otherwise we're elsewhere

the second visit to elsewhere was today, and this is a photo of our little forum in one of the larger open areas there. our assignment is to draw specific individual spaces inside the building that we've chosen, to be used as a sort of map when finished. (it's so overwhelming!) we also got to play with some of the objects and arrange them into "visual puns"... however, I regret that the few that I came up with may be too risque for posting here. maybe later.

Drafting assignment: sketchup practice plan

caring is creepy

our drawing class visited an amazing place today, aptly titled elsewhere.
this building houses the story of a woman who loved things. all things, and she cared enough about them to keep them for most of her life. you know those places owned by eccentric people who hoard things and never throw anything away, and end up with a house full of stuff and a little path to walk through? that's what elsewhere was, but now has been turned into an interactive art gallery/tribute to the eclectic. I loved it. It takes up two buildings downtown and is chock full of everything. really, everything. if you can name an object, it's probably there. it has that smell that you expect from an old store or attic, and has creaky floors and peeling plaster--the works. I've never been to a public place quite like it.

I left feeling as though I had to switch gears and snap out of the elsewhere environment. it was bizarre how I felt removed from my day when I got back to my car... I didn't even know what I was supposed to do next, or what my plans had been for the afternoon. I'm sure I'll be thinking about the experience for the next few days!

pretty little things

I started photographing tiny things found outside around my house a couple of years ago. Oddly enough, what began this trend was a scary garden spider that made a web in front of our living room window. Unfortunately for me, she was alive and very mobile, so I did not get very close to her (and the result is a photo that is out of focus).
Yet I continued to search for small flowers, harmless insects, and especially dead-but-well-preserved insects to take pictures of. Now, thanks to the macro button on my camera, I have a neat little collection of nature photos you can view here.

*Please note: you will not find a single picture of a worm or snake.

sketchbook assignment: object vignettes

a little studio experience

Jake gives his advice about a sketch model.

Suzanne and Stoel explain the meaning of life.

Some of us prefer not to have our photo taken!

Classic Melia: "I don't understand...!"

Washington, you see.

Our first year class took a field trip to Washington, DC over the weekend to take in the sights, visit museums and exhibits, and more importantly, (I think) do a little bonding. My experience included all of these things as well as enjoying great food and getting lots of exercise, and having many great laughs.
Perhaps next time there will be more bellydancing!

one sculpture, two eerie shadows

["Walking Man II", 1960, Alberto Giacometti]

recognize those hands?

flora & fauna in the National Gallery

best class ever...

Tuesday Suzanne surprised our drawing class with exciting news... she made reservations for 30 at El Carreton for all of us to go out to lunch and draw! (Yes, I'm rubbing it in to all you poor kids who aren't in her section!)
In exchange for this outing we needed to draw and post the results on our blog:

[sorry Melia!]

sketchbook assignment: furniture rendered

above: marker on sketch paper.

above: watercolor on watercolor paper.

above: marker on sketch paper.

Our assignment was to explore different media (marker, watercolor, color pencils, etc.) on various papers to get a feel for what we like. This was related to a color rendering we were assigned next.

scanners are very cool.

I had no idea how cool neon colored pens would be when scanned. This is a preliminary outline for our one-point perspective assignment, and is drawn on trace paper.