Week 5

Life Drawing - Marking Presence, Recording the Everyday

This week was all about real-life figure drawing using charcoal — and while stepping into a room with a live model can feel a little confronting at first, this wasn’t my first rodeo. In fact, I knew our model personally, and she brought such grace and warmth to the space. It was a privilege to draw her. Her stillness, strength, and quiet confidence made the exercises not only possible, but meaningful.

In Blind Contour with Both Hands, I surrendered control, allowing awkward, overlapping lines to reveal a deeper kind of truth. With Negative Space Drawing, I learned how absence gives shape to presence. Through Gesture Drawing, I captured energy in quick strokes — not just posture, but spirit. And in returning to Blind Contour with Intention, my focus deepened. The final Long Poses were where it all came together. I worked slowly, honestly, drawing not just the figure before me, but honouring the act of seeing itself.

These drawings weren’t about perfection — they were about connection. To the model, to the moment, and to the moving line. I'm deeply grateful for her role in that process.

 Reflections from the Readings – Sketchbooks, Diaries & the Everyday

The Tate resource reminded me that art is not just about performance — it’s about recording. Like Donald Rodney, whose sketchbooks reveal private pain and public protest, and Ian Breakwell, who obsessively documented life’s “side-events,” this week’s life drawing felt like keeping a visual diary. Each page was a note to self, each line a record of what I saw, how I felt, and where I stood.

What struck me most was the idea that daily life, even in its quiet moments, holds creative power. A life drawing session is not just an academic exercise — it’s a personal archive. The figure in front of me became part of my diary — not in words, but in mark-making.

Diary Coursework Guide | Tate