Portsmouth haiku

Hi and welcome to my blog and my first official blog post! So, the title, ‘Portsmouth haiku, ` this was my first official brief for my first week at university. We were split into groups (which was ever so slightly terrifying as I hadn’t really spoken to anyone yet) and given a specific and well known place within the city, like the Casscades and had to draw a series of observational pieces and an accompanying haiku related either to a specific drawing or your drawings as a whole.

Why?

The point; get to know what is going to be our home for the next few years. Get to know the people, the places and to get a feel for the place that would probably become a second home, to most of us anyway. My group was assigned Gunwharf Quays which, if I’m being honest, didn’t fill me with very much joy as I prefer and enjoy drawing people than architecture. Peoples expressions, mannerisms and gestures are what interest me as an artist and illustrator, they way they express the complexities of a person through aspects that can be ignored.

The haiku I wrote for this project was 'happy and tranquil, that's what people think we should be, I don't think we are.'

The illustration

So, for the next few days I wandered around Gunwharf to find subjects to draw, and luckily, I managed to find some. My aim for the illustration your seeing was to focus on her body language and expression. In my opinion, the way her shoulder and hair are positioned slightly obscuring her face, creating a sense of shyness, almost as if she doesn’t want to be noticed by the people around her, creating an additional sense of anxiousness or restlessness. In contrast, her expression suggests a sense of calm and ease, as if she is resting or taking a break from the busyness of word around her.