The
creative
Process

There’s a common expression that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, while I don’t disagree I can’t comfortably say I agree entirely. Merriam Webster defines beauty as “the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit.” Although this is a truism, beauty is also standardized. While human beings “like what they like” there are cognitive rules that highlight underlining features in what we see (like symmetry, depth, and gradient); these might be considered as standards. This is compounded by the parameters created by biases to measure, compare and contrast images with the aim of understanding what is and is not pleasing. As an artist, I don’t see people’s preferences but I see those standards. Art is subjective as much as it is standardized and deliberately patterned, even abstract pieces. I focus on portrait charcoal art and I always aim to reconstruct what’s there and not what I want to see. My hope is that what you find here is what I frequently see and enjoy it as much as I do.

For some, it is easy to look at a cartoon and make the claim “I can do that, there’s nothing much to drawing its just a few lines and some colour.” If this is your disposition you are as close to the truth as Bukinham Palance is to the White House. While a cartoon might be an easier endeavour, human being don’t see solid lines on 3D realism objects. Images are formed from the constant contrast between light and shadows, our brain’s ability to separate foreground and background and the dynamic addition brought by the variability from the colour spectrum. Realism charcoal art embodies these principles and transforms a blank canvas into a work of art. In the same vein, digital art may utilise more tools but can produce similar outcomes with the inclusion of colour. So what’s the difference? Three main things: skillset, time and preference.