This was for IF. The word is drifting.A while back it hit me. That thing they always tell you about your artistic style. That you don’t need to find it. That it’s already there. So don’t go looking for it. Just keep practicing and it comes. It’s true, they’re dead on, and most of the time someone else sees it before you do. And that’s okay too.
I’ve never been overly fond of my drawing style. It’s just way the I draw, I don’t really have much choice over it. Yeah there are techniques you can learn but there is an underlying footprint that is your stlye. I nicknamed mine “stumpy”.
We could use the same pencils and paper but compared to some of my friends and their overly talented sisters my work looks like it was made with broken crayons by an animal in spasm, possibly missing thumbs.
But it’s okay. Because I’m starting to really see my style. And it may be a little stumpy but it’s mine and I like it.
Today I started drawing something and realized that I wanted it to be bigger than the paper I had. For a minute it seemed like it was just a small portion of an enormous drawing just waiting to come out. And I wish I had the time discipline and space to make this enormous drawing. But maybe it will come together piece by piece. I see a wall in my mind with 30 or 40 pieces of paper taped together.
I’ve always worked smaller than I thought I should. I think everyone has a natural size that they draw or paint or whatever. It’s convenient to work small, it’s portable, its less expensive but something inside of me has always known I’m supposed to work larger than I do. I drew this pretty large. It started on a 11 by 17 page but I ran out of room and the parasol was on a another page. I shrunk it down to color it on my computer and to post it. But it was fun to work a little larger on a single image. And it doesn’t look all that stumpy.
2 comments:
I've always loved your work. It is not "stumpy" at all. And you do have a distinct style. It's fabulous.
But I know how it is to try to "find" your own style. I struggled with that a lot when I was taking art classes.
Also, I know your feeling about wanting to work in a larger format. I've always loved huge paintings. They seem to have so much "authority." But, argh! It's so expensive to work big.
A long time ago, I did a project using 4x8 foot pieces of foam core. That was monumentally fun yet tedious to work on. I haven't done anything as significant since.
Anyway, sorry to ramble. But I do share your "artist's angst." Just don't be too critical of your work. You are fabulous!
I think I'll always be my own worst critic. But I am starting to really see my stlye and I like what I'm seeing. But I might hold on to the nickname "Stumpy" a bit longer.
I always wanted to have those long elegant fashion lines, and they are not natural to me.
Big is costly! You have that right.
Oh my mom and I were working on our volcano, and we decided to fortify it this year. It had been plaster and paint and been exposed to the cold and heat and was soggy and tired. So we used concrete. Now we have an enormous hundred ound volcano that we don't exactly know what to do with! But it's fun to work large.
Thanks for your support. I miss you Marcie! It was great to hear from you. I'll email you some of the pages of the comic book I'm writing.
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