What do I draw?

I draw everything

I am often asked what I draw and paint: landscapes, still life, people? My answer is "everything". 

I used to think about having the right set up, the right subject, the right lighting, the right composition, and I ended up never drawing anything. 

It was only after I read Danny Gregory's book, Creative Licence, that I began to draw everything. Danny  encourages the reader to make drawing a part of one's life. This means drawing everything around you. His book contains sketches of his trousers, his teapot, his keys and other everyday objects and they are charming and delightful. 

This was a light bulb moment for me: I don't have to wait to be inspired! I can draw ordinary objects and make them look like little pieces of art!

And so began my habit of drawing everything around me. 

The hole puncher

Angela and Richard's burner

The cognac bottle

Making the ordinary beautiful

One of the things that speaks to me in Danny Gregory's work is the idea of making everyday things subjects of a drawing. The very act of drawing is an expression of my point of view; so, drawing an everyday object transforms it from the humdrum to an expression of the way I perceive it, of the emotions, people and ideas I attach to the object. 

Take these sunglasses which I drew in memory of my mother. They were a quintessential part of her style, the finishing touch to her sartorial ensemble that was meticulously curated and expressed her identity as an artist and fashionable woman. 

They are one of the small number of objects I kept to remember my mother by. When a loved one is gone, photographs and objects become repositories of memory and attachment, and a physical embodiment of a spirit that is long gone.  

My mother's sunglasses

We don't need inspiration, we just need to be ourselves

I think, ultimately, what Gregory Danny is saying is that we don't need to be inspired by extraordinary things to make good art. We just need to express ourselves through the things we draw (and make) to make it special. 

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