> acrylic on bristol, 19 x 24"


> acrylic on bristol, 19 x 24"
_______________________
Figure Studies Those of you with astute eyes will notice that I posted old, student paintings in lieu of last week's figure drawing session. The drawings I did last week were boring, and I was craving for a large piece of charcaol or a brush loaded with paint. In my excitement, I brought a pallete, some tubes of acrylic, and a variety of brushes to the following workshop -- and forgot how damned difficult it all was, missing the immediacy of the pen while mixing colors or cleaning the brush. This was probably the second time I had painted the figure in short poses, so everything was new and frustrating. Sometimes you need to destroy what you've built up to gain new insight and direction. After winning his first major European art award, Rauschenberg destroyed his silkscreens so that he wouldn't recycle himself. So out of the whole night, I ended up with a couple of figure studies which assumed a coherence that was unexpected and refreshing.