Practice makes perfect

When I was in middle school my art teacher was a graduate school MFA intern. He always had a little notebook or sketchbook and he would draw just about anywhere -- at a coffee shop, subway station, on the train, and so on.

For an artist, this is a good habit to develop as it helps improve perceptive skills and ability to translate what one perceives onto paper in a relatively short time (which also requires the artist to discriminatingly capture "the essence" of an image). It is sort of like how a good writer tends to have a journal with her at all times. Constant journaling also helps inspire future creations.

About a week ago I was waiting outside a restaurant on an exceptionally busy evening (in the end I waited for about an hour and 20 minutes). I drew this on a notepad with a pencil and then a Sharpees -- in about five minutes.

I was in a meeting with local business owners networking. I happened to sit next to someone who was just starting a coffee shop in Portland and heard she was looking for someone to design a signage. I came up with an idea, drew something quickly and showed it to her. (And I got the project on the spot!) Note that this design differs quite a bit from the final product (of course), but the main ideas are the same.

[caption id="attachment_45" align="aligncenter" width="340" caption="Southeast Grind (2009) - rough sketch"][/caption]

My point is this: if you are an artist, be always ready and prepared -- you'll never know what inspires you. It's also the same with writers. You cannot be an artist or a writer only every once in a while.