“You have not SEEN what you have not DRAWN”
When I first heard this quote from author/artist, Frederick Franck, I thought it couldn’t be true. Over the years, I have come to believe it. We look at things all day, but seeing is a whole different experience. Try this: Think of something you see everyday… like your car keys. Close your eyes and try to see it in your mind. Now pick up a pencil and a scrap of paper and draw your keys.
If you can’t draw it, it is not because you don’t know how to draw, it is because you haven’t really seen your keys. To prove this, now hold your keys in your hand, study them…look at all the angles and buttons and shadows. Now you are starting to see. Now relax, grab another piece of paper and draw your keys while looking at them. Go slowly; don’t judge your drawing. When you are done, you can now say you have seen your keys. If you have a nice drawing of keys, that is icing on the cake, but not important in this exercise. Now, as Frederick Franck said, go draw the 10,000 things around you. (If you would like me to tell you next time I am planning a class on seeing/drawing, just let me know so I can put you on the list.)
For my local friends, feel free to join with me and the small summer congregation at Cedarhurst Unitarian Universalist Church in Finksburg on Sunday, June 26 at 9:30 AM. I’ll be leading the informal service focusing on drawing as a form of meditation which leads to seeing the world around you more clearly.
Thanks, and feel free to share this with others.
Melinda