 |
| Matt's sketch of Quen |
Saturday morning at the beach I was sketching the dunes when my son Matt sat down near by with his own sketchbook and began to draw this sketch of his son, our grandson Quen. Wow!!! I've always known Matt is very artistic but he's never had much interest in drawing. He did some fabulous acrylic paintings in college that were a bit abstract or surreal, but his artistic bend was more in photography and furniture design.
A couple of my four grown kids think my being a sketchbook artist is a silly waste of time. I have struggled with a bad self-image and lack of confidence most of my life so their opinion matters to me. But having this beautiful son of mine sit and sketch with me meant the world to me . . . And I get a gorgeous copy of the sketch to keep!
How wonderful to spend time sketching with your son. He is very talented! Your sketchbooks are gorgeous! Even though a few of your children aren't interested in them now, your grandchildren will treasure these precious books and all of them will cherish the memories (whether they admit it or not). You are a witness and inspiration to everyone you share your sketchbooks with. Don't let anything discourage you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a wonderful word of encouragement! Two of our grandchildren already love my sketchbooks and have added heir own drawings on some of the pages!
ReplyDeleteI've always known Matt is extremely talented but he's not shown much interest before.
Ditto everything that Giddings Art so eloquently said!
ReplyDeleteWhen I hear people say things like "being a sketchbook artist is a silly waste of time," I can feel my whole body tense up in painful recognition and empathy. I've struggled with my own poor self-image for decades, in part because of similar comments that have been made to me over the years. My heart goes out to you. Your naysaying kids ought to Google the benefits of drawing. So much research is being done affirming the correlation between art-making and academic achievement, mental and physical health, and problem solving abilities, among other impressive benefits. So expressing ourselves creatively is the smart and healthy thing to do. And sharing our art, and therefore our vulnerability and humanity, with the world is an incredibly courageous and giving thing to do. You go, girl!
Great comments! And so true.
ReplyDeleteBefore the "modern age", the ability to draw was considered an important part of one's education. There are so many benefits beyond getting an image on paper -- increases our mental capabilities in reasoning and understanding while causing us to slow down and really pay attention.
Great to sketch with a son! It means so much to have a child share an interest with you. I just swoon with I can play music with my son and his wife or backpack or kayak with my daughter and her husband. Family at it's best. We can ignore the times when family members don't prove to be supportive.
ReplyDeleteTimes like these are why we moved to Texas! But seeing Matt sketching beside me was pure unexpected joy. He has finished a second sketch since returning home, of Quen's hands putting together a wood joint for a chair they are building together. Matt works from photos -- Quen calls it cheating but I told him artists are free to use any tool that enables them to get what they are after.
ReplyDelete