Recently, I took part in a Fashion Illustration workshop run by Derbyshire based artist Tracy Fennell.
This fashion illustration workshop focused on drawing clothes and materials on the human figure. Starting off with quick sketches looking at shape and then moving on to line and pattern with watercolour paints and inks.
A Quick Warm Up
The session started with quick 2-3 minute charcoal drawings to get us all warmed up. This is a great exercise as you can focus on the shapes in front of you without becoming too precious about the drawing itself.
The workshop lasted the whole day and remained challenging and exciting. Even as energy levels dipped in the afternoon, the whole class stayed focused and engaged. This is the type of activity that I could loose interest in half way through the day if I were to attempt it alone in my studio.
As always with life drawing, it's really interesting to see how everyone's work looks at the end of the session. No two drawings are ever the same.
I learnt a few tips throughout the day and thought I'd share them with you. These tips can be used in all sorts of drawing activities.
1. Longer Spent = Less Spontaneity.
The longer you spend working back into a drawing and adding to it, the less spontaneous it will look and you will run the risk of over working the drawing. Think quick and confident lines.
2. Know When To Stop
Know when to stop adding more layers, a bit of extra pencil, a bit of colour... You have to decide that enough is enough and when to move on to the next drawing. Even if there is still plenty of time left, you don’t need to use all of it up.
3. Use suggestions of details and shapes to communicate the pattern or line
You don’t have to draw absolutely everything in order for your drawing to be understood. Suggestions are a great way to save time and to stop you from overworking the drawing too.
4. Colour in the negative spaces around the model
By colouring in the negative spaces around the model, whatever shapes or proportions that aren’t working will jump out at you.
Here are a few North UK based life drawing classes that I have come across so far, please feel free to add any more to the comments.
+ Life Drawing With HOP - various venues
+ Life Drawing Plus at Studio Bee, Northern Quarter- Central Manchester
+ Fashion Illustration Workshops with Tracy Fennell (keep an eye out for upcoming dates)
+ Sandbar, 120 Grosvenor Street, Manchester M1 7HL
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Updated: Apr 19
An Industrial Sized Exhibition
On a typically British cold, wet and windy day in April 2019, I adventured across to the northern city of Sheffield in search of inspiration surrounding folklore and magical possibilities.
My search led me to a quiet street with a queue of people tailing around a building and into the distance - whatever was at the end of this queue had to be worth the wait.
Three hours shivered by, inching closer and closer to the door of a former cutlery works. As we stepped closer, excitement and anticipation levels of the crowd creeped up.
In small groups we were permitted further into the factory, first to a courtyard and then to the entrance of the main exhibition down a long and gloomy disused corridor.
Finally, we caught sight of the immersive and emotive exhibition that was The Mausoleum of the Giants. Created by Sheffield-born artist, Phlegm alongside a team of volunteers.
Typically known for his large scale mural paintings covering huge industrial buildings, this exhibition had something else to offer and it was created just for Sheffield.
The industrial sized, three dimensional monochromatic beasts appeared to be squeezed into the former factory, their final resting place becoming one of discomfort and lacking in luxury. As visitors were permitted in small groups, the still and quiet atmosphere was magnified and brought a respectful peace to the already mournful narrative.
After viewing exhibitions, I always like to find a cosy corner in a coffee shop or pub and reflect on how I feel, what i've learnt and any ah-ha! moments. Did you get chance to visit the exhibition too? Or have you been to see some work recently that has sparked your inspiration? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
What I Learnt From An Afternoon with the Giants
Commercial Goals vs Portfolio Goals
At the time of viewing this exhibition, I was working for the Manchester Metropolitan University, my role was to support students, staff and alumni in producing artworks for sale in a retail unit. On reflection, I may have gotten carried away with this idea and harnessed too much of my energy making work to sell. I lost sight of the bigger picture for a little while and created goals that were driven by money and not by my portfolio. After noticing this distraction, I've been able to set myself more constructive goals, to begin to think about what work I would produce for an exhibition setting and how that would take shape.
Aim Big!
Making big work is fun, it pushes boundaries and pushes you to your limit in some cases, it creates problems of it's own, it can take on a life of its own. But it's so worth it to see your work in it's exhibition space, taking up the room it deserves. I noticed recently that I have been put off from making big work because I have a small home studio, maybe I need to stretch out of this space and make big work a priority again.
Get Help
To produce such an incredible exhibition like The Mausoleum of the Giants, a huge team was arranged to help to create the whole experience - and then 85 volunteers were drafted in to staff the event! It can become very easy for us creatives to want to take control and do all of the jobs to achieve our goal. Sometimes you need a team to back you up and I think it's a great thing to ask for help. This is another one of my goals that i'm working towards. I'm not saying draft in an army of volunteers for a monster project but even just starting small with exporting some jobs like video editing, photography, copywriting etc. leave it to those who can do a great job of it and you can free up some time for creating.
The Mausoleum of the Giants exhibition has now ended, you can find the virtual tour HERE as well as more information about Phlegm and his work.
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Blog updated 09.2022
