Tuesday, September 30, 2008

A different look at the creative process


Yesterday, as I was implementing my free WiFi with one costly cuppa joe at the local Starbucks joint, it occurred to me that visualizing the fits and starts of getting back into illustrating would be good fodder.

I came to NYC just out of college with the intent to write and illustrate books. I underwhelmed a number of art directors with my portfolio. I illustrated one modern fairy tale book for an obscure press (with a tie-in to Sting, go figure) and a Darrell Schwitzer tale in Twilight Zone Magazine. I looked at my work and decided I had to learn to draw better. I took classes. My drawing got better but then I realized I was passable but never gonna be someone whose illustrated works I'd buy eagerly. I lost heart. I was not a genius. Plus life was becoming busy with learning how to be a book designer and starting a family and yadda yadda here I am, still drawn to drawing and wondering what to do with it.

So when a well dressed young woman sat down next to me and whipped out a shiny new mac book air I tuned my battered mac to google images and pulled out pencils and paper. Take that you newer toy showoffsky...

And I personified the whole mess.

2 comments:

Deborah Atherton said...

I particularly love "Anxiety" - I swear that is exactly the creature that too often gets between me and my keyboard. I hope you are able to quiet the voices that try to muffle you - although now I am wondering, is coffee the right thing to be trying to quiet them with?

Decaf, anyone?

Anonymous said...

check out www.societyillustrators.org
There is a call for entries that you might want to participate in.