When you travel by train do you face the engine or the last carriage? Me, I always look forward. I have memories of the past; some of them good others best forgotten but lessons have been learnt that I hope stand me in good stead in the future. This year I set myself steadfastly on the road of improving my drawing skills and particularly moving towards more portraiture. It has been a year full of hiccups one way or the other - Mainly health ones either of my dear Lady and a few of my own that have taken up time. One of the reasons why this site, together with my others - Particularly my Gallery site www.brianreifer.com and the 'Writers' arm of my interests that you can find at http://www.musingsofbrianreifer.blogspot.com (Just type 'Brian Reifer's Musings' into the search engine of your choice should take you there -Bookmark it is even better together with the website). I joined a Life Class, which is the best move I made this year. Most enjoyable, educational and a good mix of artists. It varies between the nude and the clothed model (The latter is my interest from the point of view of my portraiture) and work is in graphite, charcoal or pastel. Most of my studio time is now taken up with this on practice sessions so little new work has been produced for publication. Now, however, I have bitten on the bullet. having produced one commission in graphite to the client's satisfaction. I have started on a series of family graphite head and shoulder studies and moved into oils - the first three currently in progress. I have set myself an ambitious target. But heck, if you don't go for it? The target is to submit a self portrait, to the BP Portrait competition and three portraits to the Royal Society of Portrait Painters exhibitions in 2014. So I have a busy few months up to January. I'll let you know how I get on. Meanwhile I am producing again (Just) regular Blogs and have begun on an Art History Book comprised of a series of essays that I hope to complete in the next two years. The first essay has been completed and in fact submitted to a Writing Competition on the UK from which I hope eventually to get positive feedback. Notes are growing thick and fast on the second ready for a start once I get some feedback on the first to see if the judges consider it has some merit and I can build on their critiques. Sometime soon I will get round to tidying up the gallery; I'm a bit ashamed of its jaded look. Enough for now I have two heads of twin cousins waiting to be finished.