sit down

I've been trying to bust out my crayons more lately. Bought a notebook a few weeks ago and have been carrying my sad batch of broken colors in a ziplog bag in my backpack. The inspirations have been few and far between. If I'm going to draw something, it has to be *right* in front of me. For thinking visually, I have absolutely no artistic imagination.


I met some anthro folk at dinner on Friday and brought this ratty bag along to play later in a neighboring coffee shop. I thought I could tuck them away under the table, but we had a long wait and I couldn't hide my little secret- they questioned me well on their purpose. Hum, the idea behind drawing with crayons is that others can't judge on the quality of your work- they're crayons! How good could you really be? It's freed me up from worrying about talent and just focusing on the color of the shadows. I got three requests for pictures when I said I haven't been inspired lately- a person with an enlightened look upon their face (haha- ah, I'd be lucky if you could tell if it were a man or woman), a bunny and a coffee cup. All three attempts died off from ineptitude and disinterest.

(The nun I meditated with in Alpine once relayed a story about her teacher. When asked the appropriate time to meditate, he replied, "You know that time in the morning between breakfast and brushing your teeth when you're on the way to the bathroom? Sit down.")

So today, getting off my bike in front of the Hale Sciences I was bowled over by this magnificant tree with a bright, deep blue sky behind it. I strained my neck, mouth open, staring at its glory. And sat down. Pulled my crayons and notebook out of my bag and spent... a few minutes (don't want to reveal how many or you may expect something great) with that tree.



It's about looking more carefully at what's right there. Is yellow the main color in the middle of the tree? What makes those leaves darker around the top edge? How do the branches move in and out of it all? How can I show depth? (never did answer that last question). Tom Petty's Wildflowers and Wilco's Side with the Seeds, "some side with the leaves" came and went on the playlist and I was all smiles. Plucked one of the leaves off at the end and took it for later inspiration. Its colors are amazing and not too unbelievable with a 16 pack. You know that time between my Indonesian test and the intensive reading of bio anthropology when I'm on my way to Bucannans Coffee? I think I'll just sit down.



Acknowledgements: I have Elisa Steinhart-Keely to thank for the introduction to crayons. Coming back from Hawaii, I told her about ending my engagement and despite her thoughtful questions, was too in shock to say anything. Her response: "Well, if you're not going to talk, then you're going to draw." Can't thank her enough for the outlet.