#mining art

Some study sketches I did of canaries, as part of the work my class was doing on mining in the North East of England. Harking back to the canaries that would be taken down the mines to test for deadly gas. I don’t think I did too badly, considering I’ve never drawn a canary before. It seems I’m developing a knack for drawing birds. I can’t wait to crack-on with more!

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Our art class held a private exhibition allowing us to have a nice day to enjoy some niblets and see the mining art we’d all done these past months; set-up for display on the stage in the village hall. Though there were plenty to go around, I’m still happy I bought my own plastic mounts: they worked really well and I know will come in handy again someday.

As someone who is very proud to be a Northerner, I’ve really been enjoying our work on the local coal mining history. It’s a subject that lends itself well to different subjects and ideas. I’ve still got big plans to do more pieces based on the subject. Perhaps I can display them for our public exhibition, said to be in August*.

It was such a joy to see everyone’s work in frames and proudly on display. I can hardly describe the joy I felt to be a part of it. I’m pretty much the “baby” of the class and yet I was amongst professionals that liked my work. People were fond of my coal miner on A2 paper - even though he wasn’t done. But Trish did say that we could show unfinished pieces. The other pieces I brought were the study sketched I did when I visited the Mining Art Gallery and a new comic-inspired, double piece that I nearly made myself ill drawing. 

Remind me to never try and do two pictures in only two days again. EVER. 

I’ll talk more about the process behind the comic pages when I upload them. But let’s just say I really pushed my limits in terms of what I thought I could do or get done in such a short amount of time. For a couple of reasons, I only had two days to pencil and ink the two pages. Early 5:00am mornings now combined with staying up past midnight to finish them. Even as I called my mum to tell her about it, she noticed how tired and drained I sounded, in spite of my joy. But rest assured, I was and (as of typing this) still full of beans! 

Once I got back home, I had a celebratory drink with my neighbour. As soon as he saw me at his door, he was chuffed to hear all about it. My comic made him laugh a lot harder than I thought it would. Then it was back to my home to order myself a comforting Chinese takeaway and embrace the slacker lifestyle for the weekend. 

Even today as I have a well-deserved rest, I’m as happy as a clam! I feel a sense of joy and pride in myself I haven’t experienced in a long, long time. I’ve pushed myself further than I thought I could and have reaped the rewards. Combine this with so many other great things happening to be lately with my art; Be it the Dolan Kart contest, the comments I’ve been getting since joining twitter, the feedback from professional artist in my class, and I feel a (rarely experienced) sense of hope for my future and career. 

Let’s hope I can improve more from here. 

I did these in my sketchbook during a lovely day on the town with my neighbour. We just had a great time just going with the flow of the day. Popping in and out of a few shops having bite at a couple of cafe’s and picking up some things along the way. He got a few items he needed and I gained a successful bounty: Got myself a small packet of charcoal pencils and some how to draw books from a charmingly haphazard book shop for only £7. 

The best parts of the day were when we had a look into the No.42 gallery and I got the chance to revisit the Mining Art Gallery again. Having gone there before with my art class. Visiting the former allowed me to see the local talent. Hoping to get some inspiration, aswell as a better idea of local tastes and see how other artist’s work. My neighbour also encouraged me to enquire how I could possibly apply to exhibit my work. So who knows? Maybe once I’ve done some more pieces and I’m open for business, I’ll apply. 

Walking through the Mining Art Gallery was just what I needed to get me inspired again. I got to take my time around my favourite painting and do some gesture sketching based on it. The painting in question being The Hartley Disaster by H.H. Emmerson. Sadly that low quality picture doesn’t do it justice. If you’re ever in the area, I encourage you to see the painting for yourself. It’s so clear, massive and beautiful in real life. I love the contrasting colours. The expression on the people are especially astounding to me: The woman grieving with the baby, the rescuers in the back as they look on; and I am head over heels in love with the two figures at the front - The woman with the scarf over her head and the rescuer with the lamp: I noticed how her face was so beautiful, strong and yet caring, intimate and melancholic. The way she looks at the rescuer with such a strong expression in her eyes and eyebrows. She looks him dead in the eye while her hand rests on his arm. Whose hand, in return, tucked in his coat. The way his face looks directly back at her, yet his gaze is directed downwards in way that shows disappointment and forlornness - as does the careful look on his face says so much as well. Just so much emotion and chaste intimacy with these two! I LOVE IT!!!

At first, I tried to draw both of their faces in detail, but this proved unsuccessful. My arm was aching for a lot of the day due to my heavy bags and from trying to hold my sketchbook and draw while in front of the painting. Luckily, one of the security guards recognised me from my previous visit and offered to leave my handbag behind the desk while I explored the gallery. I was flattered that he complimented my sketches. I was reduced to just getting the basic gestures and sketches done as quickly as possible, along with taking some notes based on the facts.

It proved to be a good thing however, allowing me to lose up and not get so nervous about details too early on. That said, I would like to do a more detailed study at some point if I could find a better reference.