Okay… okay… Linda beat me to it.  She has been so kind as to set up an account for viewing other’s photos and uploading our own.  Please proceed with all haste to www.photobucket.com.  For the requisite user name and password, please send an email to Linda (art@cordair.com) or to us at sara@rationalart.com and include some validating information like a quick summary of who you are or an anecdote from the cruise so I can tell you are indeed who you say you are.  I will reply with further directions.  Again thanks to all of you who made the cruise a truly inspiring and exciting event.  Mwah!  Sara 

   It has been strange and just the slightest bit surreal returning to normal life after what I can only describe as one of the best weeks of my life. The cruse ship experience was great, the Caribbean was even better, but even the best of their charms pale in comparison to the company. Thanks to everyone who attended for being the most fascinating, exciting, talented, thought provoking, fun-loving, intoxicating and life-affirming people it has been my pleasure to spend a week with.
   Now, for those of you who attended my portrait demonstration, and were promised a final look at my drawing of Ali, and for those of you who have been following my preparations for the demo on the blog but were not able to attend, here are a few images. I have spent an additional 30 minutes or so refining the sketch (without the benefit of the model) mainly to fix a slight problem with the left eye (Ali’s left, not yours) and to soften rough shading and add a little snap to the whites. Click on the image below for a larger version.

Although I did attempt to simulate the simultaneous Q&A by keeping up a stream of commentary while I practiced 90 minute sketching sessions, the fielding of actual incoming questions was considerably more of a draw on my attention than I anticipated. Even so, I am really pleased with what I ended up with.

Thanks again to Ali, who was an amazing model, and would have sat the entire 90 minutes without a break had it not been for a throat irritation. I don’t know how many of you have ever worked from a live model or have sat for an artist, but even 20 minutes without a break is almost a ridiculous amount of time to hold a pose. In addition, during the early days of the cruise, when it was becoming clear how slim my chances were of procuring decent lighting for a live model, Ali was generous enough to spend 30 minutes of her vacation sitting for a photographic scrap shoot.

Out of a true need to stay in touch with many of you who were on the cruise, over the next week or so Sara will be adding a feature to the blog which will allow password-protected exchange of contact information and photos. I understand a similar service will be provided via the Quent Cordair Fine Art website. We will also be posting more on our experience, including photos, recommendations lists from the contributors on their favorite individuals in their respective arts, and thoughts on future reunions.

Most of all, I want to thank Quent and Linda Cordair for making this truly inspirational, perfect week possible. I know I will never forget it.

Bryan and I are currently enroute to Salt Lake City, returning from the beautiful blue waters of the Caribbean Sea. A nice long layover is the perfect time to post up and say hi to anybody that’s been waiting for a post for the last week or so. Most of all I just wanted to write about the Quent Cordair Fine Arts ‘Arts Cruise’ that we are returning from and let Linda and Quent know how I feel about the enormous project they just pulled off with style and aplomb. Wow!!! That was inspiring, uplifting, relaxing, and an absolute blast to attend. I am of course hoping that they will consider doing this kind of thing again (once fully recovered) and if they do, I have to let any and all of our readers know that it is by far the coolest thing you can spend your hard-earned vacation money on. I plan on heckling the Cordairs as much as possible for a repeat and recommend you do the same. The lectures and recitals were all brilliant and wonderfully conceived. The other people in attendance were some of the coooooolest people I’ve ever had the good fortune of meeting. Good conversation and good company were never in short supply. In short, thanks to the many, many friends we made on this trip for being as fascinating and inspiring as you are. (Have you showered yet Charlotte? Tee hee! ;) ) Here are just a few great pictures. More to come… and if I get a few extra minutes this week we’ll set up a password access picture exchange on this site. Much love from Denver, CO…. Sara

This edition of the sketchbook is brought to you by the Quent Cordair Fine Art ‘Arts Cruise’. Seriously, if it weren’t for the portrait demo I will be giving on the cruise a week from today, I most likely would not have done this drawing. I have been testing out a borrowed video camera, hoping to be able to provide a live feed of what is going on on my easel to an overhead LCD projector. The goal, of course, is to allow an audience to see what I am up to during the 90 minute sketch session. At the same time, I allowed myself any number of distractions, and tried to continuously add commentary while drawing, in an effort to simulate a simultaneous Q&A. The good news: the camera and cables work perfectly, and in roughly 90 minutes (maybe 50 of which were actual work time) I was able to turn out this drawing (roughly 14X18 inches):

The cruise sails on the 6th, and I will be back in Salt Lake City on the 14th. Once back in town, I will be diving into another big commission piece (this one I will be posting on), and then it’s on to a big multi-figure composition based on the story of Icarus…so stay tuned.

Happy new year!…and see you all on the 14th.
Bryan