Warm and welcome kisses

Last weekend, whilst attending a local art exhibition, I was introduced to a woman who's face seemed vaguely familiar, in that I'm-sure-I-know-you-but-I-can't-remember-where-from sort of way. She looked at me in the same way too - and after a bit of chatting about the possibility of me doing a drawing or painting of her very picturesque and historical house, it turned out that we both frequent the same pub! Ah, that would explain it!! And I was greatly amused when she said that she'd seen me in the pub and had pointed me out to her friends as "That's THE artist!" - I love it when people prefix me as an artist with the word THE - it gives it far more depth and credence! It seems that she wants a drawing done of her house because the previous owners (who I know) had one and since she's only recently moved in there, she wants one too. She's sure that I drew the original picture that the previous owners had, and I know I didn't! But, I don't mind so long as she thinks I did, and I'm THE artist, so she's asking ME to do one for her. That's how it should be!

And this week I've done a fun painting, something I've been wanting to do for a very long time - paint a kiss! One of those shiny red lipped puckered kisses, where you get lost in the lips themselves, and what you want to do with them. Oh yesssssssss!!!! Erotic or what!!!!?! So that's what I've done, in acrylic on a block canvas, and it makes me smile every time I look at it. So I must be happy with it, and it must evoke something in me to make me feel happy with its intended content! So although it doesn't involve a naked woman, or sexual parts, I consider this to be an erotic painting. Verrry Very Erotic. With a capital E! :) Well..... what do you think?

Headless

What does a man see in an erotic image - is it different to what a woman sees? I think it well may be. This week I took some of my latest erotic drawings to a gallery where I'm hoping to get my pictures hung. This gallery features a lot of good quality artwork but erotic art is new to them. I was happy with the quality and standard of the artwork and would have been delighted if the gallery had accepted them then and there, hung them on their walls and a week later said they'd sold them all and could I produce another 20 images because they were so popular (well, I can dream, can't I!???!). But the gallery owner didn't say that, what he said was that he wasn't happy with the generic faces I put on my drawings. Not even the fact that I might only put in the mouth and an eyebrow, even that was too much. Because it was "somebody" even then. What he wanted was them to be headless, ideally. Just torsos. Ok, I can do that, no problem. But I'm not convinced he's right in his decision. Because, for me, the image is made by the emotion in the picture, and that is depicted usually by the face. To me, to make them headless renders them just as a body - just a pair of tits, or an arse, an item, a characterless, faceless "object". And I think that's the difference between men and women - women want the emotion in the picture, men just want the item. I shall be interested to see how the pictures come out - and if they're accepted at the gallery, how they are welcomed. And if they do sell, who buys them. Just men? And what the feedback is. Because I'm not convinced, not at all!

This weeks image is with head (!) and is another of the white on black drawings with just a hint of red - this time at the mouth, as the woman is putting on her lipstick. She's wearing a black slip, with one of the straps fallen down over her shoulder, one of her legs raised up, the other on the floor. I think the pose makes her look a bit sluttish - isn't it only bad girls who wear scarlet lipstick? Maybe. I like the shapes of her body against the black background and black underwear. Its called "Lip service" and I'm happy with that as a title.

Right, better get my rubber out and remove some heads - decapitations here I come!! :)

Diamante soapy breasts

I went along to the monthly Guild of Erotic Artists Event day yesterday and as soon as I walked through the door I was introduced to a new guy to the Guild - a photographer who had come along for the first time to introduce himself and see what the Guild was all about. I enjoyed chatting with him and telling him how much the Guild has helped me with my art since I joined last October. He said that there were some lovely images on the walls of the gallery that had inspired him already! And since I have a couple of pictures there now, I was able to show him so he had an inkling of what I do. He and another photographer of the same first name got chatting about their work and comparing notes. By this time we were watching the first demonstration of the day - as two female topless models were enthusiastically washing a low slung sports car, the soapy suds sloshing as much over them as the car, as they laughingly posed for the cameras and the Guild secretary realised he hadn't charged up his camera and dashed inside frantically searching for new batteries, fortunately he found some just in time for the end of the photo shoot, and managed to snap a couple of sexy photos. I was amused that one of the visitors of the day turned up as the car washing was in progress and he asked me with a grin why I wasn't taking part - I laughed and said I don't do topless car washing - and he cheekily said that was a pity as his car was just parked around the corner! Mmm.... is this something I need to consider as a career change I wonder....

Whilst we were all still standing around outside viewing the erotic car wash, I espied my new found friend of last month and we both impulsively hugged each other in delighted greeting, and I enquired why she hadn't responded to my email of last month, only to find that she hadn't received it! Ah, that makes sense for the electronic silence from her (don't ya just lurve technology when it lets ya down!). So we made up for the lack of communication by having a good chat and she told me about the new photographs she'd produced after talking to me in July and my positive enthusiasm for her big idea had lead on to some gorgeous photographs that she considered her best work yet. I was absolutely delighted that I'd helped her to have the confidence to do it.

