Saturday, February 10, 2007

Polly - a quick study

"Polly Paused - colour study"
11" x 14" coloured pencil on black Stonhenge paper
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

I'm auditioning images for the 2007 SOFA exhibition later this year. I've been trying to capture Polly in a pose which 'works' for ages. Finally last week I got her. We had a blast of sunshine coming straight in one of the windows and she paused going through the door and had a bit of a think about whether to have a sunbathe or not. I saw here and rushed for camera and sketchbook and stood snapping and sketching for two minutes. She eventually decided that it was time for a lie down and a wash. So I have more photos which I need to explore of her washing - but I think I prefer this one as it's very simple.

This is the sketch I drew in about 45 seconds flat! And this is the colour study I've developed from a cropped version of one of the photos which I put into greyscale. I intentionally did not refer to colour in life or on photo as I wanted to avoid too much detail and/or titivating at this stage. It's a first step in developing a more 'finished' piece although I'll probably try and sell this study at some point as well - but I might just tweak it a bit more first! I think it needs more "sunshineyness" in there somewhere - so you may see this again!

Link: SOFA 2007

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5 comments:

  1. I like this - the abstract shapes work well with the subject, the light is great and the angles of the ears speaks volumes about the thoughts going through her head!

    At a specialist cat show viewers will appreciate the body language, where in a open show not everyone would read and understand it, though they'd still appreciate the image.

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  2. 45 seconds! I would still be thinking about what I should be drawing and yep miss the opportunity.

    There is nothing not to like about this study and I do believe you have captured a timeless piece. It reminds me a lot of the old masters work that are seen on the walls 100's of years later. Perhaps the recent projects that you have been involved with has had some influence with this study.

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  3. A wonderful study of cat and sunlight....anyone who has ever owned or been around cats should instantly recognize that contemplative pause. And thank you for introducing me to a word that I'm not sure how I missed in life, but will be sure to have use for in the future: "Titivating".
    ( I had to look it up )

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  4. Oh my gosh, I LOVE this, Katherine! The color, the moment, the composition - it's all perfect! Very, very nice!

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  5. Thanks folks for all the great comments. It's really nice to know when a piece strikes a chord!

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