Comfort Zones

 

I wanted to write a little something about stepping out of your comfort zone. 

I've been making detailed drawings since the third year of my BA in 2010 and have developed a style of drawing that is quite distinctive. I've built up a portfolio of drawings over the last few years, starting with landscapes drawn in pencil of places special to me. I then moved on to pen drawings of fragmented landscapes which resembled delicate pieces of lace. 

But just because I've spent a few years making small scale detailed drawings doesn't mean that this is all I'm capable of. I was so glad that in the final semester of my MA I took a leap and decided to do something different. I ordered some big boards and bought blackboard paint and chalk and started drawing. The process of drawing couldn't have been further from what I'm used to, working from life, drawing the view out of the studio window, using a material so unfamiliar. 

The whole process was daunting but exciting, with a final MA exhibition to prepare for and little time to do it the pressure was on. If my drawings were a flop I'd have to live with them. 

In the end I was pleased with my blackboard drawings and I felt that if I hadn't made them then I wouldn't really have made the most of my MA. I stepped out of my comfort zone and did something that I'd never done before. 

I think if we don't challenge ourselves then we'll never evolve. It's good to try something new because even if you don't succeed you'll at least have learned something. 

Drawing In My Studio at Winchester School of Art, U.K.

Drawing In My Studio at Winchester School of Art, U.K.