Happy 9th Birthday Museworthy!!

blog
noun
1. a regularly updated website or web page, typically one run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style.

How do you all feel about that definition? I think it’s a little “meh”, as the kids today would say. So as a blogger for nine years I believe I can expand – perhaps rewrite – that description just a bit. A “blog” is a corner of the internet where an individual can share and communicate their otherwise ignored voice, and be discovered by anyone who might seek out such a voice. A “blog” is an intimate platform where discussion, learning, documenting and diversion work joyfully hand in hand. A “blog” is a place where people from distant places around the globe can connect who would otherwise never have connected. I could go on, but I think you get the picture.

Fred Hatt, photographer extraordinaire and my beautiful, steadfast friend, deserves special commendation this year for calmly persevering through our photo session in which I was, admittedly, difficult. Not *acting like a diva bitch* difficult but *moody and sullen* difficult. Couldn’t find my mojo. Couldn’t clear my head of all my nagging emotional turmoil. But after a few hours (and a couple of glasses of wine) we managed to pull this shot out of many misfires. The body language speaks for itself. Thank you Fred, for your patience and kindness, as always ..

Now, as I always do in these anniversary posts, I must express my deepest, humblest, sincerest thanks to all my readers; from the die-hard regulars (where would I be without you guys?) to the occasional drop-ins (always great to have you!) to the recent new subscribers (welcome!), ALL of you, thank you for your visits, your comments, your emails … thank you for finding points of interest in my chosen topics, my art modeling profession, my pictures, stories, and even my personal tribulations. Thank you for everything. I extend a heartfelt invitation to each of you to stick around for year ten🙂

And now it’s song time! My fondness for late 60s blues-inspired British rock remains my default preference, so I’m going full on Jeff Beck Group this year. That’s the young Rod Stewart doing his trademark raunchy, raspy vocals. From Jeff Beck’s debut album Truth, released in 1968 – the year I was born – this is “Let Me Love You”. Enjoy! And again, thank you all …

Your muse,
Claudia
xo

Ten Days on 8th Street

For artist participants, it’s an intense and challenging learning experience. For artist’s models, it’s an arduous but highly worthwhile gig. It’s the renowned Drawing Marathon hosted by Greenwich Village’s own New York Studio School, presided over by the school’s Dean, Graham Nickson. I was honored to be one of the six models – with Julie, Morgan, Marie, Erin, and Juliana – working in three different studios for ten days, doing long poses in group set-ups amid sounds of staple guns, paper cutting, rag smudging, and the occasional object falling to the ground. The marathon has dominated my work schedule for the past two weeks, and on Friday we concluded with a wonderful final day, replete equally with grimy, fatigued bodies and fortified spirits. Old acquaintances were renewed, new acquaintances were formed, and enough charcoal soot was produced that could bury a Buick. I took some photos to share with my readers.

In addition to drawing from the live models, Marathon artists also did transcriptions of old artworks, with each person creating a section and then assembling them all together. This is Pieter Bruegel’s The Blind Leading the Blind. The students did incredible work here:

And another transcription, from a 15th century engraving by Antonio del Pollaiuolo, a Florentine painter, sculptor, and goldsmith:

The mother of all modeling platforms. Big, padded, suitable for both art posing and break naps😉

This exercise involved drawing the figure, and then drawing only the forms and space around the figure:

Artists can always learn something from the great Matisse, which is why a work of his provided material for one of the day’s lessons:

I really like this smaller drawing of me. The artist is Heejo Kim:

Warm and sincere thanks to all the artists for their kindness toward us models and their expressions of appreciation for what we do, to the class monitors who did a terrific job, to Graham Nickson for his graciousness and inspiration, to his outstanding assistants Sarah and Rachel, to my old Spring Studio pal Audrey who was among the marathoners and made me laugh every day, to all the models for rocking it like the pros they are, and, last but definitely not least, very special thanks to Roxy, who is beautiful inside and out, and whom I’ve been privileged to know for years on my art modeling odyssey.

Hope you all enjoyed this little photo essay from your NYC art model muse.
I’ll see you right back here on Saturday, September 24th, when we’re gonna do one of these celebrations again. Until then, have a fantastic week everyone!

