We weave worlds
We weave worlds out of spider webs and grey hair.
Gobelins of crumpled handkerchiefs and stained sleeves
Thick jumpers of eternity made of mothers' tears and fathers' overworked hands.
Fluffy carpets of infinity wiped out by too frequent repetition of the word "forever"
Carefully I stitch, patiently I patch up the punctured, worn out spindles
They fall apart, too fragile for the harsh light of day
I will try again tomorrow.
There is always another side of things
If you've seen my previous posts, you know that one of my favourite tools is a cheap black 'toma' pen. I like it not only because, it allows me to get very precise, thin lines, but also, because it gives me a bit of an adrenaline rush – ink spills really badly from time to time. So there's always the risk that a big glop of ink will ruin my drawing. I like the thrill of it!
I also like to play with the dissolving of this pen. It's particularly meaningful to me - I can blur something, that was meant to be permanent. But it is a bit deceiving here - the ink that 'disappears' on on side of the drawing - appears on the other side of the paper. The other side of the paper is not fooled. The other side of the paper remembers all my decisions, and all my mistakes. My 'starting over' is merely a illusion, a fiction that allows me to go on despite my failures. I never look at the other side of a drawing, before finishing it. It adds a pinch of suspense and emotion to drawing process itself.
Today I looked at the second page for a long time.
I traced the parts of the drawing I spent the most time on, and the parts I didn't touch with solvent. It reminds me a bit of looking for familiar shapes in the clouds. What I see depends only on my imagination. Sometimes I just recreate my drawing in my head and can't think of anything else, and sometimes it's like taking a pen and using the stains in a completely different way.
Have you ever done the Rorschach test? Did your answers surprise you? Do you see butterflies, plants, faces? I am always tempted to draw something there!
About the drawing
So I started my drawing having in mind my 'Sleeping Kingdom' series. The technique is the same, and it has traces of my original idea, but the portrayed model looks the viewer straight in the eye, and I couldn't brought myself to cover this starry look that just 'happened'. My guiding idea for the Sleeping Kingdom series, were characters who are immersed in a trance, unaware of the surrounding reality, creating universes for themselves, which manifest itself for a viewer, but only as a shadow of actual dream. But women I have drawn is nothing of this sort.
She is all here, looking at you. Aware of you.
I hope you have a wonderful Saturday
and I wish you all happy #HIVEPUD!
Yours,
Straga Azure
Drawing & pics are my authorship if not stated otherwise, all rights reserved 
