Its been a while...so: Some figure drawings!

It has indeed been a while since I've posted any new work or updates. It doesnt mean I havent been working though. I am struggling through another figure sculpture with life casting components and am working on drafts for a graphic story. As well, I have a full schedule teaching and taking classes. I am teaching Drawing I and II for Bristol CC this semester and loving both classes. This semester I got my first chance to teach Figure Drawing For RISD's Continuing Education Program. I love teaching for CE because the classes are always filled with eager and enthusiastic learners. This class is no exception!

I've posted some images of my figure drawings from Peter Zallinger's figure drawing I course I am taking at the Lyme academy. A few are posted here and more are on my webpage under the sketchbook section. We've been doing lots of long drawings and I am pretty excited about them. I've never spent more than 40 minutes consecutive drawing from the model before and am enjoying the extra time. I get to really work towards an aesthetic that way.

And...Big news! I am happy to announce that I am joining Montserrat's Illustration and animation department. I will be teaching Stop Motion animation this wintersession and an advanced drawing course called Cinematic Storytelling this spring. So next semester promises to be just as busy as this one. Its good to be busy.

Some new drawings

It has been a while since I posted any drawings or sketches. Pre-College craziness followed by a quick start on a new sculpture (and watching the Wire on DVD for the first time - Oh man...) has kept me from scanning and posting. Eleanor and I have taken a few trips down to the water to draw the Providence Power Plant (better known among our friends as "The Sentinels") and a few drawings came out of it. An early summer trip to Chris McInerney's parent's in Maine also produced a nice one.

New Sculpture!

August brought the end to another Pre-college summer an I can say again, with the same enthusiasm I do each year - Pre-Colleges is one of my favorite teaching experiences. I taught Illustration and two sections of Drawing and all my classes were filled with impressive and ambitious students.

So now that work work is done, its time to get back to work in the studio. Earlier this week I was lucky enough to get the help of former classmate, colleague and friend Matt Clowney in order to photograph my newly completed sculpture. I couldn't be happier with how they turned out. Matt's expertise made the process easy and enjoyable. Check out his work at www.matthewclowney.com

Some of the results are below. Visit my webpage for more images and details.

This sculpture is the first in a series of small scale figures I am making. They all will ultimately be exhibited as a single installation. The common theme is borrowed from my sculpture "Hung Out to Dry in Vietnam", which features a young boy sized figure - about age 10 - hauling miniature fish folk on a water yolk. The boy is wearing a mask of an adult's face and shoes that resemble the foot in the sculpture above - life cast and Frankenstonian (Frankenstieny? is there a word for this?) The armature for the second sculpture already has clay on it and is progressing nicely. Ill have process pictures posted soon.

Among Twenty Snowy Mountains earns First Place Edward Bannister Award in the Providence Art Club's Open Painting Exhibition 2011

I had the good fortune to be included in the Providence Art Club's Open Call for Painters Show that just opened today July 10th. To my surprise and delight, Among Twenty Snowey mountains, pictured above, earned The Edward Bannister Award for first prize. The award was extremely humbling especially among so many excellent paintings. You can find out more about the show here:

http://www.providenceartclub.org/media/gallery_dodge_cu.phpreturn_URL=%2Fexhibitions.php&SID=&G_ID=dodge&GI_ID=gqBV5Vhseh27xMD&GI_I=1

Pre-College Faculty show

At the Woods Gerry Gallery Summer Faculty Show

July 8-27; opening reception Thursday July 7, 6-7:30 pm

Providence, RI Oil on canvas

Pre-College started again last week and already a week of it is over. It goes so fast every time! I am teaching two sections of Foundations Drawing and one section of Illustration. Every year a faculty exhibition is held at the Woods Gerry Gallery on prospect street. I've included a recent oil painting from 2010 in the show. Its the first time its been exhibited. Come to the opening to meet the artists and educators or stop by the show to see the work from Pre-College, Summer studies and Extention Instructors.

Find out more here http://www.risd.edu/About/Galleries_Exhibitions/Woods_Gerry/

Providence Art Club - Open Painting 2011

"Among Twenty Snowy Mountains" and "Dog Park, Trenton, NJ" have been included in the Providence Art Club's "Open Painting" show this summer. My friends Rob Rey (www.robreyart.com) and Amy Wynne-Derry (www.wynnederry.com) also have paintings in the show! The show runs from July 5th- July 22nd and the opening is on Sunday, July 10, from 2-4pm.

