Sketching a tree is fairly straightforward. Other subjects can be more difficult.
Pixie was a very obliging subject, dozing in the late summer afternoon following a hard day’s work hauling a gypsy wagon along country roads in farmland near Bendigo, Victoria.
I haven’t turned these sketches into a painting but I might one day. Sometimes the act of drawing is another way of authentically engaging with the subject, of paying close attention to detail and reverencing the form, observing the way that sunlight shapes its surface. In these moments, the relationship between artist and subject is the purpose of the interaction, being sufficient in and of itself.
In a way, drawing is like a meditation. A silent communion between artist, subject and medium. Of course, it’s easier if the subject doesn’t move much. Like a tree.
Or a half-dozing horse.
Dr Megan Spiers 