Location is everything...

I had the opportunity to model at a new venue today:



It was a community arts and activity center known as "The Galaxie." I had seen their website in the past but it wasn't until I set foot in the place that I realized what a fantastic facility The Galaxie really is.

The Galaxie is a converted warehouse/industrial building which now houses a community multi-use space. While I was at The Galaxie they had dance classes and martial arts classes in addition to the open figure drawing session for which I was modeling. The building has wonderfully high ceilings and excellent light.

The Galaxie exists to provide a place for the promotion of the arts and artists. This includes performance art as well as the more traditional fine arts. I was quite impressed with the range of activties covered at the Galaxie. I feel fortunate to have had the chance to be involved with the goings-on at The Galaxie.

The Saturday Morning Figure Drawing sesson held at The Galaxie is moderated and organized by Megan Gallagher, an independent artist. Allison Rae Butkus The Galaxie's creative-in-residence charged with securing models for the Figure Drawing session which takes place every Saturday at The Galaxie from 9:30am to 12:30pm. Attending artists need to supply their own paper stock and drawing supplies. Drawing horses are provided by The Galaxie. Free coffee is also available to those who like a little caffeine with their art.

It was a young group at the session- I don't think any of the artists attending the Figure Drawing session were over 30 (though I could be wrong.) I walked the horses during breaks and discovered that some of the artists were quite advanced. One gentleman was doing all his drawings in pen to force himself to work on making confident lines. I'm sure doing value wasn't easy in pen....

We started with a series of one-minute poses, then five minute poses, then half-hour poses. For the longer poses I did standing, seated, seated, and reclining. I think if I'm asked back I will definitely try some more of my aerobatic poses. I do love to torture myself....


Photo courtesy of M. Gallagher.

I really liked The Galaxie and I really enjoyed modeling for the Saturday morning figure drawing group. I hope to be back at The Galaxie soon.

An Introduction to Life Modeling

If you've found my blog, you're probably an artist, someone who likes to draw, or are a life model yourself. To the uninitiated, a life model (sometimes called a figure model) is someone who poses nude for artists involved in the creation of figurative art. Life models are of all body types: fat, thin, muscular, voluptuous, athletic, young, aged, but above all- interesting.


I am such a model. I pose nude or "undraped" for artists. I have posed for beginning artists, experienced artists, art students, design students, and artists seeking inspiration. I am that inspiration- I am the catalyst for artistic creation. I feel fortunate that I have the opportunity to be that.

Many people do not understand why someone would pose nude for artists- they view it as something perverted or lascivious. I do not deny that there is sexual element to life modeling- the work is sexual in nature. I present myself unclothed to artists who scrutinize my every curve, nook, cranny, and hollow. I stand motionless as they view me and reproduce my nude form on paper, on canvas, or in clay. However, the sexual energy present during a life drawing or sculpting session is channeled into the creation of art. The goal is not to achieve sexual gratification but to create art.

I have participated in art projects that have created art that is erotic in nature- drawings and sculptures that emphasized my genitals or consisted of suggestive poses. I would posit that the production of erotica was not the focus of these efforts- the resulting work's erotic nature emerged incidentally. The primary focus of the effort was still to produce "art"- artifacts that represent the culture that produced them.

This process of creation and the tangible products that result from this process- that's the juice that keeps me up on the dais and in the nude for artists. To be the spark that starts the process of creation- it's an awesome feeling.

In this blog I will relate my experiences as a life model. I will give my impressions of the process of artistic creation and all the happenings that go with it. I hope you find my blog interesting, informative, and inspiring.

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