After a few definite failures in my attempt at drawing I started to contribute it to a lack of talent. I packed my paints away, tried to lift up my head and forget that I ever had any artistic ambitions. But deep down there still lived the desire to take a pencil in my hand and draw the pictures that were so vivid in my soul.
Funny how strong a belief can govern the direction your choices and ultimately your life takes.
I never thought I would land in an art class again, but I did. Sitting there listening to a clear and vibrant teacher teaching us the basic principles of painting I realised - it all starts with cultivating the correct basic principles. Living by that which you know is pure and true.
As she gave us the artist's principles for successful drawing, I realised that those are the principles of life. Each day we are drawing pictures that we ship down paths of our experience and store in memory crates, to unpack later during times of reflection.
In art there is no definite technique to indicate empty space, but it is the ability to create the feeling of empty space around an object that leads to the success of drawing a picture. In life we also need to recognize the empty spaces within and around us. We need to use them as places of breathing and meditation to create a support system for the areas in our lives that take up space and time.
The second key to successful drawing is the correct balance between light and shade. Every dimension that we experience in a picture is a result of the correct usage of light and shade. A life only filled with light and joy has no depth or dimension. We need sadness, times of hardship to connect with our inner strength, to walk through valleys so that we appreciate the hill top views.
If you want to draw any object, you have to see outlines. It is important to see the object as it is standing in front of you and not in the way your mind is preferring to perceive it. Day by day we are confronted with issues we need to solve, challenges for which we have no answers. The temptation is always there to attach our own perception to a situation to find an easier solution. But as long as we don't stop and look carefully, distinguishing a situation for what it really is, we will never find a creative solution. We will always be trapped between failure and frustration.
Another secret of painting lies in the appreciation of relationships. The way in which one part of an object lies to the other. So many times have I thrown my pictures away because the proportions just didn't look right. The same counts for life - people throw friendships, interests away because they were not able to establish a healthy relationship with that which lies infront of them. Firstly we have to see ourselves in the correct relation to others and our enviroment. We have to be able to live with who we are, know where we are needed, to make a difference before we can attempt to satisfy those around us.
To draw and paint is to create a space of opportunities. To live everyday with honesty, dignity, integrity, joy and zest is to do just that. Every positive action from our inside will have a positive outflow and will create a pallette of colours from which we can mix future experiences.
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