My February booking for Adrian Dutton – just like January’s – came with a co-model. Eleanor, like Carlos at Eastbourne House, had previous life modelling experience but is now re-establishing herself after taking time out. She arrived at the Garrett Centre a couple of minutes before our 7pm start, so with little ado we entered the pose space.
We had another impressive assemblage of artists surrounding us. I stopped counting at 30, after which a few more arrived. While modelling, we worked at opposite ends of the central mats, swapping sides from time to time for variety. We started with poses of 10-minutes, then 2-minutes, 1-minute, 30-seconds, 5-minutes, 10 and 15-minutes.
The last pose before the interval was called as 25-minutes but Adrian had pre-warned us to expect it would overrun. He was as good as his word – by the time he emerged from the kitchen with a sparkler-decorated birthday cake for one of the artists, we had been in position for close on three-quarters of an hour.
After our break there was just time for a 10-minutes pose, which lasted a quarter of an hour, and a final 15-minute pose. There was a nice atmosphere about the room but my body didn’t quite feel on top form. That was a pity because when I arrived an artist had said, “You’re the model! Oh good!” I hope I delivered enough to meet the anticipation.
It started with a 5-minute pose seated on a high stool, and continued with a 4-minute pose on a lower one. Next came an ambitious 3-minutes of kneeling on the floor with my hands behind my head, and then 2-minutes sat upon a different high stool. Three 1-minute and three 30-second poses followed in a wide variety of strenuous reaching and thrusting stances.
After a couple more 5-minute poses, the first half ended with me curled down on the floor for 10-minutes. The time seemed to race by, as it so often does in the colourful convivial little space upstairs at The Star by Hackney Downs. This evening I was in the company of six artists plus group organisers Catherine Hall and Carla Nizzola also drawing.
This day – 2 February – was ‘Groundhog Day‘, so the suggestion arose to have the three favourite poses from the first half repeated in the second half but held for longer. It was a neat and novel notion except I usually select poses that take me to the limit of what I can endure in the time available for each one. Hence, lengthening that time could be a challenge, but I agreed to go along with it anyway.
I made minute modifications so that my 1-minute lunge with both arms thrust forward could now somehow last for 5-minutes. Next, the 3-minute pose seated on my heels, kneeling with hands clasped behind my head, was drawn out to 10-minutes. My final 10-minute reprise of sitting on the first high stool was simple by comparison. Overall I found it a tough but fascinating test of my commitment and adaptability!
Artworks were set out upon the floor at the end. Even with some new faces present, the quality remained high. An artist complimented me: “Great poses! I was at a life drawing group yesterday where the model moved one way and then another but they didn’t do anything! It was so boring I ended up drawing the other artists.” The words were much appreciated, and a helpful reminder never to get complacent.
There can be few sights more welcome to a life model in winter than that of a roaring fire next to their pose space. Upstairs at The Sun in Clapham, the flames were not exactly roaring, but even a gentle flicker in the grate is enough to warm the heart. A bumper turn-out of around 20 artists helped warm the rest of the room.
Julia was the facilitator for this Moon and Nude session. The last time she presided over my poses she’d kindly supplied me with a hot water bottle for extra comfort. Not this time, however, as apparently it had burst beneath some unfortunate model on a subsequent occasion. No scalding; just dampened pride, perhaps.
This evening I began by standing for 5-minutes with both arms bowed over in a lean to my left side. After this came 4-minutes with one arm at full stretch as if pushing away; then 3-minutes as if boxing; 2-minutes as if pulling a rope; and 1-minute down on one knee with both arms raised in a salute to the fresco-painted ceiling.
10-minutes standing, 15-minutes seated on the floor and 20-minutes reclining took us to our break. I ended with 42-minutes sitting with my torso twisted on a high stool. I’d made this last one way too strenuous for its length of time, and thus was numb, taut and trembling when finally a halt was called… but extraordinary art eased my pain.
“Sit in a comfortable pose on that stool – we’ll begin,” suggested Lisa. “Nonchalant, like?” I queried. “Yes, nonchalant.” Artists were still very much in the act of arriving, selecting a free easel in one of the two rooms upstairs at The Prince Regent, and adjusting it according to their preferences. Yet time was upon us, so without further announcement I stripped naked and perched upon said stool, atop two tables.
