I almost quit drawing

An interesting thing happened to me after I began using a book about drawing. After having drawn daily for several years, I began to skip days and I started getting bored with what I was drawing. When people ask me about my drawing, I say that I only fool around with drawing. I tell people I am not a true artist.

Some days I might draw the food I eat. Other times I draw various scenarios that played out in my life. Sometimes I draw my dog, a tree, or a plant. I take a very intuitive and fun approach. I am not trying to become an artist. I am just a person who likes to fool around with drawing.

After starting to work with a book designed to help people become artists and be good at drawing, I found I wasn’t able to draw my funny little drawings, my little cartoonish dogs, or poorly drawn trees. I found myself wondering why I was even drawing, why did I have a sketchbook? Maybe it was time to let it all go and do something else.

Fortunately, I discovered the book Drawn on the Way: A Guide to Capturing the Moment Through Live Sketching by Sarah Nisbett. Tiring of scrolling through her phone on her way to and from work, Nisbett discovered her abilities to draw by taking a sketchbook with her and drawing during her daily commute on the subway. Her book offers a lot of great ideas and techniques to help the reader begin their own sketching practice. The book gives the basics of line drawing. For me, the biggest help was her saying: “This book is a warm invitation to engage your own creativity, using simple supplies and a universal and ever-present source of inspiration: the world. This book will not teach you how to draw like me: rather, it will guide you through the process of drawing from life in your own style.”

Yes, drawing in my own style, something I had abandoned after reading a book about the proper way to draw. In one mere instant, I was given permission to explore the world of drawing in a way that suits me. Sure, I am still learning about perspective, positive and negative space, lighting and other such important aspects of drawing, but I am also learning these in my own way. My simple drawing practices have returned and so has my joy.

Whatever your creative pursuit might be, Drawn On the Way will support you in developing your own style. Yes, learn the basics of various media. Take workshops, read articles, learn about other artists and the techniques they have mastered. Then be sure you apply your own special style to your art so it is truly an expression of your heart and soul. After all, this is creativity at its finest!

Creating with joy, grace, and ease!

Krysta