Love, always

Modern Declaration – Edna St. Vincent Millay

I, having loved ever since I was a child a few things, never
.  . .having wavered
In these affections; never through shyness in the houses of the
.  .  rich or in the presence of clergymen having denied these
.  .  loves;
Never when worked upon by cynics like chiropractors having
.  .  grunted or clicked a vertebra to the discredit of these
.   . loves;
Never when anxious to land a job having diminished them by
.  . a conniving smile; or when befuddled by drink
Jeered at them through heartache or lazily fondled the fingers
.  . of their alert enemies; declare

That I shall love you always.
No matter what party is in power;
No matter what temporarily expedient combination of allied
.  . interest wins the war;
Shall love you always.

Marc Chagall, Lovers under lilies:

Summer Snapshots

Hellooooo friends! Well, it’s here. Labor Day weekend. The unofficial end of summer. I could have used one more week of idleness but you can’t fight the calendar. Full time art modeling beckons, starting at 9 AM on Tuesday morning. I’m a little out-of-shape but hopefully no one will notice😉

Just a few summer pics I took that I thought I’d share. The “theme” here, if there is one, would be that all of these were taken within mere blocks of my house. I consider one of the benefits of the slow summer work period to be the long, luxurious stretches of days when I don’t have to venture out of my neighborhood, don’t have to commute and catch trains, don’t have to endure the screaming sirens and blaring horns and crowded sidewalks of Manhattan. I can remain comfortably in my pocket of Queens and appreciate its offerings.

Swans at the pond. I didn’t realize that the cygnets retain their grey feathers to such a large size. It’s a more interesting color against the landscape than the mature white:

The Hip to Hip Theatre Company brings free Shakespeare to the parks of New York City’s boroughs and surrounding areas in the summer months. One of their venues is Crocheron Park in Bayside, Queens, a two-minute stroll from my house. This is the marvelous cast in the closing scene of “As You Like It”. They did a great job!

The Sunday morning sun breaks through the open stained glass window at my church. They forecasted that tropical storm Hermine was going to hit us, but so far we’re in the clear. Today was bright and beautiful.

And just a quick update about the Museworthy Portraits and Pets show. I am going to push it to November or December, as some people need more time (I would be one of those people!) and it will work nicely at that time of year. So submission time is open indefinitely. To those of you who have already submitted, thank you! Your pieces are on deck ready to go. To everyone else, do contribute! No deadlines yet, and no pressure. We don’t like pressure here. Pressure is bad.

Hope everyone is well. I’ll post again soon. In the meantime, I will be back on the modeling platforms of New York getting into the groove.

Hail Jupiter

I hadn’t planned to post a Music Monday this week. Right now it’s 10:30 PM New York time and I’ve decided to squeeze one in just under the wire because of a video I came across on Classic fm, a UK-based classical music site I visit from time to time. In the post, “The awe-inspiring counterpoint in Mozart’s final symphony”, musicologist Richard Atkinson provides an analysis of the symphony’s breathtaking and majestic finale. The symphony, No 41, is known as the “Jupiter” symphony, and it was Mozart’s last and longest. The Jupiter is universally adored and held in the highest esteem as one of the greatest symphonic works ever composed. It’s hard to argue with that status, which is probably why nobody ever does.

I have blogged about Mozart previously. That post touched upon a particular aspect of his genius. The video below illustrates the actual complex workmanship that Mozart employed. Atkinson uses the language of music theory to show us precisely how Mozart achieved the brilliant musical effects he did, with a nuts-and-bolts breakdown. He also uses color coding to highlight the recurrent themes and motifs which I found helpful. Back in my piano studying days my teacher would give me worksheets in music theory, and the more advanced they became the more confused I got! Challenging for mere mortals like me, but simple oxygen for Mozart. But I do love the vocabulary of music theory: counterpoint, intervals, triads.

The Jupiter symphony is a piece that, when you listen to it, you want to shout, “Go Wolfgang, go!! Yeah!!“. Pure joy. Pure uplift. The gleaming musical diamond atop the canon of Western civilization.

I know my fellow classical music geeks will appreciate this. And I also think everyone can enjoy the feeling of underachieving slackerdom and inferiority that comes when exposed to Mozart’s genius. Just kidding! I kid😉

.

For those less inclined to classical music deconstruction, something else from Classic fm – a doodle by Mozart on his music sheet. The lovely lady was his pupil, Barbara Ployer. I wonder if Mozart taught her any counterpoint?

Sport and Spirit in Brazil

After months of negative advance press about zika virus concerns and dismal reports of pollution, foiled terrorist plots, crime-ridden slums, and inadequate housing, the city of Rio de Janeiro managed to pull off a jubilant and visually dazzling opening ceremony for the 2016 Summer Olympics, and with a budget far less than previous host cities, like London and Beijing. Rainforests, fireworks, and the samba! It was a spirited, colorful Rio party.

