There's An Object Lesson In Here Some?where, And Life Drawing

by Cooper on 3/5/2010 5:47:40 PMComment on this

Greetings,

Welcome to the Cooper studio, Jefferson, Iowa, on a melt-the-snow kind of day. Hoody-haw.

Today we are going to talk about object lessons. Or hunt for object lessons in obscure places. Whichever. I think I might have located one this morning as I was struggling to wipe a cobweb from the hallway window. Yes, I'll give you that, it is an odd place to find an object lesson. Bear with me here, as I explain.

I'm sure I mentioned in blogs past, that, in August of 2009 we bought a new-old house, here in Jefferson. It's a 1901 craftsmen bungalow, very charming, especially as soon as we get all the work done that needs done. But that's not the lesson--rather the erradication of that pesky cobweb. So, craftmen bungalow circa 1901, it has a cool stairway with a landing halfway up, make the u-turn to finish the climb past the nice oak bannister, you get the picture, right? On said landing there are two windows, VERY HIGH windows. I am a taller than average person, stretching on tiptoe, I still can't touch the bottom of the window frame of these windows, yep, THAT high. But there was that cobweb, dang thing. So I went to the garage and got the 7 foot step ladder, which made me just tall enough to reach the bottom half of the window. Fortunately the spider had decided to build lower instead of higher, or I'd have been outa luck.

Hang on we're getting closer to that object lesson I think. Here's the lead: what would a short person have done? You know, about the cobweb? The seven foot ladder wouldn't have gotten a 5"2" person there, not to mention carrying a 7 foot step ladder up a flight of stairs. Ta Da! Maybe some of us are supposed to do some things, and others of us are supposed to do others! Maybe phrases like "know all-be all", and "self-made woman", and "bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan" are just ludicrous misconceptions?

As artists do we need to cover ALL the bases? When someone asks me if I'm going to start painting landscapes one of these days, can I just shuck off that guilty feeling? And when I don't have a clue how to make watercolor behave, and someone asks me my opinion on some watercolory thing, may I laugh? You know, we've studied art, aren't we all knowledgeable-like about all art stuff? And about marketing our art---do we have to do all that too? Artist: if your spouse handles that department for you, you better know you are BLESSED! But what about the rest of us, does it make more sense to pay somebody else to do it? I wish I knew the answers, maybe it'd make me famous.

In the meantime, I spent my morning cutting mats for the charcoal studies that, on my audio newsletter, I promised I'd be adding to the portfolio. (click on the red for that amazing audio newsletter) They are large drawings, requiring 24 x 30 inch mats, and you just can't walk into Hobby Lobby and find them ready. Yes, I know they'd be happy to do them for me at about 40 dollars a pop. Ouch, that! Decision made, cut mats for half a day, leaving only half a day to paint.

Three studies from life drawing, with more to follow, thanks.

Later, Cooper