Last weekend was a full on weekend of socialising on the roof seeing friends that I haven’t really seen for over a year now, dear friends that I would normally see at least a couple of times a month. When you get together after along time you reminisce, old funny stories are referred to and this is when life drawing classes came up! I have in my adult life attended life drawing classes just to keep my very poor drawing skills, quite frankly poor!
So we chatted about the classes and people’s drawing styles and then I was asked tell my life modelling experience so here goes!
My third year of my degree was vocational, I had to work in the field of Jewellery design.However I was a skint student and had to supplement my living by working at other jobs too , I did fabulous things like appear as an extra in pop videos but this wasn’t a regular income and I needed to pay the rent. My uni was advertising for life models and not thinking this through very well , I applied for the job. Yep I got it too. So I became a life model at my own uni, it’s weird to know the folks who are drawing you in the buff also know you, as I discovered 😂
My first week I arrived with my dressing gown and was so nervous , the lecturer produced some striped stockings for me to put on. I think the theme was an Egon Schiele one, except I was more of Rubens model ! I shall come back to the striped stockings later!
Well first week nerves were high that moment you take the dressing gown off and feel totally exposed to the world is frankly scary! After a few quick poses you begin to forget you are naked and you begin to concentrate on the fact your neck aches , or your arms going to collapse or you have an itch that’s really not appropriate to scratch, lack of clothes isn’t really what you think about!
Second week I’m asked if I don’t mind modelling alongside another model to create a tableau, well I thought what’s it matter if someone else is naked too so, thinking of the money I said yes. I was not expecting a ,quite frankly beautiful male model to turn up , this is fairly freaky when you haven’t exercised and spent a lot of previous year drinking pints of snakebite😂 I can honestly say I was a little embarrassed but my new modelling partner was lovely and I felt at ease so next few weeks went swimmingly and life modelling became a little easier. I’m not going to claim empowerment, I’ve never been quite sure where that idea came from !
So fast forward a few weeks on and I arrive at my class at the usual time expecting to either be modelling alone or with my Adonis model, things are now routine and I’m informed that I shall be joined by a new male model this week! This model has broken his leg recently so should make for interesting drawings as he has a cast. Oh well I’m not worried!
Only thing is I should have remembered my boyfriends brother had just recently broken his leg! Yep what a coincidence ! My now husbands brother was my other life model ! Ever professionals we got on with it but that was a moment I won’t forget! 🤗
So at the end of term I had to say goodbye to my modelling days , as I was return as student in my finals the next year. The modelling had got me through a tricky financial patch and Given me a story to laugh about. I I was also drawn by royalty as Lady Sarah Armstrong Jones drew me once, that’s my claim to fame , I wonder if she still has the drawings?😂
So on my last modelling day I met up with some friends and we walked to Southgate station where I got my connecting bus. As we arrived at Southgate Station there was skip outside a house and on the skip was a eight foot high painting of me, resplendent in nothing but a pair of striped stockings, the friends I was with couldn’t contain their laughter it wasn’t the best painting but it was clearly me! They thought I should take it home but it wasn’t going on the bus with me! (Imagine) Well, it gave them a really good laugh , they said they’d thought about taking it and putting in the canteen at uni for a laugh but being students they couldn’t be bothered , phew I’m glad I’ll never have to see that again.
Anyway I’m not really sure where I was going with this blog ! Maybe it was just an amusing story, was I empowered? NO,I just took me clothes off, had it made me more confident about my body? NOPE but then I’ve gained a few scars since then and and lot more pounds. But I do realise one thing I’ve been lucky because although I’m like everyone else lots of body issues , feel fat some days etc I do know one thing I sometimes challenge myself to do things way out of my comfort zone and it’s those things that make life interesting!
However, the one thing I have learnt in FUF Facebook-land is…….PLEASE KEEP YER FROCKS ON! 😂