It’s a hat*
15 Jul 2010 1 Comment
in Art
A very dear friend has been suggesting for sometime now that I should draw, or attempt to. He insisted that surely I could do it. In turn, I suggested that I couldn’t even draw a straight line, only to be told there is no reason for me to think I needed to draw a straight line. After promising I would try, I purchased a small sketch pad along with a few pencils and wondered all the way home why I had wasted my money. When I arrived home, I unpacked my goodies and placed the pencils very neatly into the pencil box, stacked pad and box on the table and walked away from it. Each time I passed by the table it was as if they were staring at me accusingly so I eventually moved them to my living room where I sat and returned their stare for a while. Then I went to bed. A day or two later, I thought “okay dopey, might as well try”. So I drew some lines on the first page of the book to see what each pencil looked like (that’s what I told myself I was doing anyway) and closed the book and put my pencils away. The next day, I drew something that resembled my bedside lamp,a pretty little thing with no straight lines, and found I couldn’t draw a curved line either. When I whined about this to my friend, he suggested I forget about lines and think about shades. I then attempted a to create a likeness of a little wagon I have, a pretty little thing with lots of different tones and shadows and found the end result a bit ridiculous. So taking my own advice instead of his, I drew it with lines and curves. It was still ridiculous, but at least it resembled a wagon, although I dont know whose. I laid it all aside for a week. Then one night after talking to my friend and evident mentor, I felt encouraged and made more attempts, sketching my back porch and some little weedy flowers using his advice on shading and my own stubborness with lines. None of them any good. Somewhat discouraged again but still determined, I tried a different approach. I started scribbling, with not much in mind and not knowing what I was doing or where I was going with it. A form started to emerge and I continued my little scribbles. I ended up with a reasonable likeness of a pond’s edge with trees all around it. I looked at the finished product and thought “cool”. I have in the past week scribbled on many pages of my little book, with most of the pages looking just like pages of scribbles. Ever determined and not willing to give up just yet, I set myself the task to rely on my mind’s eye and find a little success with this. This is the result of my last attempt. Far from perfect and perhaps a bit oddly formed, it is somehow very satisfying to me.
Thank you Given, your angels may appear yet.
*It’s a hat is from The Little Prince, a good read and great family movie.
