Day 0046

Arrived in Paris this afternoon after a quick and easy journey on the train from London.

Did another quick pen and ink study tonight, this time after Tiepolo's Neptune. It's a beautiful drawing, and in its ruggedness and power it reminds me of Giambologna's terracotta bozzetto for his colossus in Pratolino. My attempt falls far short of the mark, both in terms of the drawing accuracy and the technique, but it's lovely to experiment with something new.

How did Tiepolo get such an even wash of colour, yet articulate the edges of the shadow shape so intricately? It's incredible! The ink is drying so fast, you have just a few seconds to work it into place. The entire wash over the body and leg was laid down in one go, and simultaneously the edges of the leg and the edges of the shoulder were also defined whilst it was still wet. It must have taken under a minute! I'd love to know how he did it. Mine is a mess of layers and failed articulations. Also for some reason the ink yellows the paper, again I don't know why. So much to learn.

This morning I woke up thinking about the pen and about interleaving curves of the hair and about the sharpness of the lines. I was thinking how much of a living thing an ink wash drawing is compared to chalk and charcoal. You have to work whilst the ink is wet. The nib holds only certain amount before it needs to be recharged, and the more you draw the lighter the lines become, and you have to be aware of how this affects the drawing. Just as you are running out of ink you can do the most delicate lines, the lines in the light of the form. There is a constant pressure to make marks, to make decisions before the ink dries, whereas with chalk you have all the time in the world. For some reason it makes me feel like you are creating a living thing, there is time-pressure, and there is feedback between you and the drawing. You have seconds to play with, and your marks once made cannot be erased or moved, only what you do afterwards can be changed to respond to what has gone before.

Very much living and breathing art at the moment, and I'm loving it.