The last drawing of the 4”by 4” project was peeled off the board a few weeks ago. What was originally meant to be a 30 day assignment went over by two weeks, and in the end, it more or less finished on an arbitrary whim. The masking stencil that kept the project literally in alinement has been retired to the dustbin and a new stencil has already been cut, ready to start a new round.
The project was more successful than I imagined. Out of the pile of drawings there are plenty that I would happily show on a public wall. Judgment aside, I think they are worthy of engagement and capable of pulling people in for closer scrutiny.
What lessons have been learned?
Well… aside from becoming more conscious with handling charcoal…
Maybe, don’t back away from an interesting challenge just because it’s outside the range of your assumed skill level…. or
If the choice is between either stopping short of the cigar and betting on letting it ride… let it ride… or
Just steer it to a finish and see what happens… or
Interesting is better than perfect… or
Making marks and making a drawing can land in essentially the same place, but with a very different effect.
Zygote Blum 