I’ve been told that anthropologists have found evidence of primitive artists painting nudes on cave walls during the Paleolithic age. It’s certainly a time-honored tradition, and it makes sense. There’s probably nothing easier for humans to relate to than other humans. The body form gets ample attention in our modern era. Turn on cable television, or thumb through the pages of some glossy magazine, and experience directly our obsession with the human figure. Of course these depictions are often idealized, or even wholly artificial.
When we see a naked person firsthand, we experience a variety of emotions- curiosity, revulsion, attraction, compassion… Physical vulnerability doesn’t always equate with emotional exposure, but it often suggests it. Perhaps that’s what draws our group to live figure- drawing sessions. For more than twenty years, a shifting collection of creators from many backgrounds has congregated on Thursday nights to represent the human form. During that time a variety of models have presented themselves in their entirety, for our passion and our eyes. What associations can be made, are made… through a range of mediums, from charcoal to pen to brush to paper of all kinds.
We present some examples for your enjoyment. In many cases they are available for purchase.
David Grim (2006)