So the games are well underway and I’ve really been enjoying them. The swimming and gymnastics competitions in particular have been amazing. Those are, of course, the perennially popular attractions of the summer games, but I’ve found myself glued to the TV even when watching things like water polo and archery! The precision of the archers amazes me probably because I’m the worst dart player on the planet. The worst 😆

In honor the Rio Summer Olympics, some Museworthy art by the Brazilian realist painter José Ferraz de Almeida Júnior. Born in 1850, he studied at the Academia Imperial de Belas Artes in Rio, and after a few years spent studying in Europe Almeida Júnior returned to Brazil and settled in São Paulo where he gave lessons in his studio, painted, and organized exhibitions.

I think this is one the best depictions I’ve seen of this subject, of which there are countless artistic versions. Study for Flight of the Holy Family to Egypt, 1881:

While adept at religious and historical themes, Almeida Júnior worked equally with regional subjects during his years in Brazil. This is Estudo para Cabeça de Caipira, 1893:

Nhá Chica, 1895:

The Guitar Player, 1899:

Saudade, 1899:

Connecting the Dots

The month of July, now coming to an end, heaped a load of emotional turmoil upon me. I suppose, in a cruel joke sort of way, it’s fitting that it occurred in the month of my birthday. A week ago, I turned 48 years old, and though I would have much preferred to celebrate it downing margaritas and dancing til dawn, I spent most of it sloshing around in the morass. I wish it was possible to drown the monsters, to forcefully hold their heads underwater and bring an end, once for all, to the ogres of loneliness, regret, and self-doubt. But they are, I fear, undrownable.

As I glumly took a walk in the park on my birthday – that hot, sticky day, July 22nd, having been day one of the New York City heat wave – a turn of phrase that had impacted me once before poked its way again into my consciousness when I strolled past the softball fields: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward”. That is Steve Jobs, from his 2005 commencement address at Stanford University. As someone who tends to beat herself up about past decisions and questionable choices, I am astonished at Jobs’ remarkable ability to spin all the events of his life, including the failures, the ugly battles, and humiliations, into mere spokes on the wheel of a larger, fulfilling destiny. I’m astonished because it is an art I have not mastered. Not even close. I mean, this is a man who declares that, in hindsight, dropping out of college was one of his best decisions … to a class of recent college graduates! Who else but Steve Jobs could get away with that? This was also a man who, in 2005 when he delivered this address, was much closer to death than he knew.

My art modeling work is done for the rest of the summer, except for a weekly portrait class on Long Island through August. But in the weeks leading up now, New York’s art community graciously sent me off into my hiatus with much needed expressions of appreciation for what I do. It was wonderful. After every July gig came an enthusiastic verbal validation of my modeling. Where did this come from? From the ladies at the 92nd St Y to the diverse group of sketchers at Battery Park and even to the high schoolers in the pre-college summer art program at FIT, I was treated to the most generous words; “You are so fun to draw!”, “Your poses are beautiful!”, “You’re the best model I’ve ever seen!”, “It’s been a pleasure working with you”. Now, I’m not entirely convinced that I’m deserving of such praise, especially given my dejected mood of late, but gosh am I ever grateful. And it offset the emotional turmoil I alluded to at the start of this post. I could not have needed those complimentary words more than I did this past month. Like a gallon of water for a thirsty soul.

I’ve blogged more than a few times about the profound value art modeling holds for me, most recently in this post from May. So I think I may have actualized at least one of Steve Jobs’ commencement speech themes; allowing your inner voice to lead you to your passion and “find what you love”. Passions are, truly, what propel us through our lives, push us through adversity, and imbue us with a sense of purpose. The purpose for most of us, unlike Steve Jobs, may not be grand or revolutionary or trailblazing, but it’s purpose all the same. Obviously we can’t all possess the creative vision and business acumen of Apple’s co-founder, but we can all answer inspiration’s call.

I still have to work on the “connecting the dots” bit however. When I reflect backwards, as Steve Jobs proclaimed, I can’t see it in the collected experiences of my own life. The dots just aren’t connecting. Yes I made ONE good decision ten years ago which introduced me to a passion that had been dwelling inside me. But all the rest? I can’t piece it together like a triumphant puzzle the way Jobs did, no matter how hard I try. Maybe, someday, it will all make sense to me. But not now.

Sketch of me .. still reaching, still actively standing, still stepping forward … by Giovanni Lipari: