Thoughts on Drawing

Drawing has always been a part of my life. When I was little I used to draw with my dad all the time. I remember having contests with him for who could draw the best, and of course my mom would always say that my drawings were the best. Despite this, I knew that he was better than me and I always wanted to be as good as him. In elementary school and middle school, art was one of my favorite classes. Once I got to high school I started to take art a little more seriously. I took honors level art classes, became an active member of the Honors Art Society, put together benefit art shows in the community as a fundraiser for the Humane Society, and helped design and paint murals both at school and in my community. Once I got to college, I never thought that I would have time to enjoy drawing and art like I had in my earlier years. Fortunately, I decided to take Drawing 199 this spring and it made realize that I can enjoy drawing and art, despite being a busy college student. I had never taken a formal drawing class before, and I really enjoyed starting from the basics and building upon this foundation. I think this kind of teaching and guidance has made me a much better artist and understand drawing on a much deeper level. Drawing has made me appreciate all of the objects around me for what they are- whenever I look at a tree, or an object in my room, I no longer see it as just an object, but as lines and shadows and values and shapes. This class, along with other photography classes, has inspired me to be pursue a Visual Arts major, to study what I am interested in and use art as a means to communicate my ideas and experiences with the world.