Bad Santa night

 Graphite/Danna Hildebrand

Oil/George Coll

Pastel/Suzi Holland

Pastel/ Suzi Holland

Graphite/Will Bemis

Oil/Mary Giacomini

For a holiday treat we had an evening life drawing and painting of  "Bad Santa".  Just in time for Christmas 2013!    We had two models for a three hour session who were excellent.  Several years ago we had a "Bad Santa" night and decided for an encore.  These are some of the group's artwork for the evening. Enjoy.  Laughter is good for the soul.

Josh

"Steam Punk Josh" 

"Josh"

At least 5 years ago we drew a model that arrived in his motorcycle leather, had piercing blue eyes and held his pose like a rock. Josh had never modeled before and was an amazing model.  "Steam Punk Josh" is Will Bemis' drawing in graphite from that evening and "Josh" is Mary Giacomini's conte portrait.  These were done Alla Prima in a 3 hour life  drawing session.

Drawing Hands

 

Drawing hands is the most difficult part of the human body to depict gracefully.  Will Bemis depicts hands in a masterful way.  Close observation and eliminating some detail  makes these hand drawings in graphite natural and realistic.  Will often creates in graphite, focusing on the value and form-and does it quite well.  He gets the credit for keeping our group together for many years by arranging the models,  exposing us to new & different music and treating us to hearty homemade bread.

Mary Giacomini's figures & faces

I have been participating in the Loveland Wild Art Sessions since our beginnings at the Wild Art Center in 2007.  The majority of figure drawing I did this year was on toned paper.  I filled up a sketchbook of toned paper that I would use graphite with some conte and white charcoal.  Another favorite drawing support is using Cold Press Arches Watercolor paper that I tone with a warm watercolor base then proceed to draw with graphite, conte and charcoal pencils.  My focus is on how the light hits the body.  We don't always draw nudes.  Sometimes we paint or draw a portrait.  You can see more of my work on my blog, website & on FAA.

Amy Lewark's Creations

Conte on colored paper

Conte on pastel paper

Conte and pastel on pastel paper

These are just a few examples of Amy Lewark's fine figurative work.  Amy works in Conte Crayon, pastel and charcoal.  You can see more of her art at AmyLewark.com.  All of these were all created "alla prima." (in one long session -3 hours with breaks)

Suzi's Gestural Lines

"As a member of Loveland Wild Life I am interested in studying how light falls on the human form. I am always playing with line on the contours of the body's silhouette.

My preference is for gestural line and exaggerated foreshortening rather than a more formal approach.

At present I am experimenting with the colors beneath the flesh, and the how skin tones change with the light.  

My medium is charcoal and white conte, but I am introducing pastels into the color pallet in my drawings this year."    -Suzi Holland

Victoria Lisi

Here is a sampling of Victoria Lisi's artwork from our live model sessions.  Victoria is a talented professional artist and art instructor for AIMS community college in Loveland, Colorado.  You can see more of her art on her Facebook page: Victoria Lisi-Artist

Loose & Lovely

These are just a few of Steve's drawings.  He works in pastel and charcoal.  I love the freshness in his nudes.  By not overworking his drawings, the result is loose and lovely.

Introducing "Loveland Wild Life Sessions"

In 2007 a small group of artists in Northern Colorado started gathering together weekly for figure and portrait drawing.  They  work in a variety of mediums and come from different backgrounds with one common interest: depicting the beauty of the human figure.  Models pose for a three hour session  so the the majority of the work is created "Alla Prima."  The models are sometimes creatively clothed but otherwise are nude, but always with strong lighting.  The purpose of this blog is to document and share their journey.