Saturday, July 14, 2007

Cindy Woods

Steve's Thoughts

Cindy Woods posts a drawing (or several) just about every day on her blog Learning Daily.

Here are some samples:

a bit of the birthday lunch
I love this. The fork, the spoon, the lovely loops in the bowl in the upper left, the green shapes in the bottom (green beans? grin)... That same playful life in her figures making this still life not still. I also love the limited and judicious use of color. The sugar packs... There may not have been much color in this place setting, but I love the use of just green and the two primaries that make green. The blue sugar packs echo in the grays in the stainless steel. The browns are subdued enough to play as neutrals - excellent restraint. I like the composition created by the brown of the table running down the right edge and across the top, and the white elsewhere - all acting as negative space even when it's the more positive cloth. Even the cropping isn't accidental - it says Cindy Woods. The more I look the more I see - I just noticed the lovely handling of the ice cubes. Precision everywhere, but with the tightrope walking suspense and energy of a blind contour drawing* (the fork!). Brava. Cindy Woods and Sparky Donatello do this so well.

Here are more lovelies:

firehouse five
The whole sketch (or montage of sketches - I like the way they all work together but aren't necessarily from the same viewpoint/view) seems ready to break into movement - I think it's the quality of Cindy's line - and the juggler is the coup de grace.

short and long poses
The sense of weight, the way this fits on the page, the beautiful contours...



Maymont audience
Sigh. I just love the weight and quiet pause of this. Cindy makes this look effortless, but it is years of drawing just about every day that makes this possible. You can see her artistic and expressive strength growing over the months and years of her blog. It's a fascinating chronicle.

Go look at LOTS more - after all, she's "Learning Daily." I look at her blog just about every night.

*Blind Contour Drawings are an artistic exercise that strengthens the right brain, the visual/spacial side. They are done without looking at the drawing - just at the subject, and FEELING the way your pencil/pen should move over and around the subject. The chatty, verbal left brain just hates this kind of stuff, and gets out of the way. Cindy gets some wonderful results, like this cool pool party sketch.

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