A Small Gesture

'A Small Gesture' was a brief to create a sequence of 6-8 drawings depicting an ordinary slice of life. We were asked to present a primary character moving around a space and a simultaneous lesser action which should not distract from the main action.

First off, I went looking for scenarios to sketch from life. As I had been commuting to Cambridge, it made sense to just start sketching on the train...

Next I sketched my partner, Zoe, with her family dog, Nellie. Sketching animals in motion is always a challenge, but fun nevertheless. I considered using this as the basis for the final sequence, particularly the kitchen setting, but I thought the dog was becoming too much the main focus.

Thirdly, I sketched my Dad when he was driving. I liked the potential versatility of the car as a setting e.g. changing traffic lights, rear window happenings etc. However, one of the important aspects of the brief was to 'activate the space', meaning to move around the space in varied ways, for which the car setting seemed too restrictive.

Lastly, I found a large Costa in which I could sketch strangers without likelihood of being spotted. I really like the warm colour palette of the coffee shop at night, and the imagery of a night diner has always been exciting to me, as a fan of Edward Hopper. Again though, I thought the main figures were too static for the purposes of a final sequence.

Inspired by the recent Tim Burton exhibition where I saw his sketches on napkins, I thought it appropriate to sketch the coffee shop on a coffee shop napkin.

Of the four settings, the train seemed the fit the brief on all counts. It's an everyday sight of a tired commuter, and I thought it would be fun to draw the different stages of falling asleep; something I observed directly. The final character is a version of a real stranger.

As for the less significant movement, I thought the silhouetted figure of another passenger would be a subtle extra detail to track across the sequence. I found myself staring at the reflections in the windows of the train at night, and there's no way of showing the window without some sight of the opposite side of the carriage. The changing view outside could also be considered the second movement. I like how this changes the narrative while the composition itself remains the same.

Here in coloured pencil I wanted to establish a solid understanding of the perspective and reflections of the train compartment window for my own reference. I would later lose some of this detail as it's not entirely necessary but it was a good guide to help construct the scene.

The next thing to figure out was how to make a sleeping man move around the space in a more dynamic way.

Though the events depicted are pretty simple, I struggled to solve the puzzle of what the clearest sequence would be that would bring all the necessary elements of the brief together.

The following colour studies show some ink, gouache and watercolour experiments trying to hit on the right aesthetic. I decided on the complementary palette of yellow and purple so then it was about finding a balance and which medium to use. Most of the best stuff comes out of this kind of spontaneity and then the challenge is to recapture that in the final product.

The final sequence:

The final sequence was assembled into a concertina, as shown here.

Repainting each scene consistently was difficult, as the blend of complementary colours was hard to replicate each time. It became a frustrating process to complete the series, and sometimes I thought I had chosen too complex a composition with the changing window. I struggle not to be a perfectionist, but it's important to recognise that I am still learning and much of what I am challenged to do will not be my best work.

I enjoyed the character work involved, trying to understand the facial/body language of a very tired bloke. Some of the recent life drawing classes came into my thinking, shifting the balance of weight and considering the slope of the spine. I'm happy with how the sequence turned out, seeing the main character realise he has overslept, rushing off in the foreground and then stranded, framed in the background window.