The Perils of a Self-Education Journey

#255 - read to the end for big news in the life of little Rohan

Dear reader,

Over the past few weeks, I have shared the best ideas from my talk at Wild Wonder Conference in September. But this week I recall a question that stumped me. It laid bare a gap in my self-education journey that I had only vaguely sensed before.

The question was this - “Who are your favourite artists? And are there any women on the list?”

The SneakyArt Post is a publication of secretly drawn art of the world. Every week, I share the latest pages from my sketchbooks and the best ideas from my journey as an artist and writer.

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Question: Who are your favourite artists that inspire your work?

To be honest, I do not like making such lists. Every list is a list of the moment. Every name I include does disservice to other important influences that either did not occur to me then or were not relevant to the context of that specific conversation.

(I am also embarrassed by my list, silly as that sounds. Because I do not have an education in the arts, my understanding is restricted to my own curiosity. It is a patchwork of learning, scrapped together from here and there, something seen and something read, open to misinterpretations.)

But I was asked, so…

🖼️ M.C. Escher

Inspired by Moorish tessellations at the Alhambra Palace in Spain, Escher became intrigued by the idea of depicting infinity. But he was not a mathematician. His expression of infinity was through the symbols and motifs of his art. Below is one of my favourite pieces by him, a depiction of infinity titled “Heaven and Hell”.

Circle Limit IV or “Heaven and Hell” (1960)

The symbols are angels (in white) and devils (in black). They are representative of the forces of good and evil. We see them alternating, fitting together, and reproducing themselves in steadily diminishing size, as they radiate outwards. The six largest (three angels and three devils) pivot about the central point… (Keep reading)

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🖼️ Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

He was an illustrator in late 19th century Paris, famous for his posters of the nightlife and decadence of his time.

Divan Japonais (1892)

He was a little man who drew obsessively, was curious about everything, and directed his attention towards people not ordinarily the subject of art. He was also a commercial artist, which for some reason means less than fine artist?

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🖼️ Bill Watterson

Bill Watterson is the creator of the greatest comic strip of all time - Calvin and Hobbes. He fought for space in the newspapers, breaking out of the typical 3 or 4 panel space. He made the comic on his own terms, and stopped on his own terms as well. He has refused to sell merchandising or creative rights to his work, turning down hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

I grew up reading Calvin and Hobbes in the morning newspaper, and admired his linework, beautiful watercolor art, and the effortlessness of his style. From as long as I can remember, I wanted to have my own version of that line, that stroke, that distinct style.

“You’ll be told in a hundred ways, some subtle and some not, to keep climbing, and never be satisfied with where you are, who you are, and what you’re doing. There are a million ways to sell yourself out, and I guarantee you’ll hear about them… To invent your own life’s meaning is not easy, but it’s still allowed, and I think you’ll be happier for the trouble.” - Bill Watterson.

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Follow-up Question: Are there any women on your list?

I enjoy the work of Georgia O’Keeffe, Frida Kahlo, and Emily Carr, and some of my favourite cartoonists are women too - Kate Beaton and Sarah Andersen.

But in the moment I was dumbfounded. You see, this is one of the perils of a self-education journey. You learn what you learn, and cannot always tell where the gaps lie. You imbibe not only the ideas but also the biases of your sources.

This knowledge gap is not mine alone. Patriarchal, traditional power structures have undermined the contributions of women artists for centuries. Even if you studied art in college, or visited every single art museum in the world, you will not know more than a handful of women artists. Fortunately, this week I came across an excellent book recommendation.

Goodreads

I grabbed the book off Libby and started reading this morning. I am trying to unlearn some old things and learn some new things, to cover my biases and expand my mind.

Reader, have you read this book? Or, have you undertaken your own journey to appreciate the work of women in art? Share thoughts, resources, and discoveries, in the comments!

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Big News In the Life of Little Rohan

This week, Rohan had his mundan ceremony, which is apparently something only Indian people do. Indian babies are born with a full head of hair, and it is considered healthy to cut all this hair off within the first year (or third year, or fifth, only odd numbers!) It is said to be good for the scalp, good for hair growth, blah blah blah.

Some people have it done with a straight razor which, frankly, sounds alarming. We got away with using an electric trimmer. So now little Rohan is a little bald baby. A bald little baby. And he has managed to pull off the look? Anyway, it will be back in a couple of months.

He is unable to sit still for longer than a few seconds, as you can tell.

He rubs his scalp every few minutes in disbelief/curiosity, but has shown no other reaction to the event.

Tomorrow night we fly back to Vancouver. *sigh*

💻 Sat 16 Nov | Sign up for next week’s Reader Hangout, where I will flip through the pages of my travel sketchbook from India, and this fourth book of Rohan.

💻 Sun 24 Nov | I am part of an amazing lineup of speakers and instructors at the Holiday Sketch Summit organized by Oliver Hoeller. Grab your FREE seat!

🗝️ Fri 29 Nov | Open Studio Day at the Beaumont Studios in Mt Pleasant, Vancouver, where I will share my sketchbooks, offer prints, and some original pieces! More info soon.

👋🏼 People of Vancouver, should we do a winter-time meetup this month or next? Tell me in the comments.

Thank you for reading. I am glad to have a share of your time and attention this week.