figure vivant
drawing lives
Torso 01
Pastel on Paper, A0
Torso 02
Pastel on Paper, A0
Torso 03
Pastel on Paper, A0
Figure vivant meaning ‘living figure’ in French, refers to drawing from a live model rather than from plaster casts of classical figures. The Torso series occupies a space between these traditions — self-portraits that variously evoke medical diagrams alongside classical and historical references.
The human torso, particularly as a fragmented relic, beauty, endurance, and vulnerability. This series of larger-than-life torso drawings reflects on the experience of critical illness and surgery, visualising resilience and recovery.
Torso 01
A diagrammatic drawing made with friable chalk pastels, mapping the traces left by medical procedures
Torso 02
Painted with earthy colours. References include: shiny armour, Demeter and Ceres, Classical goddesses of agriculture.
Torso 03
References include: patinated copper, and leather jerkin—a protective garment, typically worn by manual labourers in the Medieval period.
Drawings from SHOWWOMEN: Extraordinary Working-Class Women in UK Circus and Variety (Carnesky Ltd.), Graphite, Watercolor, & Pastels on paper, A3