Portrait of Carrie

Carrie

charcoal and graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 2015

Wow! Where do I begin to tell you about the portrait drawing workshop? I guess first off I need to express sincere thanks to Matthew Mancini for sharing his incredible talent and wealth of knowledge with us. He did two demos, one of each model, to show us his process in building a portrait as well as talk us through his thoughts. At this time he was also able to demonstrate the use of different materials, including drawing with loose charcoal and a brush, something I had never done before. He spent the first morning working his way through the drawing of Carrie and then he worked on it here and there for the rest of the weekend as long as we were settled and not needing assistance.

Matthew Mancini

~demonstration of portrait drawing~

There were ten students in the class and the way Matt worked the room, I am certain we all felt very well taken care of and supported in our efforts. He was incredibly gracious and generous and had a way of zeroing in on what each of us needed. It was fascinating and inspiring to watch his drawing come to life over the course of the eighteen hours. Seeing what is possible makes me want to get better and better.

Portrait of Carrie

charcoal, graphite and white chalk on paper

© Matthew Mancini, 2015

I had forgotten just how much I love to draw. I have never spent this kind of time on a life drawing before. We had the same model and same pose for the entire weekend (two models, five students to each model), so there was time to really get into it and not feel panicked to finish. I was pleased to find the Bargue training being used in a practical, real-life scenario!

Matthew is still in Saskatoon (he lives in the country outside of Toronto) and is going to be instructing a figure drawing workshop on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings and then on the weekend he is doing another two day workshop on alla prima painting in the style of John Singer Sargent. I am sure both will be excellent and wish I was able to sign up for them. Huge thanks to Craig Berry at Atelier 2302 for bringing to our city yet another great artist for us to experience. 

Please take the time to learn more about Matthew Mancini at his website www.matthewmanciniart.com.

Portrait Drawing

Sammy

graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 2003

Well, the weekend is almost here and I feel ill-prepared for the workshop with Matthew Mancini. I had every intention of doing some sketching and drawing this week in my "free time" to warm myself up, but it was not to be. As a result I will be heading in cold turkey. I will be a bit stressed. I will put too much pressure on myself. I will probably feel like crying at some point (ha!). But I will survive.

I thought I would take a quick look back at some of my portrait drawings from the past, long before I ever studied at Atelier 2302. I still like them, but I would tackle things differently now. I am interested to see how the work I do at the drawing workshop on Saturday and Sunday compares to these pieces.

Alan

graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 2000

Marta

graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 2003

Jill

graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 2000

Jocelyn

graphite on paper

© Nicki Ault, 1999

GM Cloud Study

GM Cloud Study

11 x 14"

oil on board

© Nicki Ault, 2015

Finally I am showing you the piece I created at the Atelier 2302 "Landscape Painting With Gord MacDonald" workshop in October. I worked on it at the studio one time after that weekend and probably could work on it a bit more, but I am not sure I will. I learned a lot that weekend and had things reaffirmed, including that I have much more to learn. Over the weekend the class watched Gord demonstrate his thought processes and techniques on two original paintings, one of which was a nocturne that he impressively invented on the spot. It was inspirational and motivating. As I mentioned in a previous post, he actually got me painting with a palette knife, with my finger, and with a fan brush- all to get different softening effects (fan brush) or to quickly get the paint on the board (palette knife). 

I have already taken what I learned that weekend and tweaked an existing painting that I created earlier this year. I believe what I changed is an improvement, but perhaps in another blog post you can be the judge of that.

Heart Lake

Heart Lake

10 x 8"

oil on canvas

© Nicki Ault, 2015

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/nicki-ault/heart-lake/424708

sold

Unfortunately I am not sure this photo is of the best quality... there is a bit of a hot spot on the right side and it seems somewhat out of focus. I may try to get a better shot when I get a chance, however hopefully you get the jist.

I mentioned that a couple of weekends ago I took a workshop through Atelier 2302 on landscape painting with Gord MacDonald. Well, on November 14 and 15 I am taking another workshop! I am very excited about it- it is called "Portrait Drawing with Matthew Mancini". Please have a look at the connected link to Matthew Mancini.

