I arrived fifteen minutes early to talk to the instructor. He walked me through the set up of the class - ten one minute poses, a couple of five minute poses, a couple of ten minute ones. One fifteen minute pose and then break. The second half of the class was one solid pose for an hour. And yes, I was nude. Yes, all the artists were old dudes. Yes, it was freaking cold. But the instructor said "you're nervous for the first fifteen seconds and after that you start to think about how boring your pose is, or if your arm is falling asleep." And that's absolutely true.
The whole experience was a roller coaster of nerves, boredom and an adrenaline rush that really did serve to boost my confidence. I received a couple of sketches that were and were not me. My dog later ate them but canines have no appreciation of art. The Instructor also mentioned that a lot of the models have mentioned being or wanting to be burlesque performers. I guess we're all just nudists at heart.
Not from the WAG but an artists rendition all the same (c)David Oro
I've signed on to do a few more art modelling sessions this spring ... partly because it's a second job and partly because I want to feel like I'm doing something to benefit the artistic community this grey, icky February. I'm modelling for a figure drawing class for a grades 11 and 12 students at the WAG. The funniest thing was walking in a seeing that they were all asians.... so tiny. They looked like they were 13, max.
This class was different in that I had to hold one pose for two hours. I was pretty sure I wasn't going to be able to do that but you never know until you try. The class was for two hours and I amazed myself by not taking a break until an hour and fifteen mins had gone by. A quick two minute stretch got the blood flowing back into my feet and hands and worked out the crimps in my back and neck. Then back to sitting. I took a five min bathroom break with twenty mins to go. The last ten mins were brutal because I knew I was going to be able to move soon so it was difficult to zone out and be still.
Immortalized as a penny dreadful cover by (c)Kenneth Porhownik
The studio sits the model under a giant lamp so that artists can pick up the details of light and shadow. It's really warm, but only where it touches you. The rest of the studio isn't heated for naked people. The result was I was sweating profusely but only my upper body was overly warm. My hands and feet had gone numb from the cold.
It's that same initial "Oh my god everyone is going to be judging me, I'm unattractive why am I doing this - did I remember to shave this morning???" After two minutes of quiet sketching with the instructor going from pupil to pupil and using technical jargon about charcoal and shading sitting nude in a room full of strangers becomes somehow ... mundane. It's a nice way to meditate really. I'm usually to jittery or busy to sit still.
If I were a doll.
And afterwards seeing their works is really cool. They somehow are me but look nothing like me: I've become a kind of mythical art figure on canvas while the real me gratefully puts on clothes and walks back out to the sounds of traffic, the slush on the sidewalk and a quiet joy of being hyper aware of my body and the luxury of moving.
Stay saucy,
Miss Scarlet