Dog Park, Trenton NJ

Among Twenty Snowy Mountains

Rubber rubber rubber rubber.....

I've Just finished sculpting my latest piece and am in the process of making a mold.

It was so hot during the final stages of sculpting that the clay was like butter - impossible to work with. I had to keep the sculpture in the refrigerator overnight and for long periods in between working. It didn't leave much room for food, but who needs food when you are sculpting?

And...Finished!

Next I started the rubber mold. Because of all the undercuts and internal spaces this is easily the most complicated mold I've ever made.

The blue tint is the first layer of rubber thinned out to pick up detail

Next I changed the color and thickened the rubber for quicker application and started to apply the shim lines

relics

During recent construction Providence has completely re-organized its downtown to 95 interface. If the change is for better or for worse remains to be seen. In the mean time, while construction wraps up, the town is left in the awkward phase of demolishing the leftovers and cleaning up the mess, resulting in some interesting structures left hanging around. This sight made me think of Rome and all it's endless ruins around every corner.

This is take 2 of the same torn down overpass, from the opposite side.

The Cape

On a recent to Cape Cod to visit Eleanor's parents, we took a mid day sojourn and drove to a remote walking path. The views were alien, but inspiring and the beaming shadeless sun was a great motivator to finish these sketches with haste. Next time I am bringing a giant safari hat.

Just down the street

Just down the street a bit from my home are a couple of gas stations. One of them is where I buy my gas. The other is, due to their messier attitude about arranging objects in their parking lot, where I draw sometimes. My best guess to the name of the station is Pack Energy Auto Gas repair. Seems unlikely though...

Alas old blue subaru, Ill miss you

Luckily this is not a drawing of my old blue subaru legacy station wagon. On a trip down to NJ to visit family I stopped along the way to get my old blue subaru repaired before I got it reinspected. It cost a good bit, as it aways does. The added expense of replacing the windshield because of the tiny crack didnt help, but everything got done. While I waited for the car, I set out to use my time wisely and didnt have to walk very far to find this lovely still life.

Quick update: My car passed inspection with ease but I ended up selling it after having some problems with it. And by some problems, I mean all problems. Now I drive a little Scion! I dont regret the time I spent with old blue Subaru, but they were trying times. I hope he is having a good life with his new owner.

Itay in June 2010

In the summer of 2010 I was lucky enough to travel to Italy and stay for over a month. In that time I visited Rome, Florence, Venice, Urbino, Pesaro, Sarnano, Naples, Sienna and a few other quick stops along the way. My time there was too lovely to describe in words, but luckily I had my sketchbook along with me and drew almost all day every day. You can see more images from my trip as well as other sketches, sculptures, and paintings at my webpage www.jessethompsonart.com/artpage/italy_sketch.html

Below are some drawings from rome

This first drawing is from the Park just across from the Termini Train station in Rome. It is the first drawing I made while waiting for Eleanor to arrive. We booked separate tickets and arrived in Rome at different times. I got there just ahead of her by about 4 hours which gave me some time to wander jaw dropped and amazed. This drawing got cut just a bit short of finished when Eleanor arrived so we could hug. More from Rome below

The landlord of the apartment I rent here in Providence is Italian and she arraganed for me to visit and stay with her family in her home town of Pesaro. I stayed for 4 days in Pesaro and since most of the people I met on my trip were tourists as well, I was very happy to talk socialize and eat with a real Italian family (not that my own Italian family here in the states isn't real enough for me...) Luckily they also invited me to stay in a guest house they owned in a small and very old town called Sarnano where very few people spoke any english at all. I did more drawing than anywhere else in Italy.

Sorry for the splotchy upper half of the composition here. I was trying to be fancy with watercolors and it turned out decidedly unfancy. My advice: never try to be fancy. Bottom part is ok though...

The last 11 nights of my trip were spent in Florence. I would gladly spend so many more nights there. I was looking at so much art and having such a good time I didnt get nearly enough drawing done to satisfy me. Below is just a few from there

Last night in Florence watching the world cup at a pub just across the street from my hostel.