Yoga and Drawing - Drawing and Yoga

Went to Stephanie's 6:30am Saturday Bikram Yoga Class. As an aside, I would like to say I really love Bikram Yoga above all yogas. I have been doing Hatha yoga at Yogaworks in Santa Clarita and although I find it beautiful and centering I don't feel like I am getting any intensity.

Anyways,

Stephanie today talked about the last 5 seconds of the pose. And how you really need to turn on the intensity. I started to think about in drawing the finish is really important. Especially in a gesture drawing, you can ruin the drawing in the last moments either by being too timid or too strong.

PLACEMENT/BLOCK IN

As in yoga, when setting up a drawing you need to have a good block in. Really think about all the elements of the drawing and how they work together - just as in the yoga pose. When I am blocking a head I need to carefully make sure the shape of the head is correct as well as the features. Placement is so important. If I don't have good placement, a good block in then the drawing will never come to anything.

In a yoga pose. Let's take triangle in the Bikram Tradition. It is really important to put the feet down in the right relationship to each other, to have the legs the right distance apart. If the legs are not in the right alignment to each other then when you spread you arms and reach your hands toward your toes you will never get the triangle shape. The final expression of the pose can never happen without the proper set up. And the beauty of the pose will never been attained those last few seconds when you shine your chest to the ceiling will never been obtained.


In the end of the pose as well as the end of the drawing you need to not do something rash but then again not be too timid and really finish.

In a drawing you have to keep pushing and not get too self satisfied.

There were many times in my Head Class at 3 Kicks Studio this week that I didn't want to push forward with my drawing because it looked good in the preliminary stages and by pushing I was risking ruining it.

But each time I took a deep breathe and pushed forward. Whether it was putting in the darkest darks. Defining the lips. Massing out the hair. I knew each new layer to the drawing that I risked ruining it (just as each time you do a yoga pose and push you risk falling out of the pose), But as in yoga and in drawing I pressed forward,

I noticed that my neighbor's drawing never really got past the block in stage because he didn't know how or feared pushing forward and taking risks.

In my yoga practice sometimes I don't push forward. I think I know where and what I can do in many poses without seeing where I am that particular day.