Almost a hundred
years ago an artist named Robert Henri published a collection of notes that he
had made for students attending his classes. The notes are not about how to mix colours or draw
perspective, but rather they delve into the very nature of the creative
soul. As such, it is worth more than all the How to Draw and Paint
books put together. The book remains in print and is available in paperback
from Dover Publications. My Notes for Art
Students are in a similar vein.
I will occasionally quote at random from the book,
beginning with:
We
are not here to do what has already been done.
This is something I have to keep reminding
myself. We can’t forever keep repeating
the same painting, no matter how successful.
Creativity must break new ground. The fundamental necessity for any
artist is not paper and paints, but passion.
Without it, technical ability is useless.
The two sketches below show the possibilities of
the materials that I introduced last week.
The first is one of my studies of the nude figure, and the second a
drawing made in the Congo war zone by Feliks Topolski. Use the internet to find out more about this
artist.
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