CONTENT
In a state of peaceful happiness
In October 2018 I decided that I wanted to do a project that really challenged me and pushed me. Now that it is complete this project will always be a huge milestone in my journey as an artist.
Before this project I had never really stepped out of my comfort zone. I wanted to do drawings bigger than I had ever done before and with more detail.
So I decided to draw the Big 5 as I wanted to create something that pushed my limits and there was nothing better than these five incredible wild animals. I grew up watching them on TV with my Dad and was always in such awe of them. It was an easy decision to have them as my them and would also give me the opportunity to explore these animals in a way I think only art allows. Drawing and analyzing each detail of these animals forced me to notice details which really emphasizes their beauty. This is one of my favorite things about art and drawing in particular.
This project was the first time I was doing a series of works. The first time I was going this big with this much detail and the first time I put so many hours into one drawing. It tested my skills of getting certain textures of which some I learned along the way as well as my patience and my consistency.
Even though this project was tough and challenged me, I loved every second of it and my passion for creating and art in general grew to a point I could never have imagined. I was nervous starting each drawing as they all had unique challenges which I had never experienced before but as I made progress with each one they all began to flow towards the end. After some sessions I wouldn't really remember drawing, as if I had gone into a dream state. This was an incredible feeling which I had not experienced before as an artist.
This project solidified my passion for art and showed me what I can do as an artist and that it is something I want to explore everyday for as long as I can.
The project took me roughly 300 hours over the course of 5 months to complete.
Rhino
810mm x 540mm
This was the first piece I did in the series. It took me about a month to complete with a total of roughly 60 hours of drawing. The reason I chose to do this work first is because I knew it would be the most challenging of the 5 from a detail perspective but at the same time not forcing me to learn too many new techniques at once. I struggled quite a bit in the beginning but the decision to do the project was doing exactly what I wanted it to do, challenge me. Only half way through did I really start to enjoy the work as in the beginning I was more nervous about the project than I expected. This was the first real moment since I started drawing as a kid where I saw myself as an artist and decided that this is what I wanted to do with my life. Not just doing it because I was good at it but because I really had a passion for it. From then on the drawing didn’t get any less challenging but I enjoyed every second of it.
Buffalo
810mm x 540mm
The Buffalo was next. This drawing incorporated both details and textures from the Rhino and the next 2 drawings in the project, the Lion and Leopard. I had never drawn animal hair before this point and was honestly quite out of my comfort zone and knowledge.
So I started with the horns, which at this point I felt very comfortable with and excited about. After a few procrastinating sessions of “touching up” the horns I began with the hair of the nose by watching a few YouTube tutorials. I decided to start and see how it went without practicing and just didn’t really think about it. This part of the drawing and the series was the first real test of patience I had experienced as an artist. I spent about 3 hours embossing the tiny hairs and when I stood back you could say I just sat in front of my drawing all afternoon staring at it having done no work. At this point I had no idea whether I was getting the technique right or if it would work out as planned. Only once I started drawing over it did the fine details of the hair start to show through which was a pretty amazing experience.
Lion
810mm x 540mm
By now I had built the confidence I knew I would need tackling a drawing like this. This drawing would still test my newly learnt technique with the longer hair of the mane but it was an incredible journey as I had always wanted to draw a lion, so much so that after this project was done the first drawing I did was another lion titled ‘King’.
This piece let me practice and explore the new technique as the whole drawing, except for the eyes and nose, is hair.
All I can say is that it is one of the best feelings to zone out and almost go into complete auto pilot mode. This made me eager to start the leopard.
Leopard
810mm x 540mm
This piece gave me the best experience so far. I got to develop and explore my new techniques while still enjoying the challenge of being patient through the long process of creating each tiny hair. This drawing was the biggest test of my patience and I was surprised by how much I appreciated the part of the drawing I thought I wouldn’t enjoy.
The end goal was now clearly in sight and I had proved to myself that I could set out and explore big projects as an artist while completely stepping out my comfort zone all while absolutely loving the process.
Elephant
1000mm x 1000mm
The Elephant was actually the first one I did in the series but it didn’t come out how I had hoped. Not in the drawing itself but in how I had imagined it fitting into the series. So I decided that it would be a drawing on it’s own and then do another Elephant to finish off the project.
The first one is titled ‘Stare’. It taught me a lot about what I would need to tackle this project. It made me realize how much focus and detail was required to create the idea that I had but more importantly to enjoy and not only focus on the end result.
Like I said the Rhino was extremely challenging but after the first four pieces it was amazing to finish off with this gentle giant. The subtle techniques and details I had picked up from ‘Stare’ made this piece incredibly smooth and fun to draw.