Drawing - who knew?

As one of my many fans has reminded me, it is 17/11/17, so I need to blog.
Actually, it would be better if it were 17/11/71 (I like symmetry) but I don't see me living that long - thank goodness.
So ... what to think about.

Well, I have been throwing out some old stuff lately, trying to make room for new stuff, of course.
I have been going through old class notes from my course at RMIT. I started in 2006, which doesn't actually seem that long ago.
I came across the artist's statement for a piece I did in about 2011 and I am very glad I am not still in that headspace! My statement was about how people are putting on endless (seemingly endless) art shows about the environment and how we are (and still are, unfortunately) ruining it.

I was OVER IT. I felt like I should feel guilty for being alive, for using up precious resources.
Fortunately, I don't feel that bad about it now. Maybe it is closer to despair about what people are doing and not doing, about the amazing number of deniers who seem to get so much air space. But I am hopeful that it is more to do with the fact that I am doing what I can and so are others and that is all we can do. And there seem to be plenty of people who do care, despite the politicians.

Whatever the reason, I think I am in a better mental space now.

Now to my header: Drawing - who knew?
I often go to workshops and say that I don't draw. (I attended a workshop with Kathryn Harmer Fox earlier this year and she said that we shouldn't say we can't draw, just that we don't, hence the don't draw, not can't draw.)

Then I came across these old visual diaries and discovered that, when I am made to, I can draw. Who knew??

These were for a screen print assignment, base on insects. Once upon a time, I knew how to do repeat patterns.

I was quite surprised by some of the images I had come up with.
Maybe that person saying that we should draw every day had something going for him. But I don't see a revolution coming upon me - yet.

Trying to draw every day leads to rather mundane subjects.

These were from a trip to Turkey. I couldn't bring myself to draw in public (still can't) so I have quite a few drawings of my feet and fingers. And one of my roommate (which I actually recognise as her!)

It was fun going through old visual diaries and folders of notes. I threw out some techniques that I am definitely never going to do again. I discovered some that could be useful now, in a slightly different way. Then there were the ones that totally relate to what I am doing now.

But the drawings I did were a bit of an eye-opener.
Perhaps I will try to draw more often - one day.