DRAW, SWIM, AND TALENT?

Two weeks ago, I was stuck in this meeting, and was bored. So. I doodled on a piece of A4 rough paper. With a black pen.

There was no particular idea or concept or theme in mind. It took a split moment of pondering to decide what to draw. It has always been challenging (to me) to draw a ribbon. An artistically nice, flowing, elegant-looking ribbon bow. So. I tried to draw a simple (elegant, I hope) ribbon bow with long tails.

I thought the single ribbon looked lonely. So. I drew a music symbol directly beneath it. It still looked pretty empty. So. I put in a question mark symbol. And threw in a leaf.




A few days later, I looked at the drawing again. NOW it looked so girly. Ribbon, music, leaf. It seemed off-balanced. It needed angles. ANGLES. Something masculine. So. I added in two lightning bolts. Then, a cube. I thought the cube looked lonely, too. So. I added a smiley face onto the cube and gave it two tiny feet.



Yesterday, after ending some oral duties and while waiting for CCA to end at 6pm, I took a short break in my cubicle. Looked at the drawing again. Decided to create some background by using connecting lines, hearts, stars, and some other weird, random shapes. Rounded the background off with random tenacious strands of ivy. I thought the ivy looked lonely too. So. I drew a simple toothpick-drawing of a man hanging off one of the ivy strands.

Silly, impromptu drawings of random items lumped together - courtesy of boredom. I thought nothing of it, because, hey, it's a senseless drawing. Ribbon. Music. Question mark. Lightning bolts. Leaf. A smiley cube. Hearts. Stars. Ivy. Hanging man. TOTALLY SENSELESS. No theme, no concept, no ideas. Just nonsensical doodling of random items spread over separate days.



Today, WC walked past my desk and chanced upon the drawing. He complimented it, and jokingly asked me to "jump ship"; switch over and teach Art. I thought he was just teasing me, because, you know, how could it be? AND coming from an arty-farty person like himself - who is the man behind all the posters and board decorations during our recent carnival? Someone who graduated from an art institution? Someone who takes brilliant photographs like this one?

(credits: WC)









I thought what I drew would be child's play to him.




"Nah, I mean it. It's nice" He added, "The kids here mostly won't be able to draw something like this, I daresay."


Really? I just drew it on a whim, you know. Quite half-heartedly, truthfully.

"Actually, everyone can draw. It's inside of us. Just that as people grow older, we become more self-conscious. More self-restrained. Afraid of doing things wrongly. 

Either that, or it could be pragmatism over creativity.  The society, the environment, doesn't encourage the use of it.

And thus, we gradually "lose" what we have inside us - by hiding it or by not using it. But, it's in there; it's innate; hidden; covered."

He continued, "Really. I tried an experiment before. I got a kid blindfolded and ask him to draw intuitively. And the picture he drew; it was pretty amazing. Even his friends - and even he himself - was surprised and in awe."


Art. Drawing. So, it's something like swimming? Do you know, all babies are able to swim? If you throw an infant into the water, it can swim by itself.

"Yeah! Same. People grow up, they get educated, and at the same time, they get scared to let themselves 'go' freely. Self-constrained. So, they begin to lose what they have - but it's inside them all the while. Or while they're growing up, the body undergoes physical changes. They feel uncomfortable with it; awkward. So they start losing it, too. Like, swimming."

It makes me think. It's not so much of talent. Success does not hinge so much on talent. Oh well, maybe there is - aptitude. But whatever aptitude there is is easily smothered, too.




Ok, I'm rattling. 




Goodnight.