When asked the question “What made you want to become an artist?”, I really hadn’t thought about it before. Art just seems to have been a part of who I am from as far back as I can remember. After putting some thought into it I decided the best answer would just have to be “genetics.” The following is, however, how I answered the question for class.
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My interest in art began early in life. My grandfather was an artist. He worked mostly on oil paintings, many of which began as photographs that were later reproduced as oil on canvas.
I spent the first decade of my life learning about art from my grandfather (Papa Buzz). His sister and late wife were also artists (both painters in oils and watercolor) and thus he had a lot to share.
My earliest memory of a lesson in art comes from my family’s living room when I was about three years old. I was coloring in a coloring book, one blue crayon in scribbles across the page, showing no regard to the lines or picture. Papa Buzz called me over to his chair and asked if he could show me how to color. I agreed and handed him the crayon and book. He turned the page to a picture of a window. As he colored he explained to me the concept of tracing first, then he lightly shaded in the window with all lines in a uniform direction, diagonally from corner to corner.
I didn’t know anything could be colored so neatly. I was eager to try it myself. I took the book back and traced the next page myself. The lines were dark and didn’t exactly line up with the picture, but my coloring, though patchy, was mostly within my traced lines. I showed it to Papa Buzz and he showed me how to control pressure on the crayon. He taught me that speed is key with tracing… a slower hand always has more control over the crayon. I practiced my coloring all day and continued throughout my life, switching mediums as I discovered new ones.
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I wouldn’t say this answers the question in it’s entirety. I’m sure one lesson in crayon coloring didn’t make me want to become an artist. I’ve always enjoyed art and never really even considered the fact that that made me want to become an artist.
I don’t think any one thing actually made me want to become an artist. I’m not even sure that was a decision I made for myself. I enjoyed coloring, I discovered drawing and enjoyed that too. Papa Buzz died and I was left with all of his painting supplies. I knew that he would want me to use them so I did, learning from each painting.
There were influences from all around me. Family, friends, Bob Ross. There’s no one person or thing that made me want to become an artist. I enjoyed art, I made art, and by doing so I became an artist. It’s not something I put thought into and it’s not a decision I consciously made. It just happened.
