Drawn Out Time

Recently I’ve been attending figure drawing sessions. It isn’t the first time, but it was the first time that I drew the same pose for two consecutive hours. I am impatient and tend to rush through creative projects; it’s a flaw in which I’m seeing more clearly. It isn’t to say that nothing meaningful can come from less attention, but it began to emphasize my weaknesses and my crutches, thankfully. Sitting with something, and allowing yourself to confront it slowly and methodically, like with a figure drawing, challenges you to look closer. Shadows you didn’t see, gradients that didn’t reveal themselves to your eyes, begin to come to the surface. Even with writing, if you sit with it long enough you will begin to see the awkward phrasing, or the lack of congruence within your thought processes. Again, thankfully. This practice becomes contemplative and self reflective as you ask yourself what am I not seeing and what am I not hearing.