Drawing (On the Side)

Zero-pressure sketching as a secondary activity.

I have always done tons of what I call side drawing, which is simply drawing while I’m watching TV or doing some other activity that either doesn’t require my full attention or provides me with ample breaks (such as playing Scrabble and waiting for my opponent to make a word).

I’m watching the Wimbledon final right now (Alcaraz V Djokovic) and doodling away on my iPad in Adobe Fresco. This is the third drawing I made and I like it:

Over the years, I have learned the benefits of this kind of drawing:

• It takes all the pressure off. If the drawings don’t work, I just scrap them and move on. I’m not all that invested in them and don’t care if they are successful or not because half of my attention is focused elsewhere. Drawing is the secondary activity; the primary activity (TV show or game, etc.) is providing me with some amusement and enjoyment, so I don’t need to rely on the success of the drawing to give me any of that. The drawing above works, but the two I made before it were disasters … the beautiful thing is that I don’t care! The tennis is the main draw (sorry for Dad pun).

• I don’t need to spend any time thinking about what to draw. I just respond to whatever is happening on the television (or use the words on the Scrabble board as drawing prompts, and so on).

• These sketches can often lead to rough ideas that are actually useful later for more finished compositions, story ideas, and more. Again, with the drawing above, I’m getting ideas for a series, for a color print, and all kinds of good things. The whole thing started with me playing with the stippling brush that suggests the crowd. You never know where things are going, and that’s part of the fun.

If you’re looking for more drawing time in your day, try some side drawing. I think you’ll like it.

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I will have a story for you soon about the importance of asking for help in certain moments in my career. Many entrepreneurs and freelancers feel like it doesn’t ‘count’ if they don’t do it all on their own. Why do we put this pressure on ourselves? There are several reasons and I will go into these in depth.

Meanwhile, here is another very enjoyable conversation I had with the charming and intelligent Andy Williams on the topics of A.I. and digital art.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

- Kyle