Library arts program enhances skills, says organizer

By Kate Weygang

Local art enthusiasts are gathering once a month at the Belleville Library to hone their skills by drawing live models.

For the past two years, The Drawing Room has since been going strong as a way to encourage arts in the community, said Susan Holland, the Art Gallery Curator at the John M. Parrot Gallery inside the Belleville Public Library.

As the founder of the event, she said there is a vast amount of artistic talent.  By drawing a model doing various poses, it is a good way for already experienced artists to refine their skills, she said.

“There is no one telling you how to draw – you just draw,” Holland said.

The Drawing Room offers non-instructional studio sessions to encourage the traditional practice of drawing and painting the human figure from a draped model. Sometimes as many as 14 artists attend the event, but Holland maintained that 10 is the ideal number per session.

The draped models are often friends and fellow artists in the community who give their time to be the focus of the afternoon. Frequently the models bring interesting and unusual props to pose with. The session begins with short poses for a warm up, followed by a few more complicated poses. Although this event is free for anyone to attend, art enthusiasts are encouraged to donate  $3 to go towards the $25 given to the model for their time at the end of the session.

The event runs from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. every third Thursday of the month all year round. No sign-up is necessary and artists of all skill levels are welcome.