Drawing From Life

I started out here by reading the posts of others because I'm interested in what classmates have to say. I do agree with several of the comments re. the small venue given to Mel Chin for his presentation. I was glad to hear about FF since I didn't make it out there last month.
The focus of the reading is OBSERVATION. Even though we are engaged in observing closely and drawing 50 different images of a single object I really have nothing further to say about that because I understand the purpose of the exercise and am experiencing growth as a result of it. It is an op to brush up on several skills, looking being the foremost.
My journals fill a bookcase and several drawers & boxes. There are old sketch books, bound journals containing text and drawing, painting journals, diaries, bright idea notes, files of ephemera, photo albums, and last but not least my dream journals. My fascination with dreams will keep those going for the rest of my life. In an earlier post to this blog I included jpegs of two of my fiberart pieces based on two dreams from 2006 and 2007. Keeping any journal is time consuming and requires alot of personal dedication. My dream journals are very important to me as references from which to make art as well as for self study. Mel Chin made mention of the importance of self examination. Journalling is a great method for tracking one's progress with that examination, or self- observation.
My journals are not like those of Rick Hoblitt or Jenny Keller, though I admire the dedication and attention to detail they give to their professional endeavors. I am more apt to produce many sketches like those of Maira Kalman. These may or may not inspire me to further use of similar images in my artwork. At this point in my life I believe I am more like Christopher Lietch. I was thrilled to find another dreamer among the journalers. I agree with his comments (and the author's) about journals being journals regardless of physical format.
After reading the assignment I got to thinking about observation. There are just as many varieties of observation as varieties of journal keeping. There is much choice involved. Do I prefer to observe many things and portray them swiftly and simply or do I prefer to focus all my attention on as many details as possible in order to produce a reasonably correct and realistic portrayal? Do I draw more or write more in order to record information? How much time do I have or am I willing to give it? What do I observe? When do I observe? Is what I observe in waking life more important to me than what I observe while asleep? Or are these observations both worthwhile? How do I observe? Do I take in the big picture, the ambience of a scene or a day or do I immediately observe small details or items as I go along my way? Where am I looking? Inward? Outward? Up or down? Back, at sides or forward? There is room for all of this to some degree. Being open to the possibilities is the main thing. It is a good idea to keep many kinds of "tools" in the old toolbox.
So, despite my personal preferences, I can add tools any time. I may want to be spontaneous with what I committ to paper ( or whatever medium) one time and another I may wish to draw from stored information to create a solid plan for a piece of artwork. Either way I need to be awake to whats available both within and outside me in order to make informed decisions.
Finally, I was struck by the repeated use of the word "process" in the reading. To me, my journals are processes, the helpful records of processes, my life and my art in process. That's one of my favorite things about keeping journals. They help me from becoming stuck with a false perception of myself and a false perception of "now". I can observe my awareness growing. More importantly, I can observe how this process is facilitated through my choices/ actions and the consequences of my choices/ actions. What am I connected to? What else? How am I connected? What do I stand for? What won't I stand for? Ongoing and unfolding questions. Ongoing unfolding life-art and art-life.
OK, I'm rambling now. I do regret choosing to attend my algebra class Thursday night instead of staying to hear Chin's whole presentation. His actions (projects) are inspiring!!
- Margaret