Drawing the Figure

Had the opportunity today to attend the life drawing session I participate in. This activity feels new to me every time I attend. I did complete a few worthy sketches done with liquid acrylic paints, which is my favorite way of working with the figure at this time. Drawing with the brush prompts me to look for just the  right edge line and the right layout on the page. I feel like, if I take a few minutes to digest what is before me, I can see it in my mind's eye and envision it on the page before I begin. Then I just have to capture the image by proceeding with the brush dipped in velvety paint. I typically limit the colors to a few that can give me all the values of light and shadow that I need to render the figure dimensional. The paints lead me to dicard the non-essential, and look only for the lines, shapes, and masses that make a difference. Just like any painting I do, my mind, the subject, my brush, and my hand naturally conspire to layout the necessary image. I feel that I have spent much more time in my artist's life painting, than I have drawing. So paint has become my most natural mode of expression, other than, of course, writing. Because putting words together to express a thought is another really satisfying endeavor for me. I've posted a few of the new sketches from class today on my "Portraits and Figures" page of this website.