Waterhouse Summary

I think I am getting close on finishing this one. I'm playing with the title "A Little Shy". This, I think, is my final Waterhouse offering for the month. Having said that, there isn't much here to remind one of Waterhouse. I was gunning for:

• meticulous marks, as in Waterhouse's Lady Clare study
• directional marks, as in the Lady Clare study
• polished, finished look, as in the Boreas study

Beyond that, there a few things I learned (or was reminded of) from Waterhouse:

• you can make a career out of being good at one thing (he's always got a long-haired lady - they are beautiful and could all be sisters!)
• meticulous detail can fall short of photo-realism and be more intriguing than photo-realism
• everyday life is beautiful, see Good Neighbours
• scenery and background can set a mood, see Miranda
• a cold, windy day can be glorious, see Boreas

At the beginning of the month I felt as though Waterhouse was unattainable for me (and that all those people who said they were too busy for a study this month were much smarter than I was). But, as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Now, here at the end of the month, I feel as though I've had a really good stretch artistically and I'm better off for the challenge. All that to say, I learned a great deal from the study this month and look forward to carrying on in April with a different master.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

This drawing is a study of Waterhouse's Study of Lady Clare. There is a painting study done from this drawing. I learned a few things with this. But, first, a little admission, I'm finding the Waterhouse project very challenging. Waterhouse was meticulous and his work is very detailed. You can't just walk casually into trying to "copy" it. Sargent was loose in his drawings, they were proportioned and carefully thought out, but done in a fairly loose style. Waterhouse worked differently and I am finding it tough.

Anyway, things I learned about Waterhouse while studying this drawing:

• On this drawing alone, he must have made thousands of small hatch marks. There are very few single lines indicating an edge.
• He looked at surfaces in terms of planes. In other words, he "blocked" in planes or simplified surfaces into easier shapes. However...
• He worked in above said fashion, but refined those easier shapes as he went.
• Notice the shading on the shoulders and neck (yeah, go look at his drawing not mine). It isn't like he marked where the shadows would be and then darkened those areas. It's more like he was passing over the planes with his hatch marks and where two planes met he got two sets of lines and therefore a darkened area. That sort of working method led to his incredible level of detail.

And one more thing that I learned. Well, OK, I already knew this, but I was painfully reminded. Measure twice and cut once. I got so into the face, I just didn't bother with the shoulders too much on my initial layout. This is what happens when you do that:



Some things take more than learning and knowing, they take discipline.

Waterhouse and March

From the reading I've done so far on Waterhouse there is not a huge amount known about the man or his methods. He was a private person and took steps to keep it that way. So, learning from him will have to come from looking at his work more than any interviews where he said what he did with paint. In such a case, knowing the context in which he was working is very important. So, learning about the Pre-Raphaelites and others in his time will be crucial to understanding more about Waterhouse and how he thought.

As for my plan then for March, I hope to do copies of his work (only in pencil to begin with) to get an idea about composition, subject matter, etc. Hence today's humble offering. Here is the original Miranda. In my perusal of his works so far, this is one of my favorites. I love the shore, I especially love it on lonely days, and looking out at the waves is just entrancing. I love that there is a general calmness to her pose, brightness to what lies before her, and yet there are very intentional stormy clouds behind her. All of that has very little to do with the real Miranda, who is a character in Shakespeare's The Tempest.

His use of light to shade the forms for her are tremendous. She is a solid weight there, but a gentle solid. Her gown resting on the rock is just beautiful to look at in and of itself. Apparently, his sister modeled for this painting.

That's enough for today...