When I was around nine years old—about elementary school age in Japan—we had an art class assignment where we had to sketch the scenery in front of the school gate. There were a few scattered trees and flowers planted in planters. I sketched everything lightly on drawing paper, traced the lines with a marker pen, and started coloring it with watercolor paints.
Then, halfway through, my brush suddenly stopped.
I was drawing exactly what I saw, just as it appeared to me, and yet the sense of space felt distorted. The thick leaves on the trees were divided into separate masses with lines, and everything was painted in flat, clearly separated colors without any smooth transitions.
I was shocked by the way I saw the world. It actually made me feel nauseous.
But at the same time, I also felt that this was my art.
That drawing has stayed in my head ever since. Somewhere inside me, I always felt that one day I would keep deepening that kind of expression.
And I think maybe that time is now.
I’ll keep going.
Still, I love drawing in many different styles and genres too, so I want to keep challenging myself with all kinds of things too.
日本で言う小学生(9歳ぐらい)の頃に授業でスケッチをすることになって、校門前の景色を描いたことがあった。ぽつぽつと生えている木とプランターの花花。画用紙に下描き、サインペンで線をなぞって水彩絵の具で色付け。
そして半分ぐらい描いたところで筆が止まった。自分が見えているありのままを描いているのに時空は歪んでいて、生い茂る木の葉は幾つかの塊ごとに線で分けられていて、グラデーションの無い個個のハッキリとした色彩で塗られていた。自分の見えている世界にショックを受けて吐き気がした。
けど、同時にこれが自分の絵なんだとも感じた。
あれからその時の絵が頭にずっと残っていて、いつか自分はその表現を深めて行くんだろなと思っていた。どうもそれが今みたいです。頑張ろう。でも色んなジャンルの絵を描くのは好きなので、練習として沢山の事にもチャレンジしてゆきます。
イェイ!