I will soon be doing my first (unpaid) modelling gig for a group of artists, who will be sketching me. The organizer figures I will be doing about 20 poses, and I plan to develop about 10 in advance, and “wing it” in free form for the others.
Some of the poses will be short, 5 or 10 minutes. Others will be considerably longer.
I have some ideas for the poses, including playing with shoes a little bit. For example, how different a person’s legsĀ look when she is barefoot and then puts on some spiky heels. I figure that concept is good for 2 or three poses.
I know some of my readers have modelled in the buff. Any suggestions for poses — non-sexual?
Jillian
Jillian Page 
Depending how long you’ll be holding a particular pose might change your mind about what poses. The one post I thought was going to be comfortable for 45 minutes, kneeling and sitting on my feet/legs. Was I wrong. My feet fell asleep within 20 minutes.
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Thanks, Cheri. Good tip. I’ll beware of poses that can hamper blood circulation.
I learned something about that while playing in the world of kink (BDSM). Some of the positions there can only be held for short periods of time.
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I did the modeling thing (WITH clothes) for a friend of mine who runs an art class. The short poses are easy, and I’m sure they’ll give you advice on some of them. For the long poses, you need to be comfortable–that much should be obvious. What I did was concentrate on something while staring directly at an object behind them. In my case, I found it easy when I concentrated on a musical that I know well, and ran the music through my head, while staying perfectly still. That made the time go quicker.
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Thanks, Brad. Good tips!
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I usually google” gesture poses for models”-say for 5, 10, or 20 minute poses. There are a lot of great poses there to get ideas from. Another resource I use is The “Angel Art Academy” located in Florence Italy. You can google them too and click on there gallery link. They have some beautiful classical figure modeling poses represented. Good luck, have fun, and choose a pose you are comfortable in!! š
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More great tips. The Angel Art site has some great poses. Thanks, Robert!
Cheers
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I agree with the prior responses.
Most particularly – be careful about bent joints and weight – what can be a great gesture (under 2 minutes) does not necessarily make a half-hour pose.
I always ask the teacher/artists what kind of poses they are interested in.
Modeling is work.
in peace, love and harmony,
steven
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Yes, I am beginning to see that it is work. The artists need different types of poses, some not so glamorous. This is not the same as posing for, say, Playboy or some similar magazine. This is all about the artists, and giving them the opportunity to practise sketching different shapes and positions.
Still, I am going to try to incorporate some modern ideas into classical poses. I have an idea for the tradition Venus painting . . .
We’ll see . . .
Thank you for tips, Steven.
Cheers
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For one of the short poses, they asked me if I had any ideas of my own. I had a quick inspiration, and picked up the chair I’d been using, and held it over my head as if I were in a massive bar fight and was about to throw it. They laughed and I held the pose for them. But at the end of even two short minutes, my arms were aching! Amazing how heavy that chair could get in just two minutes!
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I bet it was tough on your arms! I am planning a three-minute pose in which I will extend my arms straight up, fingertips joined . . . to show full length of body. In contrast, I will do one pose all rolled up on a pillow . . .
Cheers!
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Hello Jill,
I realize that I did not extend an invitation to you to check out my modeling poses, taken during classes, on my flickr page – artclasmodl
http://www.flickr.com/photos/artclasmodl/
steven
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Thanks, Steven. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see them because I can’t sign in there — don’t have an account.
Cheers
Jill
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