Then we all went back inside for the second demo of the day - a body cast of the winner of the boob competition last month. I've never seen body casting before, and was enthralled with the procedure - the model had to wipe baby oil on her skin first, and then wipe it off, presumably so that the gel on her skin doesn't stick. An outline was drawn on the torso so that the body caster knew which part he was casting. Then the water-based gel was sloshed on with great abandon and was starting to set within only a couple of minutes, as the excess was removed. Then, since it was a flimsy layer it had to be given rigidity by applying plaster and fibre netting that set over the top of it and after a final layer of plaster had been applied, and the whole lot allowed to set for 2o minutes or so, as the model sat still, then the whole lot was just gently pulled away from the skin and leaving the cast intact and the model free of her temporary shell. The next part will involve the body caster filling the cast with plaster and working through the different processes to create a perfect and finely detailed cast of the boob, to be presented to the model next month when its dried out completely.

After the cast had been done, the body caster came over to me for a chat and I asked him a few questions regarding the process - and he was more than happy to explain various aspects to me. I had presumed that it was a modern process but he told me about the old death masks, and the Victorian procedure of taking casts of people with hideous growths on their heads, so that they could be used for increasing medical knowledge. As well as the bodies that the body snatchers Burke and Hare stole at dead of night from graveyards, being cut open by the medical profession for teaching, and casts of the interiors of the bodies taken so that they could be used for tuition purposes too. All very gruesome, but a fascinating subject.

Then on to the third demo of the day - what a busy day! - and this one was a make-up demonstration. I had noticed a particular girl wandering around earlier and it hadn't clicked at all with me who she was, because her face was bare of all make-up and I'm so used to seeing her with full make-up and bright red luscious lips so I hadn't recognised her! Infact it was the same big breasted girl who'd had her boob body cast earlier. And what a difference make-up makes to a woman! Another enthralling demo as she sat under the spotlight and we all watched as the makeup artist painted her and her face was transformed first with a pale base skin cover, then white power applied to lighten her face even more. Green eyeshadow empathised her already beautiful dark eyes, and black mascara and eyeliner even more so, but they were particularly enhanced by large false diamante encrusted eyelashes and small dabs of silver paint on the cheek bones to add to the effect. Her jet black hair had the curlers removed and was fluffed up on either side of her face. Her pale cheeks had puffs of pink blusher and her mouth had a small bright red cupids bow painted on the lips, finishing off the Gothic vamp effect - and the fact she was totally dressed in black from her knee high black platform boots, black fishnet tights, black netting tu-tu, black corset tightly laced over a black top and frilly black see through blouse, the whole effect was a vast transformation from the unpainted face at the start. She strode off the platform looking feminine and powerful, and the male photographers followed on ready to capture her power and beauty in their cameras.

Whilst all this was going on, another artist was quietly painting away on a woman's breasts in the corner of a room. When I first started watching, he was painting a pineapple in great detail, but by the end of the day a whole cornucopia of fruit had appeared to cover the whole of her chest and breasts. She stood around quite happily afterwards chatting to people as they admired the walking, talking, artwork. I wonder how long the paint effect will last.

By then, people were starting to leave, but I was able to have a little chat with one of the longstanding photographers there - he'd done a gorgeous photo that I'd much admired - it was just of four pairs of feet - but you knew exactly what was happening with those feet - you knew who was who and what was happening with the people in the photograph by their feet. How expressive was that? I loved it! And that's the thing about the Guild - that's what I love about it, we all put our artwork on the walls there, and it inspires the other artists and photographers to create something new from what they've seen, and when we see what they've done, that in turn inspires us - and so the circle follows on and upwards. In theory then, it struck me that the work should improve all the time, leading us all on to greater things.

And I had a little chat with an attractive model there, who I've seen before and I had a feeling she lived quite close to me from what I knew about her, it turns out that she lives 20 minutes or so away, so that's worth bearing in mind if I need a model.

And as I left my photographer woman friend, and we hugged and kissed each other, she asked me if I'd be interested in partaking in a photo shoot in London's biggest dungeon. Mmm.... ok, that's something I've never been asked before......!!!!

Like buses - three come at once!

Nothing happens for ages and then three come at once, and before you ask, no, I'm not talking about a threesome, I'm referring to me being on a roll this week producing artwork! I've done three drawings that I'm really happy with and they are the one's I'm referring to! I'm working on a set of paintings for the gallery I've recently found and hope soon to take them along to see what reaction they get. I'm thinking about them like a "pick and mix" - so anyone could buy all of them, or a couple, three, or four, and they would all go together in any mix as a set, and would look like they belong together. It's taken me a while to think about the set as a whole, and as a collection but now I'm really happy about the way they pull together and work well as a group. They are all white on black drawings with a touch of red in them somewhere to add interest and add to the raunchy feel of them - which is why the set is going to be called "Scarlet women". I just love that title!

The first drawing is the back view of a woman in a corset with a tiny black thong showing off her lovely bum and black elbow length gloves accentuating the hint of her red jewellery - thick chunky bracelet at wrist and the small earrings - are they rubies? She's raising her champagne glass to toast someone or something - so the title just HAD to be "Bottoms up!" - I adore that name and just couldn't resist it!!!! It makes me smile.