I had started in the main room where I would be specialising in dynamic work. In the adjacent ‘blue room’, Pip, a new model, would be holding longer poses. Both rooms continued to fill until it seemed there wasn’t an easel to spare; I think we must have had between 20 and 30 artists present in total. Lisa cleverly arranges the space and lighting so even on busy nights the layout feels natural and organic.
After my initial open-ended pose – probably 10 or 15 minutes – I moved on to brisker work. 5-minutes, 5, 3, 2, 1, 1, 3 and 5-minute poses followed, mostly standing on the table tops. To complete the first half I went 10-minutes seated with one arm wrapped around one knee, and 10-minutes kneeling as if about to start a sprint. I was pleased with the latter as I’d overheard a murmur of doubt about whether I could hold it.
After the break I swapped rooms with Pip and finished the session with a single long pose that probably lasted about three-quarters of an hour. There was no applause at the end, as sometimes happens in life drawing groups, but afterwards several artists approached me individually and complimented my poses – that meant an awful lot to me. Thank you, artists of SketchPad Drawing.
A few things had changed since mid-December when I last posed for life art at The Russet café. The interior ceiling had been draped with a cone of turquoise silk, giving it an exotic tent-like appearance; a vast beanbag had materialised in the middle of the pose space for me to sprawl upon; and an all-new set of artists had come to draw.
What hadn’t changed, unfortunately, was the artist numbers. Yet again only two were in attendance. OK, a couple had cancelled late, and another apparently couldn’t find the venue, but this is such a friendly set-up that really it ought to be over-subscribed. Surely it will be when word gets out further among Hackney’s art enthusiasts.
The strength of this group remains the helpful pointers that its organiser, Catherine Hall, shares with each individual. It always seems in proportion to what each one is receptive to, and is genuinely informative. One artist here even went so far as to say their work had improved noticeably between arrival and the interval.
Poses were 10-minutes, 5, 4, 3, 2, three of 1-minute, three of 30-seconds, and then 20-minutes to the halfway point. After a break, we ended with 5-minutes, 10-minutes and 20-minutes – the last three all being on that mighty beanbag. I was comfortable, pretty warm and, as always, glad to be modelling at Hackney Downs Studios.
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.
My first life modelling of 2016 saw me return to Bethnal Green for Adrian Dutton. It being a Thursday, this was particularly pleasing as Thursday are his cheese and wine evenings. Only four weeks had passed since I made my first appearance at just such an occasion; this rapid re-booking was to pair me with a new model making his début for Adrian.
Carlos had life modelled a couple of times before, but never for a group on the scale of this one at Eastbourne House. As we chatted before the start, more and more artists poured into the hall. Whilst not daunted, even I was a little surprised to see we would be posing for a crowd of 40 to 50 people. Carlos chuckled a little nervously but held his composure.
The two-model format presents possibilities for maximising the space with a model at each end, or to have both models in a duo pose at the centre of the room. With regard to the latter, I had said to Carlos we needn’t do anything he would not feel comfortable with, but he was admirably open-minded. We started in opposite corners, however, for the traditional 10-minute opener.
Four 2-minute poses followed, and we made the last of these our first duo pose. Two subsequent 5-minute poses were also as a duo: one with me seated on the floor and Carlos kneeling beside me, our hands upon or across one another; the other standing side by side facing opposite directions, arms around each other’s midriffs. 15-minute and 10-minute poses to us to the cheese and wine interlude.
After the break we recommenced with 10-minute, 2-minute, 1-minute and 30-second poses. The next 15-minutes saw our final duo pose, seated back-to-back on the floor. We finished as we’d begun, at opposite ends of the hall, closing the session with a 20-minute pose. Carlos had done well; he’d shown a professional attitude and been natural in his approach throughout.
Before heading home, I checked out the evening’s art that had been laid out around the floor. As on my previous Thursday visit, the most eye-catching works were large characterful studies of the upper body that seem to be one artist’s speciality. But it’s a pleasure to pose for the full range of abilities in such a large friendly group. Cheese and wine is icing on the cake.
steve ritter 