Esther standing and me lower down, hugging her hips.
Feedback during the interval was that our work was greatly appreciated but presented a real challenge for the artists to capture two figures satisfactorily in the limited time available. We closed the session with a single long pose of 40-minutes, which gave everyone ample chance to find the lines, shadows and tones. I leaned back onto the wooden door frame, while Esther put her feet up and leaned onto my chest.
For all our combined years of experience as life models, Esther and I are still learning the right balance between aesthetic intimacy and sustainable comfort. Neither of us likes to feel our own pain, nor the pain of the other; we both had aches at the end. Yet it is such a privilege and pleasure to immerse in this work. A celebratory vegetarian pizza on the way home was well earned. Now we await the final YouTube edit.
My third time life modelling at Mall Galleries with Esther was set to be our first time duo posing there for a full session. We had duo posed on my début visit but that was a half-length session ahead of the group’s Christmas drinks. We were then separated for our second booking together, with Esther on 15-minute poses and me doing the half-hour shifts. Now, at last, we were both on the half-hours, and could thus pose as a couple for the entire evening… or so we thought.
Always at Hesketh Hubbard Art Society, there are 15-minute and 30-minute poses, a long pose and a portrait pose. I had arrived first and was loitering in the wings when Simon – who books all the models – breezed by and declared, “Our long-pose model hasn’t arrived so I’m afraid I may have to split you up.” Fortunately when Esther joined me she spotted a regular artist who is also a model, and who kindly volunteered to be the replacement. Our gig was still on; we began with 30-minutes standing.
Before commencing we practised a few intimate combinations in the pose space, so the artists would have had a fair idea of what to expect. Indeed, we’d worked on four poses the previous afternoon at Esther’s flat. All was going to plan… except over the course of half an hour, unforeseeable aches and discomfort emerge. One of Esther’s legs suffered in particular, so we improvised our second pose with both of us seated, such that it would bring rest to the afflicted limb.
When we resumed after a tea break we got back on track with our pre-prepared work. Pose number three had me laying down flat, with my body and legs making a twisted curve, while Esther sat upright in the middle space. In all our poses we were finding a strong connection, but we were also mindful of the need to provide interesting profiles from 360° perspectives. That meant trying to have some face in view from every angle, and not concealing our most interesting shapes.
For our final pose we planned for both of us to be seated but when the moment came, Esther had the urge to stand. She straddled my left shoulder and placed one hand on my hair while I rested my left cheek against her left hip and linked my hands in a loop through her legs. It was the most comfortable pose of the evening – a lovely, warming way to end the session. Afterwards we perused gleefully all the wonderful art created, and later joined several artists for a drink. Very happy days.
I am a hypocrite. When I’m life drawing – those rare occasions – I prefer longer poses; at least 10 minutes, ideally 20 minutes, maybe longer. When modelling, however, I’m fervently in favour of dynamic work. I consider long-pose bookings an important part of a multi-disciplined job, not necessarily an enjoyment – thus, I wasn’t hugely relishing my long-pose booking at the Garrett Centre, but it’s a good group.
The trouble with long-pose work is threefold: First, the choice of pose is greatly limited if it has to be sustained for hours. Everything that involves muscular tension, balance, or uneven weight distribution is firmly ruled out. Second, it’s just plain boring to remain motionless in the same posture for so long. Third, no matter what the choice of pose, aches and numbness are almost inevitable.
It wasn’t all tedious, though. To begin with, a series of short poses was requested as a warm-up for the artists. I went 5-minutes, 5-minutes, 5-minutes and 7-minutes, all standing, alternating direction each time. Then came the long one. I chose a seated pose on a low stool, with my left leg crooked beneath my body, my right leg hooked backwards with toes on the floor, and both arms passive. Not comfortable, but OK.
I maintained the position for 35-minutes up to a break for pizza, garlic bread, biscuits and tea. Fortunately most artists were happy to socialise rather than hastily resume their drawings. After this interval, I went a further 70-minutes – with one late stretch break – up to the finish. Hearty applause was forthcoming, so I guess my endurance was appreciated. Job done, I shook out my pains and left, happily intact.
Part 2 of my visits to life model at Morley College continued in much the same vein as the previous week, albeit with a reduced class. Last time there were five (mature) students present from the class of six. This time the missing person came along, but three others had excused themselves – all prearranged, nothing personal. It made for a quieter, uncluttered session in what is a very nice environment to work.
We would begin with three 10-minute poses. Gillian, the tutor, showed me an art book with photographs of muscular, athletic models, performing all manner of contortions. I consented to attempt three of these. For the first I perched upon the corner of a table, reaching behind me with head thrust back; it was excruciatingly painful on the back of my neck. The rest proved tough but less severe.
Next I put one knee on the table and leaned forward so that my standing leg and body made a straight diagonal. Finally I sat cross-legged upon the table, leaning to my left with my right hand raised to my head. Warm-up complete, I returned to the long pose with which I’d closed the week before. I was to hold it for 35-minutes up to an interval, and a further 50-minutes – with one stretch break – afterwards.
Meanwhile, Esther was posing in Hampstead. Before starting she had posted online 30 photos of recent artwork that she’d inspired. As I flicked through these during our interval, I found a couple in which she’d held the exact same diagonal pose I’d been asked to assume just an hour earlier. I suppose some art books must be a standard reference for torturing models… but we love it, that’s why we keep coming back.
The setting for my second time modelling at The Bartlett School of Architecture was so utterly dissimilar to the first that it almost felt like work for a different group. Instead of occupying a small enclosed room in the building at 140 Hampstead Road, we were at the centre of a large, carpeted, curtained-off space within the complex at neighbouring no.132.
That wasn’t all that had changed – instead of having my back to the wall, I was now posing in the round; instead of half-a-dozen male artists, it was now a mixed group at least twice the size; and instead of needing heaters, I was comfortably warm with the ambient temperature. Consistency came in the form of the group’s kindly attentive organiser, Cova, plus her cool music playlist and the preferred pose lengths.
The session started late as artists were still arriving well after the scheduled time of 7:30pm. Once underway poses in the first half were 7-minutes, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 5, 5 and 10-minutes. After a break, I finished with 25-minutes reclining and 30-minutes sitting on the floor. Part way into the reclining pose, the temperature seemed to plummet significantly, but I made it to the end with no more than a couple of shivers.
Indeed I only encountered two difficulties: firstly, getting to the gents’ toilets, which for some reason – unlike the ladies’ – were behind a swipe-card security door; secondly, getting out of the building to go home. It’s such a rabbit warren, I couldn’t retrace my steps and eventually had to be shown the way. Curious that such issues should arise in a building for architects! Nonetheless, I give a big thumbs-up for the new space.
steve ritter 