The second drawing is of a woman lying face down on a sofa, her gorgeous bum rounded and inviting, her legs slightly akimbo she's naked except for just a pair of red high heeled shoes - a delicious invite for her lover! Her face is hidden by her blonde hair, but she's looking back over her shoulder in invitation, her eyes glinting in knowledge of her desirability. I've done this drawing before and it's on my website, but this one has proper red shoes and is called "Red red shoes" in acknowledgement of that.

The third drawing is more raunchy and depicts a woman feeling the heat, she's fingering her long hair as it falls down over her face, her slip is falling down off her shoulders, revealing her rounded breast and the nipple. Her mouth is open, her eyes closed in ecstasy. And her right hand reaches downwards..... This picture is called "Red hot".

I love all these drawings for various reasons but I know which of the three I prefer best and the reasons why, but which do you like best?

Hope springs eternal

I could have spent the weekend drawing, or painting or doing something productive. Well, actually, I thought I was doing something productive since I was helping to steward a local art exhibition that I was exhibiting at. And it rained... No, to be more precise, it pissed it down. So for the two and a half hours I was there, the grand total of TEN people, (yes ten!) walked through the door to view the paintings. The whole total of visitors was only 239 over two weekends. So I the exhibition didn't do too well. And didn't sell many paintings. And I didn't sell any at all. Sigh.

But I know its the way it is with art exhibitions, and someone, may have just walked through the door and gone wow over my art, and bought something. They may just have done. And that was why I was there.....

I live in hope.

I have to.

Touching class

Well, its looks like I'm on a roll at the moment with my erotic drawings - I've done another one I'm happy with! - and again the model is partly dressed to add that frisson of interest. This time in a corset pulling her curves in tight. She is dressing herself in a pearl necklace as her arms reach back to do up the clasp in the nape of her neck and her breasts strain against the tight corset. Her eyes closed as she feels the soft touch of the warm pearls caress her throat. And again I've just added a touch of red for her thong to add interest to the black and white drawing. I love the way I've not needed to draw every line for you to realise what you're looking at - I've not drawn the dark part of her right arm or the rest of her legs other than where the light catches them, and yet you know what you're looking at and it adds interest in that I've not depicted every tiny detail. The drawing is called "Touch of class" and refers to the the pearls being classy and they way they touch her skin, as much as the corset she's wearing...... and its making me wonder why pearls are considered to be more classy than other jewellery?

Rebirth

Do all women go through life without changing, without re-inventing themselves, without evolving? I don't think so. I think we're all the time changing depending where we are in life - starting as children and learning, the excitement and angst of teenage years, early adulthood, meeting lovers, falling in love and deciding who we want to spend the rest of our lives with, having children, raising children, letting them leave home and then finally becoming the person we want to be, shedding an old life for the excitement of a new one, maybe divorcing the old life and starting afresh. That's what its all about isn't it? I know we don't all live exciting lives, I know that we all have pressures of work, relationships and finances (or lack of them!) but we all change, bit by bit we change. And how do we feel when that happens? Is there a feeling of rebirth, of a new start? Of fresh horizons? I believe so. And that is what I wanted to celebrate and depict in my latest painting, that feeling of rising up from the ashes of a past life with new wings, ready to face the new challenges, full of life and vigour, feeling light as a feather, strong and free. That's the feeling I've painted here in this watercolour, using vibrant reds and golds for the fire below, and light pale colours for the light and air above, depicting the woman as stretching and floating up - her wings giving her new life and new hope. Awaiting the change and relishing it! Happy and free! Reborn! And that is why it's called "Phoenix" - rising from the ashes to become the new. And I love it! As a woman I love the concept, as a painter I love the image, and as an artist I love the colours!

In the red

It's a very busy time of year for me - there are loads of local exhibitions on - and that means decisions to make whether to participate or not, which to go and see, and which to miss out. I can't do all of them, so I have to pick and choose which are most important to me. And then I have to consider that if the exhibitors can put a maximum of ten paintings in an exhibition, that I have the ten that I need, and usually the organisers want the information for the exhibitions well in advance, which means the paintings have to actually exist! So I've been busy painting these last few days, along with continuing with the paintings I'm doing for the main gallery.

My model asked me an interesting question when I saw her this week - and one that made me laugh out loud in disbelief! She said "Do you ever get stuck for ideas of what to paint?" and my reply after I'd stopped laughing, was "No, I have the opposite of writers block - I have so many ideas to paint at this moment in time, that I doubt I'd ever get them all painted if I painted solidly for the next year, and that's not counting the other ideas that come to me regularly for paintings".

So, when I drew her this week, I knew exactly what I was going to do and how I was going to do it. Another white on black drawing with a touch of colour to add interest. And the interest in question was going to be suspenders and that lovely piece of creamy white thigh at the top of the leg that is that is exposed whilst a woman is putting on stockings. I also wanted her cleavage on show and the hint of the little black dress that she was wearing whilst she got dressed to go out. And since I prefer to paint as little as possible to get the point across, I did just that, and added the colour just for the suspenders. The title came to me easily too, which always thrills me when it does - so it's called "In the red" because she's obviously in red underwear, from what you can see so far!