pencil journeys

Well… I’m no Rembrandt, but I’m holding my own in my drawing class. It is humbling to tackle something new at my age, yet fun too, because who cares how perfect each attempt is when you are just exploring the pencil for the first time? I’ ve moved from drawing squares and globes to hats and stumps on class 3 & 4. Next week, I’m told we will be doing what my teacher calls a “still life suicide.” He places three objects together one after the other to challange you with proportion an perspective and then throws a sheet over everything and you rdraw over your objects until the picture evolves to look like water that shows what is underneath. He says it is sometimes so frustrating everyone wants to kill themselves (thus the name of the exercise.) We’ll see. . . .
    


It’s enough to make you want to drink your still life!

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About Ginny East Shaddock

Ginny East has long employed blogging to poke and prod life. She believes reflective writing reveals deeper connections and teaches us about our relationships with ourselves and the world at large. Her blog is laden with long essays that go completely against the recommended tips for successful blogging, and the fact that her selected subject matter has no goal or specific theme means she is unlikely to build an audience or create a platform for her writing or other work-related endeavors. Ginny comes to the page for personal reasons, and whether she has an audience for these entries is a moot point. Ginny retired in January 2025 after many years as a business owner. Certified yoga therapist, and teacher of dance, yoga, and writing. She was excited to have time to devote to writing, personal reflection, and deepening relationships. She has a Master of Fine Arts in writing from Lesley University and a BA in business management from Eckerd College. As an author, Ginny has won the Royal Palm Literary Award two times, once for historical fiction and once for the memoir category. She also won the New Southerner Literary Award and her piece was selected for the magazine's yearly anthology. She has a memoir, My Million Dollar Donkey, a book that explores social issues, education, and personal awareness gained during a period when she attempted to live a simple life in the Georgia Mountains. The book was born of insight from her daily introspection gained by blogging on this site. She also is the author of The Enlightened Writer, available on Kindle and through Amazon or Bookbaby. This book combines Eastern philosophy with writing wisdom for authors seeking insight and guidance on writing a memoir as a spiritual act.

2 responses »

  1. You have talent! When do you start drawing nudes?????

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  2. When my class can bring in a totally cute, young male hard body and I can get away with being an old lady who oogles a young buck without it seeming inappropriate. But not yet. And at this point, I rather not discover I can sit in a room with a naked man and fnd out all I’m thinking of is how to shade his feet so they look in porportion to his calfs. Now, that would be sad.

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