Day 28. A Tree.
i got lost and good things happened.
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👋🏼 Hello reader!
These are the last 3 days of 30 Days of Vancouver.
30 Days of Vancouver is my daily drawing project to capture moments of beauty in ordinary places on ordinary days in this part of the world I now call home.
On Day 28, I was speaking with my aunt on the phone when I left home. Wrapped up in the conversation, I missed a turn and wandered off in a direction I hadn’t planned. Lucky me!
“As Bokonon says: peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from god.” ―Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle
The moment I realized and turned to go back, I was confronted by a large tree. A person walked underneath it, dwarfed by its enormous height. And an old question popped into my mind. I had asked it many years ago (in 2019) of my workshop participants at the USk Chicago Seminar -
“How tall is a building if there are no people to enter it?”
Another one was this - “Why is a cafe?”
Today the question framed itself another way. It said -
What makes a tree tall? And what makes a person tiny?
I sat down on the bench and decided to find the answer. It is, like so many things, a matter of perspective.
👋🏼 Hello, new readers. SneakyArt is secretly drawn art of the world. It is drawn in public places, with a fountain pen and sketchbook. It captures transient moments of beauty created in the flux of city life.
🌲 I do not like to draw trees
As an ink artist who is also impatient, I lack the energy to depict trees with the meticulous detail they require. So I find ways around it. (More on technique soon!)
I was halfway through the drawing when a person walked into the scene. And instantly, I knew that this had become their scene.
💡 Here’s a composition tip - Always leave room for magic.
So it goes.
Because I was sitting comfortably on a bench, I recorded large parts of this drawing. Find these on my TikTok, IG Reels, and soon on my YouTube channel as well.
8️⃣ Eight Days of Giving Away SneakyArt
(or, thoughts on artificial scarcity.)
I saw a tiny lending library on the sidewalk on the way back. It was beautiful. I left a little drawing inside for a stranger to find.
📚 Zines giveaway!
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There are some great stories already. Read, upvote the ones you like, and also participate by tapping here:
There has been renewed attention to my first book - SneakyArt of Eau Claire. If you’re curious, read about it here.
I also wrote about my decision to self-publish and the lessons I learned from doing so, in an Insider post earlier this year. It’s one of the most popular posts on my Substack, and I am happy to share what I learn!
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Next week the SneakyArt Post will resume its twice-a-week format + Sunday edition for Insiders.
I love trees, and struggle to draw them. My early art practice kind of centered on drawing trees, usually poorly. I generally feel pressured by all the things on my To Do list, so art has to be fast, and trees are not. I am curious about how long you spend drawing the average post card art that you have been giving away?
I just so enjoy the well-roundedness of your sketches and stories. I find delight in all aspects of your work. They seamlessly flow into each other like the smoothness of an awesome cup of coffee. I feel so blessed to have stumbled upon your work!!🙌