In essence, drawing means laying down a set of marks in order to convey an idea, tell a story, or express thoughts and feelings. It can be powerful and expressive, and can break down barriers between people, bringing them together despite their language, age, origin, or politics. Drawing can be thought-provoking, raise awareness, tell a story, or simply evoke beauty and joy.
I would like to dedicate this blog to anyone out there who might be feeling the urge to sketch or to express something through drawing, but might be a bit afraid to start, or is faced with less than ideal circumstances.

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Are you worried about not having the “right” background, just because you grew up in a certain place or didn’t go to art school? Do you feel you are too old to start something new? Are you afraid your budget might not allow you access to quality tools, and drawing without the best art supplies would mean setting yourself up for failure?

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Fear has a way of blocking us from seeing that we have more than we realize. And more often than not, we actually have everything we need to get started and to keep moving forward, learning and improving as we go.

The fact that you are reading this means you have access to the internet. That’s great! The internet has become an invaluable source of courses and tutorials, many of them free. Start browsing, and then build your own video playlist, a study plan to fit your schedule, your lifestyle, and what you want to learn. The list should make you feel more enthusiastic, as it will be made up of what you find interesting, as well as lessons that will help you tackle areas you find more challenging. We all have those, don’t we? Are you struggling with controlling your line? Are you finding it hard to choose and match colors? Or maybe you are interested in exploring new techniques or materials and are looking for the basic rules to get it right?

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If you know what you’re looking for, chances are you can find it. Once you build yourself a study plan, stick to it no matter what! If you do, you’ve won half the battle already. They say practice makes perfect. I wouldn’t know about perfect, but without a doubt practice makes better. It’s simple, really. Drawing is a skill, and so practice is key.

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From time to time, it’s important to stop and assess your pace and progress. If you try to rush things, you’ll end up getting the opposite results of what you set out to achieve. On the other hand, if you don’t actually do what you planned, you won’t see any results at all. Only you know what pace is right for you, and what  you need to study and practice. The same principle applies when you are looking at what others are doing. You can learn a lot from other peoples’ work, whether students or professional artists, and even more from how they got there: what inspired them, what they consider important, etc. Listen, but try not to let any of it intimidate you. You are where you are in your process, and that is more than OK. It’s exactly where you should be.

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Be patient with yourself. As Dr. Prem Jagy eloquently expressed it, “The only person you should compete with is the person you were yesterday.”

When it comes to art supplies, the selection seems to be endless. The sheer number of brand and product options for almost any tool you are looking for can be overwhelming.

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Oh, how I enjoy a good brush pen or a high quality brush, a well-made and reliable cutting tool, or paper that does what I need it to do. A piece of equipment that is right for the task in hand is true joy. And yes, the split end of a felt tip multiliner, ink that dries too slowly, or a poorly made dip pen tip or brush can be frustrating. But, and I can’t stress this enough, not having access to the best art supplies should never stop you from expressing yourself. It won’t stop you from seeing constant improvement, either, unless you let it. If all you have is a cheap pen and an ordinary piece of paper, then they will do. You will still be able to do some great artwork. Throughout most of human history, people didn’t have anywhere near what we have today. There is no reason to let a small budget slow you down.

I am offering here a few examples of sketches and quick drawings I made with low cost pens that are usually used for writing. They show what you can do with inexpensive art supplies. I chose pens, as all you would need to start would be pen and paper, but the same principle applies to low-cost pencils, brushes, water color sets, and so on.

Be our background, education, age, origins, and budget what they may, we all have a need to express ourselves. If you feel that drawing might be a good way for you to do it, it’s worth making the effort not to let fear stop you from saying what you have to say. Chances are that if you show people something that’s real, they will be interested in seeing it.

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Thank you for reading this. I hope we all have the courage to keep facing challenges so we can lay down better sets of marks as we strive to leave our own mark by telling our story.

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