I have not drawn for awhile, so it should be interesting. I will be rusty and I don't want to make a fool of myself in front of such a stellar artist, but these are the chances one takes to learn and grow. I actually feel honoured to have the opportunity to be in the position to study with Matthew Mancini. What will I learn? What will I draw? Will I be able to make a connection from the Bargue drawings to what Matt will teach? I bet I will. I am anticipating light bulbs lighting up all weekend! Stay tuned... I will post the work I will produce.

Prairie Intensity II

Prairie Intensity II

8 x 8"

oil on cradled panels

© Nicki Ault, 2015

available exclusively at Lifestyles By Darrell Bell Gallery
sold

A couple of months ago I did a painting for Lifestyles called "Prairie Intensity". I was really happy with the vibe it had (see below), so I decided to try to capture that same power in another painting (above). Maybe this will be the start of a few more.

Prairie Intensity

8x8

oil on cradled panel

© Nicki Ault, 2015

sold

On a side note I am extremely excited for my weekend. On Saturday and Sunday I will be attending "Landscape Painting with Gord MacDonald" at Atelier 2302. It is part of a series of workshops Craig Berry is bringing to Saskatoon this fall and I am so happy I got a spot! I will be in student mode for forty-eight hours and I can hardly wait to be more knowledgeable come Monday! Here is a link to view work by Gord MacDonald.

The Ear

The Ear

14.5 x 12"

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2015

What?! I almost forgot to show you my ear! This mother took me a good six months to do from start to finish. Granted I only had class once a week for three hours, but still, that was a long haul!

I am proud to say I have discovered that I have a strong case of stick-to-it-iveness. I know I am loyal to people, but it turns out I am loyal to art programs too! The course at the atelier is not for everyone, but, happily, it works for me and I know my skills will grow and evolve while I continue my studies. Who knows where it will lead, but I am excited to find out. 

Next up... the painting program in the fall! Yippee!

Walk In The Meadow

Walk In The Meadow

30 x 30"

oil on canvas

© Nicki Ault, 2015

I have really been enjoying myself at the studio these days. I have been trying to paint new and different prairie landscapes (for me)- I feel energized in a way that I haven't felt for awhile. "Walk In The Meadow" is another attempt to be bold and interesting with my brushstrokes and mark-making, while at the same time thinking about some of the things I have learned at Atelier 2302. I am well aware that this painting is nowhere near what the masters would have produced, but for me it represents the fact that I am thinking about things that I never even understood pre-Atelier 2302. For that I am grateful. I have a long way to go, but I am willing to play the long game.

Aside from this experimenting, I am also stretching my wings for the group show I have at Hues Art Supply in June with Bridget Aitken and Jacqueline Faye Miller. We are all trying to paint out of our comfort zone and that has me vibrating a bit. I have painted some real duds for this show (they will be on the cutting room floor), but a few have worked out and that has me really excited. I think this is exactly what I needed to get me out of my slump and I thank my colleagues, Bridget and Jackie, for pushing me to a new place and I thank Paul Trottier at Hues Art Supply for giving me a reason to do so. I will show you the work that makes it to the exhibition once it is decided.

More Figure Drawings

one hour drawing

graphite on newsprint

© Nicki Ault, 2015

forty minute drawing

graphite on newsprint

© Nicki Ault, 2015

We've had some excellent models in the Monday night drawing sessions. Here are a couple of my latest attempts from two different nights. The first drawing gave me a bit of trouble... I had the head too small and ended up enlarging it three times. I think it is still a bit off. Also, the arm on the left was going back in space and I had trouble conveying that gesture. However, this is the reason for going to these sessions- to practice solving these problems and challenges.

Monday Life Drawing Sessions

graphite on newsprint

© Nicki Ault, 2015

graphite on newsprint

© Nicki Ault, 2015

I am enjoying the Monday night life drawing sessions at Atelier 2302- I will be there this evening. Here are a couple of my not-so-bad efforts from two different Mondays. The first one was a forty minute drawing and the second one was about twenty minutes. I was just starting to figure out the shadow shape when the time was up. 

