Yes it worked! I’ve got your attention with this muscly naked man! Woo, what I would do to have abs like that…Right, enough swooning. This is a direct copy of a Michelangelo sketch (and if you don’t know who that is please go and hide under a rock). Below is the original:

I know I said I don’t copy art much, well I lied. I did it quite a lot when I was younger. I just found it soothing. I got to draw without actually having to think anything up. I guess it’s kind of the lazy way of making art. There’s been a lot of debate about this actually. Yes still life work looks lovely and you can hang it on your wall etc etc, but how much skill does it really take? Conceptual art is far more challenging as you’re actually having to think things up and create something from nothing. All very interesting and a debate that I’m sure would get very heated with a lot of people. So for now I’m just going to avoid the controversy.

      

Left: my copy of Egon Schiele’s sketch, Right: Egon Schiele’s sketch.

I think it is safe to say Egon Schiele is one of my ALL TIME favourite artists! His work is just so stylised and expressive. Gruesome in a sense even. I don’t know what the majority of people think about it, they probably think it’s a bit creepy or there are far too many vaginas going on. But personally, I love it all! It’s all just so scratchy and scrawly. Schiele is one artist who definately understands mark-making! You can see where he’s put pressure on his pencil, you can see how successful his limited colour palettes are with yellows and reds often featuring. He’s got a very interesting history to accompany his art as well. He was an art school drop out. He was also mentored by Gustav Klimt (lucky sod!) He was jailed at one point and a lot of his work that was deemed ‘pornographic’ was confiscated. I always think the personality of the artist goes hand in hand with the art work and in Schiele’s case this is definately evident. He was a notorious womaniser and his work truly reveals his raw sexuality. I love imitating his bony, almost anorexic-looking creations.