I have chosen this particular drawing as an example of a piece of work which I feel has been my most successful to date. Last year I studied architecture at the GSA and as part of this course I attended a block of 6 life drawing classes. Having only studied art at higher level (design as the main focus ), this was my first opportunity to give expressive drawing a go. Much to my surprise I thoroughly enjoyed the classes and couldn't believe I was capable of completing a drawing in such a short space of time. I am the first to admit that expressive drawing is certainly not my strong point (I am now studying textiles), however I do think it's important to balance design work with interesting drawings. The tutor from the class taught me to draw "using the right hand side of my brain". This was a major breakthrough as I am a person who over analyses everything and find it so difficult to simply draw. The strict time limit in the class allowed my mind the freedom to just put charcoal to paper instead of scrutinising detail and becoming frustrated with my own ability. He taught me how to look for light and tone - something which others probably find easy but something I never properly understood. Unfortunately the classes only amounted to 12 hrs so I was only beginning to experience this kind of drawing when it finished.However, I am so glad that I had the opportunity as part of my course because it is something that I thought I would hate and probably would never have tried otherwise. I would like to go back to life drawing classes at some point because I feel with more practice I may be able to improve my drawing which in turn would help with my design work and fashion illustration. However, at the moment I don't feel I have the confidence to attend a class full of talented artists who are naturally gifted at life drawing due to my lack of experience and ability. The standard of the work posted on this blog is clearly very high and I appreciate that my drawing doesn't compare but I have enjoyed looking at everyones work, in particular the difference in styles and the depth of meaning which is evident in a lot of the pieces. My drawing is not meaningful in terms of its content but it was the new method of working and teaching which makes it successful to me personally. It proved to me that the strict, controlling part of my mind need not dominate everything I do and that letting go can actually be an enjoyable experience with positive results.

This is a photgraph of the drawing which is A1 in size.