Once when I visited Chicago's Art Institute, I saw a group of art students sketching a sculpture. How cool, I thought. I'd love to do that. But how could I? I'm not a real artist.
Maybe now I am.
I'm lucky to live near several major art museums. The Seattle Art Museum (or "SAM" as those in the know call it) gets the big names -- Van Gogh, Manet, Sanger. No way was I going to haul out my sketchbook there.
There's also the Frye, a smaller museum in the hippest part of Seattle, Capitol Hill. That's where the full-time art students live. I don't have enough piercings or tattoos to sketch there.
That left the Bellevue Arts Museum. That's right, "Arts" with an "s." As in "Arts & Crafts." It's suburban like me, and its art is more approachable (also like me?). So that's where I headed to fulfill my fantasy, sketchbook in hand.
The museum has 3 floors and even more exhibits. I started on the 2nd floor with "The Infinite Possibilities of Origami."
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| David Huffman, Hexagonal Tower |
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| Row Iwaki (Snake) & Hideo Komatsu (Horned Owl) |
Then I moved to the top floor, to the life-size sculptures of Kathy Venter. She based these pieces on photos of models underwater.
I loved the poses. Even more, I loved that the models could stay still as long as I wanted. (Unlike live models who need to move every 5 minutes). I could choose the angle to sketch from, and I wasn't crowded by 20 other people and their oversize drawing pads.
Unfortunately, the Venter exhibit is over. But now that I've broken the ice, I may cross the bridge and try sketching at the Frye, or even SAM.
Have you ever sketched at a museum?
LOVE your pose sketches!! So great! I've always wanted to sketch at a museum too! I've sketched in coffee shops, in parks, on promenades, on benches with cityscape views, but the museum has always intimidated (especially since the museums closest to me are the Met, the MOMA, the Guggenheim...)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lynn. Those world-class museums would intimidate me too. But if sketched there, you could sketch ANYWHERE. As the song says.
DeleteIt's been years since I've sketched at a museum or really done much drawing. I keep thinking about getting back to drawing but haven't figure out where to find more hours in my day.
ReplyDeleteYour doing some wonderful sketching - keep on going!
Thanks for the encouragement, Cindie. Wouldn't it be great if we could add a few hours to each day?
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