Thoughts on stuff…well, Drawing

Getting back into old passions, I never thought I would be drawing again. It’s something that I used to do, quite a lot…Used to love it so much, it was my escape. Not sure what happened, but I just…stopped. There wasn’t an explicit reason, nothing major happened to me…I just didn’t think I was good enough anymore. I am my own biggest critic and out of the hundreds of drawings I’ve done over the years, I only like about 3. I have spotted the flaws in the other drawings and I don’t even show them to others (sigh). However, my grandma (I live with my grandparents) is my biggest fan, and even with all the stress I put the household through last year, dropping out of 6th form etc…she kept encouraging me to pick up that pencil again and draw. I started drawing again last year, after a long while…I drew J Cole. Little did I know that when I tweeted that picture it would blow up, get 14000 views and end up catching his attention, but shortly after drawing it, his PA called me up (I happen to know his PA…random I know) and managed to get J Cole to sign that drawing himself…I didn’t put pencil to paper again for 6 months, but the night before the Kendrick Lamar concert a friend convinced me to draw him as well. Again little did I know that it would catch the attention of Kendrick’s manager, and that I would get it signed and get to meet Kendrick himself…but I think there are certain signs that the universe (God) puts in place. Getting my last two drawings SIGNED by the celebs I drew is out of this world…so I’ve decided to take my grandma’s advice and start drawing again.
I am a master of escapism, and putting that pencil to paper allows me to separate myself from all the stresses of life, and concentrate all my energy towards one focus point, the picture I’m drawing. I know it sounds odd, but I kind of form a relationship with each subject I draw…the typical drawing takes about 10 hours, that’s 10 hours face to face with whoever I am drawing. It becomes more than a drawing, but more of a journey, with that subject. I prefer drawing human faces as well…as they are the most interesting subjects I can think of. The human face is a projection of that person’s past, there are no two faces that are exactly the same, ever wrinkle, laugh line, dimple etc is a small access point to that person’s past. To their life…in that sense, I don’t draw people, but rather I draw their life stories. Do I know any technique? no. I just take my time and draw millimetre by millimetre, layer by layer until the picture is done.

I am committing myself to doing at least one piece of art, each month from here on out. I discover more about myself while drawing. I also improve my ability to remain patient with each piece…and most importantly, I begin to trust myself more, trust where I lay down my construction lines, how heavily I shade, how quickly I choose to draw…so yeah, back to where I started, with nothing but a pencil, a pad and a passion.

Peace and Love world

Fiasco