I have noticed a change in my approach to drawing since I have become a student at the atelier. I think the change is good and demonstrates growth. I actually feel like I see better. I've been trying to construct my drawings with ghosty-bandy lines and I have been thinking about apexes, shadow shapes and alignments which is something I never did before. At least not so deliberately. I went back over the lines of these drawings to darken them up so the camera would see them.

We are a quiet group, the Monday night session. When the model takes a break, the room is quiet. I have such an urge to crack jokes and lighten the mood, but one of the first days when I tried, no-one engaged so I took that as a hint. I've never been the class clown before and I am not sure this is the time or place to try it out!

The Ear

The Ear (in progress)

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2015

I was at Atelier 2302 all day today working on my drawing. It seems like I have been working on it for ages and progress has been slow. It doesn't help that I only go once a week and I can't bring it home with me to work on. After the last two classes, though, I have really begun to see things start to take shape. I spent a good chunk of time working on and filling in that cast shadow; trying to get it to a correct darkness so I can then have a better read of the values within the cast itself. I've also done a bit of work in the light shapes which has begun to give the form volume and dimension. I feel like I am at an exciting stage- there is still plenty to do, but the pieces of the puzzle are actually fitting together!

In other news, I am also going to the atelier on Monday nights for figure drawing sessions. The sessions are not instructed, in fact my teacher, Craig Berry, is in the trenches with us drawing the model. This is going to be a great way to continue to train my eye and strengthen my skills. It is also an opportunity to practice some of the things I have learned at the atelier- like how to build a good construct, how to draw with "ghosty, bandy" lines, how to measure and use alignments and how to define the shadow shape. I can say in all honesty that these concepts were never on my radar before. 

in the sketchbook

graphite on newsprint

© Nicki Ault, 2015

The above drawing is my favorite effort from the sessions so far. In it I can see growth in my thinking and my approach as opposed to how I would have sketched the figure pre-atelier. Sure there is room for more practice and improvement, that will never end, but it is encouraging for me to discover that this old dog can learn some new tricks after all!

Drawing From Life

The Ear

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2014

Behind the scenes I continue to quietly work on my drawing at Atelier 2302. It has come a long way, but it also has a long way to go. It is a labour of love- my first cast drawing, putting everything I learned from the Bargues to test.

Thank you so much to the organizers of Flock and Gather who asked me to fill a spot at the last moment. It was a great weekend and I was thrilled to be there among such talented artisans and vendors. Thank you everyone who dropped by to say "hi" and to those who supported me and the other "makers". I think, happily, we all left a bit low on inventory!

Strange Land

Strange Land

36 x 30"

oil on canvas

© Nicki Ault, 2014
sold

This is the large sky that morphed from the little study "It Poured". It became a sky from a strange land.

The journey continues as I try to get my head in the game and use the info I am gathering from Atelier 2302. As much as I seem to understand the concepts when I am at school, I forget them all when I am at the studio and I just go back to painting my usual way. Perhaps my struggles as I perceive them are because I am still in the drawing program at the Atelier; maybe when I start the painting program it will all come together in a flash! Oooooorrrrr... perhaps you can't actually teach an old dog new tricks. I fear that may be the case! There is so much to think about: hue, value, chroma, edges, shapes, balance, proportion, harmony, pacing, patterns, contrast and keying to name a few. Ugh. It was easier when I was blissfully unaware!

We had an amazing inaugural Open Studio on Sunday. Thank you to all who came by to visit and buy original art. There is no way to have kept count of the numbers of people who stopped in- there were hundreds. I think it is safe to say that our new location was a hit and many people left very impressed. I am excited to plan another event for the new year!

Drawing From Life

my set-up at Atelier 2302

In mid-September drawing class resumed at Atelier 2302 and I picked up from where I left off. With three "Bargues" of increasing difficulty under my belt, I have now moved on to working from life. I spent three weeks drawing different angles of three different casts: a horse's head, a bust of an old man, and a skull. My task was to create a construct of the subject, finding the essence of the big, over-all shape in as few lines as possible. I was off to a rocky start with that horse's head, but each attempt after that continued to see improvement. 

