Launceston gets Sketchy

I was disappointed to hear that Dr Sketchy's New York closed in 2013- although if you check the website it's promising to see that it's listed as on hiaitus until 2014- I posed for the NYC chapter in 2011 as a mechanical doll. The session was a little crazy, in the best way... So much fun, two emcees playing off each other, a dedicated group of artists, stupidly painful poses plus great tips!

Photo by Kate Black
Backstage at the Bowery Poetry Club Dr Sketchy's NYC 2011

Photo by Kate Black
Artwork at the Bowery Poetry Club, Dr Sketchy's NYC 2011

Dr Sketchy's Launceston's principal, Ruby de Winter asked me to be her first model... which was nice!
I had a quick meeting with Ruby and her partner Dan before the actual night to discuss music, costume and to nut out the posing schedule.

Photo by Bruce Moyle

Ruby emceed the evening, an intimate gathering of artists who used all sorts of mediums, chalk, charcoal, paint, pencil and one gent putting pen to paper and writing stream of conciousness poetry.

Bianca- photo by Bruce Moyle

stream of conciousness - Photo by Bruce Moyle

As I had to head straight from my other job to the Lazy Butterfly, Dr Sketchy's Launceston home, I dried and set my hair in curls early in the morning and wrapped a large cotton scarf around my head- the mid century hair covering looking a bit out of place with my normal work attire.

Photo by Bruce Moyle

I arrived with 45 minutes to get ready, part of which I spent just chatting to Ruby and Gen instead of putting on my face.
Gen House was working the door and Ruby was setting up the stage with help from Dan.
Chairs were spread in a semi circle and drawing boards were available for those who needed one.
The poses were typical for a life drawing class, five poses held for one minute, five for two minutes, two for ten minutes, a short break, finishing with two long poses, twenty minute each and finally a big stretch for me!

Photo by Bruce Moyle

Posing is utterly exhausting! I tend to keep a very straight face and although I try to relax into a pose, there are times where about halfway through I'm having major regrets... happily most of the time those are the short poses- Holding the splits with a knee on each chair was easier than bending backwards. Go figure.

Photo by Bruce Moyle

I did a reverse strip in my Corsets by Nasty Ginny sunrise ombre costume, starting in pasties and g-string and finishing in a corset and panel skirt.

Photo by Bruce Moyle

The best part was getting to see what people had produced, some was abstract, some more cartoon and others were line drawings in pencil.

Line drawing with pencil and ink by Bianca

The next class is January 16 and will feature Launceston belly dancer Gen House, I'll be putting in some time on door duties so if you're in the area, why not come say hi, scribble a bit or spend some time gazing up at the model.