Tag / Dr Sketchy Canberra

by Leonie Andrews

Dr Sketchy and all that glitters

Last night my partner and I headed out to Dr Sketchy’s at the National Gallery of Australia. Like everyone at our table we were unsure whether there was a theme for the evening, until models in silver and gold paint appeared! Everything metallic and shiny was the story.

16June2016a

A model in gold, Posca acrylic markers

I decided to use my Posca markers for some of the sketches, particularly as they already had the seal of approval for use at the event. I liked using them, but realised I should have done some testing before I went. My yellow ochre marker, used above, just wasn’t flowing very well, so I ended up with a rather scratchy effect.

It was also a pleasure to see a male burlesque performer/model in the line-up. Sir Regal Shivers (and his dragon George) certainly got the audience shouting for more.

16June2016b

Knight, minus the shining armour, coloured pencil

We were also treated to performances from visiting interstate burlesque performers including the wild Zelia Rose, who was the 2014 Miss Burlesque Australia.

16June2016c

Zelia Rose, coloured pencil

The evening finished with the final group pose. I managed to only get two of the models into my sketch.

16June2016d

Final group sketch, coloured pencil

As always it was a tremendous evening. The output of all the participating sketchers was amazing and the performances particularly good. I’m looking forward to next time!

by Leonie Andrews

Dr Sketchy and the blue woman

Last week we went to our second Dr Sketchy event at the National Gallery. It seems odd that such an event takes place withing the formality of Gandel Hall, however everyone enjoys themselves, the burlesque is well done and the art making fun.

This time we had two male models which provided different body shapes and poses to come to terms with.

Three two minute poses, graphite, 2 July 2015

Three two minute poses, graphite, 2 July 2015

We worked up from two and five minute poses to longer poses at the end of the evening.

Two, five minute poses, graphite, 2 July 2015

Two, five minute poses, graphite, 2 July 2015

And then there was the blue woman. Two of the models were covered in body paint and despite the colour, or perhaps because of it, I found it much easier to come to grips with the shape of their bodies when I drew them. One of the women was painted blue (not Yves Klein blue I hasten to add) and wore a white wig. I really enjoyed drawing her.

Five minute pose, graphite, 2 July 2015

The Blue Woman, five minute pose, graphite, 2 July 2015

Per usual the gallery restriction on media meant I was limited in how I could respond to the colourful models. One of the other people at our table gave me some chalk pastels and pastel paper which allowed me to make a more colourful drawing.

The Blue Woman, chalk pastel, 2 July 2015

The Blue Woman, chalk pastel, 2 July 2015

I enjoy these evenings as I come away with a sense of having had a really good artistic workout.

by Leonie Andrews

Dr Sketchy at the NGA

Last night we went to the National Gallery of Australia (NGA) for my first event with the Dr Sketchy group. We had only heard about this particular event earlier in the week, and were lucky to get tickets as it was quickly sold out. I had only read about these events before so if you haven’t been to one this is the risque version of a life drawing class and includes music, food, drink and entertainment as well as the opportunity to draw.

Last night’s theme was Impressions of Paris, inspired the current exhibition of the same name, featuring the works of the French artists Degas and Lautrec and Daumier. We had burlesque dancers and performers, ballet dancers and a body painting artist on hand.

Two versions of Ms Bandersnatch, either side of Ms Martini, pen and ink and Pitt pen on newspaper and Japanese paper, 12 March 2015

Two versions of Ms Bandersnatch, either side of Ms Martini, pen and ink and Pitt pen on newspaper and Japanese paper, 12 March 2015

We started off with a series of two minute poses, which then developed into five and ten minute poses. There was a break where all the participants were asked to decorate a ‘pastie’, before we were all asked to continue on with the drawing.

I had forgotten how fast the pace can be with life drawing and I quickly whipped through the pages in my sketch book. I remembered my life drawing instructor reminding me that if it all became too much I could just focus on one part of the model’s anatomy, so here are Ms Bandersnatch’s feet.

Ms Bandersnatch's feet, graphite, 12 March 2015

Ms Bandersnatch’s feet, graphite, 12 March 2015

The drawing continued with short breaks for the models and artists, the finale of the evening was a twenty minute pose.

The body painting models, graphite, 20 minute pose, 12 March 2015

The body painting models, graphite, 20 minute pose, 12 March 2015

I was absolutely thrilled when the voluptuous Ms Garnet Martini selected my sketch as her favourite of the evening!

Ms Garnet Martini, channeling fin de siecle Paris, graphite, 12 March 2015

Ms Garnet Martini, channeling fin de siecle Paris, graphite, 12 March 2015

My reward was a set of pasties made by the talented Ms Rusty Blaze – thankfully Ms Bandersnatch was on hand to demonstrate how best to use my new accoutrements.

We had a great time and enjoyed the company of the other artists at our table. We plan to attend future events, as long as we can get in fast enough to buy the tickets.