I have now begun working on my actual project, an ear. It is really hard to see the construct in the above two photos, but trust me, it's there and I have worked out the over-all shapes of the big form without getting bogged down in details (an urge I have to fight). In this construct I have also worked out the shadow shape, separating the lights and darks into big groupings. You can see in the below photo what I was working on today. I filled in the shadow shape with a flat, even tone and as soon as that was done I could see areas that needed correcting- it was actually pretty cool. I find it surprising how much it looks like an ear considering the simplicity of the information.

The learning curve continues and sometimes I feel overwhelmed with my lack of knowledge, but I shall persevere! I hope someday this is all second nature.

Dark Cloud at Sunset

 

Dark Clouds at Sunset

6 x 6"

oil on board

© Nicki Ault, 2014

http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/nicki-ault/dark-clouds-at-sunset/251363
sold

Well, today is a special day- five years ago I gave myself this blog for my birthday. I didn't know what I was doing but I kept going through the steps on Blogger and the next thing you know I had a blog. I began because I found myself inspired by the daily painting blogs of Duane Keiser, Abbey Ryan and Edward B. Gordon. Although a daily painting blog has not been for me, I do believe my blog and your reaction to it has kept me producing on a semi-regular basis over the past five years. This blog has pushed me to continue to paint and work and grow. "They" say most blogs don't last more than three months, so I feel like this has been a bit of a feat. I mean, five years is a chunk of time. Each month I have approximately 3000 people checking in and viewing what I am producing. WOW! Thank you! Canada is my biggest audience, with the United States being a close second. Believe it or not the third country to tune into this blog is Russia- and at one time Russia was in first place!

I am excited to have been painting for five years and I am even more excited with the response I have received. When I was a little girl all I really wanted to be was an artist and a mother. Today I am both. Thank you for watching me on my journey and for both bearing with me in my ruts and for helping me to celebrate my accomplishments. I hope in the future I will produce work that will be worthy of your attention and that will make you feel proud of my growth. I know that with help of Craig Berry at Atelier 2302 I will be able to paint at a higher and higher skill level. The thought of that is exciting to me.

Bargue #3 - Done and Done!

The Belvedere Torso

Bargue #3- complete

~18 x 14"

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2014

After months of part-time work equaling hours and hours and HOURS of drawing time, my third and final "Bargue" is complete. I am feeling pretty dang good after putting the final touches on this baby at yesterday's class. I am officially moving on to the next stage of the drawing program at Atelier 2302 which is based on the Charles Bargue Drawing Course. Next I will be drawing from a cast- a real life, three dimensional object instead of a copy of a plate from a book.

Although each of my first two Bargues represented a milestone of sorts, this third Bargue feels rather monumental by comparison. The completed Belvedere Torso feels like it was all me... and it was. I started from zero, just me and the plate I had to enlarge and copy. No pre-done construct, no shadow shapes already worked out into light and dark, no work done for me in any way as was the case with the other two. Not only did I have to measure and transfer this image accurately, I had to enlarge it! Hello concept of comparative measure, nice to meet you! I found a section on the plate that was to be my unit of measure, decided how much to increase it by (about 30%) and then transferred that new unit onto my paper in the right location. From that point on all measurements were compared to those units and transferred accordingly as I built the construct of the drawing. Right now I can't believe I did it from start to finish, but here it is! Fully rendered and fine tuned. DONE!

Just a Simple Canadian Girl

Bargue #3

(big form modelling)

graphite on Stonehenge paper

I'm just a simple Canadian girl working her way through a six-pack!!!

I am roughly half-way through the big-form modelling of my third Bargue drawing- the Belvedere Torso. I'm amazed by the confidence I gained during Bargue #2. I feel like the muscles and abs on this guy are a cake-walk next to working through the beard of my last Bargue. The hardest part of this one was the comparative measure at the beginning and I suppose that is because it was new to me. It's not over yet, however, so I should probably watch my words!

Once I finish all of the big-form modelling I will take one or two more passes over the entire drawing with an incredibly sharp pencil and clean it up so it reaches a high finish, then I will move on from copying the Bargue plates to working from a cast. This will challenge me again to take all I have learned and apply it to life- working directly from a three dimensional object. 

