[Bruce Hancock]

I hope it’s OK to post this recommendation for a pen other than exactly what Glenn is using in the Drawing the Clothed Figure online class.  I wanted to try out the use of a fountain pen for our class sketches, as Glenn recommended.  However the pen Glenn has is $180 on Amazon.  Ouch.  That’s a lot to ‘try something out’.  I did some ‘shopping’ on line and found a line of pens by Schriveiner, also on Amazon, which seemed to have the ‘look and feel’ of the PILOT Namiki Falcon that Glenn has.   I bought the Scriveiner Luxury Fountain Pen in black.  Mine was $42 with free shipping.  (There are some different colors and finishes that vary slightly in cost.) It arrived in two days.  I made sure to order the pen with the ‘extra fine’ point, as Glenn suggested.  It came with two ink cartridges, a blue and a black.  I ordered a separate bottle of brown ink.  (The pen will use both the ink cartridges or it can be filled from a bottle, the old fashioned way!  Be sure to read the info about ink for these fountain pens. You need to have the correct type!) I’ve now done quite a few sketches with the pen.  It seems to work very well for drawing…certainly looks and acts exactly like Glenn’s pen online.   If you want to have a new sketching tool, but can’t afford the “Falcon”, I think you will be very pleased with this pen.  I’m sure there are other options too, but I can attest that this is a nice pen for drawing.  It’s kind of addicting!

 

[Bruce Hancock]

Re: Drawing the Clothed Figure live class.  I need some clarification on how to properly submit assignments weekly.  The submission guidelines lay out the process of labeling and email a single jpeg file.  The assignment for week 1 of this class calls for doing five different drawings from the provided references.  Should all five drawing images be combined into one jpeg image?  Or should the five jpeg images be sent as separate file attachments within a single email?  Or individual emails?  If multiples of either the jpeg images or the emails are needed, then the naming system for them does not work.   (Same name for different files and emails.)

I apologize if this seems trivial…I’m concerned about flooding NMA with emails and images, and I’m also concerned how all this will fit into the certificate submission process, which I would like to pursue.   The first submission is due this Thursday.   Thanks for any help anyone may have.

[Bruce Hancock]

This was my introductory course to NMA.  (And this is my first posting.)  When I first joined I spent a few days like a kid in a candy shop looking at and sampling a few videos, of course,  but I wanted to get started in earnest by following one class from beginning to end and completing the assignments along the way.  I looked for something with a shorter class time, yet still involving an interesting, useful subject matter.  I found Creative Composition by Steve Huston.  I own Steve’s figure drawing book, which is the most accessible and practical guide to the subject I have.  I also know at least one of Steve’s student’s from Art Center, so that was exciting.  I’ve now viewed all 6 lessons at least once and completed the assignments except for the “final” exam, which is underway, but is going to take some time.

I found this course much different than I expected.  Composition has never been one of my favorite subjects.  My experience is that it is all about rules that get violated routinely by the Masters and modern day fine artists.  Sometimes I feel like it’s a pseudo-science made up to fit the painting being analyzed!  But Steve’s class opened my mind to what it can mean.  Suddenly it was all about creating a story, setting the stage, arranging the scene and just plain having an idea!  Exciting stuff.

As an added benefit, I watched how Steve used Photoshop and, though I have some basic knowledge around manipulating photos, I decided I needed to be able to use it for more.  I quickly enrolled in Chris Legaspi’s Beginning Photoshop and took the first 2-3 lessons.  Fabulous!  I was able to do several of my homework assignments (thumbnails) with photoshop.  Wow!  (Photoshop is NOT required in Steve’s Creative Comp. class.  BTW, I will be returning to Chris’s class soon.)

So, while I’m not done with the last assignment, I can say that I am very pleased with my first experience at NMA.  And “meeting” Steve Huston has been all I hoped it might be and more.  I know I will be sitting in the back row of more of his classes soon!

 

 

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