Well, earlier this year I met up with Cat Bennet, an artist based in Boston, USA, to put my out-of-practise drawing skills to the test. Having not drawn a single thing since I finished my art GCSE, I thought trying to draw anything more than a squiggly line would be a challenge. But that is exactly how we began: drawing abstract squiggles. Cat said most people are scared of drawing because they think it has to be a masterpiece, which is exactly what I had been thinking. But, Cat told, me, I was being way too hard on myself. To me, my squiggles were a mess, but to her they were beautiful and expressive! Next she got me drawing her glasses, then a tea pot, before ‘graduating’ onto the chair in front of me (until someone went and sat on it!).
Moving meditation
I was really starting to get into the creative spirit, aided also by a large glass of malbec wine, and I was getting more confident at making large, expressive pencil marks. Cat explained that I could use it as a means of problem solving, as utilising the creative right brain means you are able to see things from a new angle. And, she said, it is like a moving form of meditation, as you become lost in the process so that outside worries no longer seem to important. The drawing certainly was like a form of meditation, as I was either concentrating on copying an object, or was in the flow of creating something abstract.
Thanks to Cat’s constant praise for my humble markings, I started to gain confidence, and it was the most fun I’d had in ages! I can't believe I had neglected this creative part of myself for so long.
Cat Bennet is leading a Confident Creative drawing retreat in Covent Garden, London, onSeptember 25th & 26th September. Find out more at www.theconfidentcreative.com
Cat Bennett is the author of The Confident Creative: Drawing to free the hand and mind (Findhorn Press; £8.99) Visit catbennett.net.
No comments:
Post a Comment