It is hard to believe I have been attending Atelier 2302 for almost a year (part-time) and I will have done three drawings. The time invested in each one is rather staggering, but in my mind entirely worth it. I also have to admit that I rarely find the time to work on the drawing outside of class, so that has slowed me down. The training I am receiving is priceless- my eye is stronger and I am honing my skills beyond anything I could have imagined. I am so thankful Craig Berry moved back to Saskatoon and opened his Atelier. Better late than never for me to gain this knowledge.

Bargue #2- Complete!

Bargue Drawing #2

graphite on Stonehenge paper

© Nicki Ault, 2014

It was a long road and that was a heck of a time-consuming beard, but I got there. My second Bargue drawing is finished! It was a love/hate relationship, but in the end love prevailed. A huge shout-out to the most patient and inspiring instructor I have had in awhile, Craig Berry at Atelier 2302 in Saskatoon. Next week I move on to a new challenge and start Bargue #3.

* If anyone has tips on how to get good photographs of drawings, please share them in the comments below. Thanks!

Bargue Drawing Update

Bargue Drawing #2

graphite on Stonehenge paper

It's been awhile since the last Bargue update, however I have been working on it every Thursday at the drawing class at Atelier 2302. This photo was taken around mid-November so it has changed a lot since then, in fact it is almost done. I admittedly avoided the beard for as long as I could, but in the end it was not as intimidating as it first seemed. The key was to break it down into manageable parts, working from larger shapes to smaller shapes. I can hardly wait to show you the final result- I will be getting it framed. 

The next project will use comparative measure and I will be copying a most excellent Bargue plate of a sculpture of a male torso/body. Ooooh if it turns out I will be so proud!

Since you are here and I've got you thinking about these things why not swing over to the newly updated website of my instructor, Craig Berry, and have a look at his work and the courses he is offering in the new year at Atelier 2302.

Bargue # Two - Stage Three

 

Bargue # Two - Stage Three

graphite on Stonehenge paper

It is difficult to see what is happening in the above photo, but I am trying to show what the transfer looks like when moved over to the Stonehenge paper. Basically once the lights and darks are separated in the initial construct drawing, the bond paper is flipped over and, with a 2B pencil, all of the lines are gone over quite heavily (remember this is on the back of the paper). To really see where the lines are you could use a light box or simply tape the construct drawing face down on a window. The Stonehenge paper is then mounted squarely on the board and the construct drawing is centered and placed carefully on the Stonehenge- taping it only at the top to make flipping back and forth easier (to see how the transfer is going). All of the lines on the construct are traced over so that the gentle pressure of this action then deposits some of the graphite from the back of the bond paper onto the Stonehenge. It is really important to apply just enough pressure to lightly transfer the graphite to the good paper; too much pressure will result in scoring the Stonehenge which could cause visible marks in the final drawing.

Above you see the back side of the construct drawing that I have gone over in graphite and to the right is the transferred image. The lines have already been restated (they were not that dark from the transfer as you saw in the first photo) and you can see I have now begun to once again separate the lights and darks in an even mid-dark value.

It is a bit nerve-wracking to be working on the good paper- this is where I plan to put some serious time in to get excellent results, but also where one klutzy move (like knocking over water or coffee) could ruin everything. I need to work in a bubble!

Bargue Drawing #Two- Stage Two

Bargue # Two - Stage Two

graphite on bond paper

I have just completed stage two of my Bargue drawing. At this stage the lights and darks are separated into big forms. You can see that already with only the lightest light (white paper) and a mid-value dark (graphite) the shadow shape is describing the form of the subject. This definitely illustrates the power of separating the lights and the darks. With this limited information we know what this a drawing of a bust of a bearded male even though no specific details have yet been rendered. I love this stage, possibly because I love high contrast. I also find it fascinating that simply by adding a large, even-toned shadow shape suddenly (well, after a few hours of work) a line drawing takes on form and dimension. So cool.

The next step will be to transfer this image to good quality Stonehenge paper.