Photo courtesy of Washington Studio School..
Reception: Friday, June 3 from 6:30pm to 8pm
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Washington Studio School (WSS) presents Figurative Drawings, an exhibit of drawings from life models by WSS student, Sonia Safier-Kerzner.
Sonia has always loved to draw, and it has become the way she express herself in art. Yet, drawing continues to be an endlessly baffling struggle for the end result is always unknown and claims a life of its own.
About her process, Sonia writes “I enjoy the directness and simplicity of the tools – charcoal, conte, and pastels – and the discipline of a highly restricted palette. I also love the way the materials react to the varying pressures of my hand and to the subtle differences in the paper, be it smooth or textured.”
Sonia feeds her imagination by observing rocks, shells and bones, but it i the human figure with all it’s flow and tension which persists on being her essential inspiration. “I observe the model at rest and in motion, and constantly wrestle to capture “aliveness,” through the energy and variation of my line, and the use of light and shadow.”
After completing a Degree in Fine Arts at the university of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, Sonia taught art in schools until immigrating to the United States, via Canada. Here, for pragmatic reasons, she worked as a Medical and Free-Lance Illustrator – but has now dedicated all her time to her art.
While studying in SA, Sonia was fortunate to have as a teacher and mentor Judith Mason – a superb artist and draftswoman, with a remarkably sensitive line, who motivated her to concentrate on drawing. The now world-renowned William Kentridge’s stark black and white works, Goya’s powerfully emotional paintings and etchings, and the angst and raw intensity of Egon Schiele’s drawings contine to inspire Sonia’s intimate work of the human figure.
Washington Studio School is located at 2129 S. St. NW.
