Tiny Drawings

Inspiring ideas can be elusive. Yet, I often find that having too many ideas feels overwhelming. It is knowing which idea to pursue at any given time that is the real strength of an artist. How will we know which idea we need to develop unless we let that idea exist in a draft?

When I find that my drawings aren’t coming out right and my compositions feel stiff, I cut out a few small pieces of paper and make tiny drawings. I use a fine point mechanical pencil because it's important to use a satisfying tool that helps you love the process. In those tiny spaces, I can explore any idea, quickly, without the pressure of a large space.

Blind Contour Landscape Drawing Exercise

If perfectionism is the antithesis of creativity then what can help us access more creative ideas?

One answer is to approach art making with a sense of experimentation.

Yesterday, I felt overwhelmed with ideas that I didn't know where to start. Then I realized that I needed to create an experiment that would help me to immerse myself in the process and not the result. I asked myself, "What would happen if you drew the landscape without looking at it?"

Then I did this blind contour landscape drawing exercise:

1. Sit near a window


2. Have colors at hand and paper in front of you


3. Pick colors without looking at them - this helps to find new color combinations you might not have thought of


4. Look outside your window and start moving your pencil


5. Feel your paper with your hands, moving your pencil with your eyes along the landscape


6. Notice the shapes, textures, and forms


7. Notice how uncomfortable it feels not to look at your paper


8. Practice observing


9. Draw slower, moving your pencil with your eyes


10. Make light marks and hard marks


11. Remember how good it feels to make marks on a paper

Listen Closely For The Soft Hum Of Inspiration

I used to go to this place and that place, not expecting to find any inspiration for my art. Yet, as if by magic, I always found it. This becomes a powerful thing: to be able to go anywhere or do anything and find a sliver of inspiration, gleaming in the sunlight.

Inspiration can hide in the most mundane of places. When you are doing the dishes or stacking sticks or gathering trash, listen closely. It is almost imperceptible.

Did anyone notice this inspiration lying on the ground? You notice it and it looks like a opaque stone. But when you pick it up and hold it close to your eye, it reflects so much light that no one else can see.

The Stars Are In You

There is something special about ambitious, creative people who can't stop working on their ideas. I am drawn to them, inspired by them, and grateful for them. It so happens that one of the most creative people I know is my younger brother Art Okoro.

I made this drawing and video for him, inspired by his newly released song. Wanting to find a way to share his song, naturally, I drew something.

As I watched the public reception of my brother's song, it affirmed my thought of how sharing quality work is more valuable than sharing a quantity of work. Yet, in order to get to quality, we have to actually produce a large volume of work. Often times, alone, behind the scenes, under the moon.

 

Sketching And Walking With Juniper

My biggest source of creative inspiration is this artist I know who lives with me, my daughter Juniper. Yesterday, we walked around outside in the slightly windy afternoon and made drawings in our sketchbooks. In the past I have taken many photos of her with my phone because she's my kid and makes the best drawing reference for my picture books. But lately on our walks, I have been taking my sketchbook (and leaving my phone behind).

While sitting on dirt or grass, under trees, I will start to draw Juniper while she is poking something with a stick, drawing, or hopping from rock to rock. Since she is four years old, she moves very fast. This forces me to do two things: pay attention and observe her body and posture, and draw quickly.

I am always amazed by how sketching and walking can be one of the simplest ways to excavate creative ideas.

 

Everything Is Temporary

Stars Falling From The Night Sky