TIM BAKER

The Show Must Go On, as Queen said (and indeed The Queen as well recently) and a group of us have been doing virtual life and portrait drawing to fill the gap now all sessions have been cancelled due to COVID-19 (indeed the venues such as the pub where I do Portraits In The Pub have been now shut as of tonight as well). It’s a really sad time, the only sliver of light is the fragile online connection to society we have…I hope that doesn’t go down as well!

First was an online alternative to the Portrait In The Pub, I had already made other plans but could take part in the first ‘pose’. I don’t do sleb portraits yet I wasn’t choosing the images, so here is a portrait of Brad Pitt, in Rorher & Klingner Scabiosa ink and dip pen. Not bad but it did remind me how much I am not a fan of working from photographs.

I think the life drawing from later in the week went better, I could devote my time fully to it and even do things that aren’t really possible at Cass where recently it’s been elbow to elbow full – like splatter ink around:

Here was the first pose, but John arrived with chips unannounced so I was busy eating those before they went cold. So the 10 minute post got cut to 4 for me. I was trying to use some of the old cheap Wilko paper I had lying around – given that my funding is running out and the COVID-19 crisis I wanted to save paper. I was quickly reminded how terrible this paper is, and how the cheap Wilko or Flying Tiger paper is a false economy even for ink work. Buy the best paper you can afford, people!

Here was a quick sketch on Flying Tiger paper – not as bad as the Wilko but really only good for practice. I might moan about the Cass or Daler paper but it’s a world away from this! This pose went rather wrong in the lower half hence the detail.

A good example of struggling with the paper is this longer 30 minute piece which I had to touch up with white Posca marker because the ink just spread and lines feathered all over the place! Loved the pose – exactly the sort of thing a life model cannot hold for long. The paper just started to disintegrate as well, and took an age to dry, so had to leave it and tweak it after, which is unusual for me. I guess having a photo helps there!

And something about this seems to express the angst I am feeling.

All in all, not bad. It’s going to take time to adjust, and given we could be in this lockdown for upto a year (!) I’m going to have to make the best of it. Looks like Robin who does the original life drawing is also working with a live-streamed life drawing class, which I will check out on Monday as well.

My business looks dire though, and the idea I might be forced to go back into the job market with all these extra unemployed people terrifies me.

So please, buy me a coffee and donate via the Ko-Fi page or buy my work if you enjoy it – because otherwise, I’m going to have to go back to sending out hundreds of job applications that no-one reads and all that pointless shiz…and everyone loses.