No I am not crazy. Everyone CAN draw. Some people have more natural ability than others but anyone can learn to draw. The image I’m using for this post is one of my own sketches. It doesn’t look exactly like the nude model but that wasn’t the point. It was just a warm-up exercise to just get something on paper.

I took Innovation Design Studio presented by the Interaction Design Association NYC Chapter taught by  Todd Zaki Warfel and Will Evans on Saturday. At a point during the course Todd asked if there was anyone who thought they couldn’t draw. Several hands went up. This is a very typical response to this question. Todd said “if you can draw a square or a circle” you can draw.

My personal definition of drawing is putting your personal vision on paper. It doesn’t need to be perfect. Perfectionism is the killer of creativity.

A lot of books on drawing say that it is all about learning to see and putting what you see on paper. My favorite book about drawing is Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards. My high school art teacher Mrs. Amow loved that book and she used to give us exercises from it all the time. For example, contour drawing which is basically sketching without looking at the paper and not picking up your pencil is a great exercise in learning how to see.

Drawing has many benefits such as increased creativity, better problem solving and an outlet for self-expression. Go buy a sketchbook and just doodle. Or sign-up for a class. Lots of community colleges have them or get Betty Edward’s book. But start somewhere.

Just do it!