Spring Term 2015

Spring Term 2015

Goodbye Dear Florence, until September!

With the arrival of summer, my second term at Florence Academy has come to an end, and I am now back home again in the United States.
I apologize for not posting an update sooner, this term was so busy I didn’t have time to update my blog on a regular basis. To make up for it I shall be posting updates about what I have learned in school periodically over the summer break.

Here are some of my works from this trimester (Please pardon the quality of images, most of these were taken from a phone, so I am including several images of some of the same pieces to show the full spectrum.)

Portrait of Alessio (unfinished)

My first cast painting, grisaille.

For my last two projects this term I began dabbling with paints. To transition smoothly from charcoal drawing to oil paints, they were done in grisaille, that is, using only three colors: white, black, and raw umber. The limitation to this monochromatic palette allows for focus on value-relationships and temperature without having to contend with the challenges of color.

My third long pose figure drawing, charcoal and white chalk.

 

My final cast drawing, done in charcoal and white chalk, Torso of Venus.

The sheer size of the drawing made this a lengthy project.

 

.Charcoal sketch, wipe-out method.

The idea behind the wipe-out method is to capture the large masses of the subject by laying down a layer of charcoal for the general dark masses and removing dust or "wiping out" for the light areas.

 

First long-pose figure painting, grisaille.

Over the summer I will go into detail about the making of each of these individual projects and what I have learned from them, as well as personal projects I am working on over the summer. 

Italian phrase of the day: "Buon Lavoro", "Good work". Italians use this phrase to wish someone the best while they work, just as they say "Buon Appetito" to wish someone a good meal.