Shed by Ashley Sapp

Method Behind the Madness:
My friend Asia invited me to a nude model painting workshop via text, saying "This is low-key an invisible bucket list item!" I laughed at her random text and then immediately agreed to sign up for it. On the day of the workshop, we met in the UNC Ackland Art Museum. The art instructor led Asia, one other girl, the young model and I into a room of the building nearby, the Hanes Art Center. The model stood on the white canvas under a lamp, pointing at him from above at an angle. For the first hour, we sketched with pencil multiple times as he changed poses, starting from 30 second intervals and expanding to five minute intervals. The last hour we began to paint as he sat on the canvas, taking a few breaks in between. Time seemed to soar. I loved it.

Ideas behind the title of this piece:
The model's pose, in that crouched position with his chin on his knee, suggests he might be grieving. Maybe he is going through a rough patch in life? Maybe he has shed many tears in the past and is thinking about how he will in the future? At the same time, I am playing with the idea that he is vulnerable because he sheds his clothes and is sitting still under stranger's' gaze. Thus, "Shed."