Drawing Out and About

The perils and pitfalls of making art in public

You own a sketchbook. You have assorted drawing tools. You’d like to take said sketchbook and drawing tools out and about. Great idea! But there’s a catch.

You don’t want to draw around other people.

I get this. Seriously. As a kid, my mom kept a constant supply of ballpoint pens in her purse. If we were out for breakfast with my grandparents and I was getting antsy, mom would hand me a pen. To my seven-year-old brain, waiting for our order felt purgatorial. But offered a pen and faced with a paper place mat? My mom was assured I’d stay quiet, happily drawing until the waitress came bustling along with scrambled eggs and bacon. The only hitch was if the waitress noticed.

“Look at that! Did you draw that?” She meant encouragement. It was incredibly kind! But as a self-conscious kid, the attention had me ready to melt under the table. I wanted to be left alone to draw princesses and slather toast with as much strawberry jam as possible.

And somehow, that feeling has never left me. Well, maybe the strawberry jam part. But you get the picture. When I say I understand the desire to draw unobserved, I can absolutely relate. On the Myers-Briggs personality test, I’m almost 100% introverted.

That said, many get energy from engaging with others while making art — that’s absolutely terrific. You might create from a deeply empathetic place and need to interact with people for your creative practice. Or you work collaboratively and want a give and take with the world around you. Again, terrific! That said, if you make art that feels more extroverted, some of the below might not be as relevant. In short: you do you. We’re all the richer for our differences in temperament.

But if you struggle to make art in public, here’s a couple things that have worked for me:

• Most likely, no one’s paying attention to you drawing: Seriously. Next time you’re in a busy spot, look around. A substantial amount of people will be staring at a device. Many more will be in conversation, either in person or on the phone. A few will be reading (befriend them immediately). But almost no one will pay attention to you. Our modern brains are generally too full to notice the person sketching in the corner. Which means…

• Situate yourself out of the way: If I’m drawing in public, I like to tuck myself into a corner, or on a bench away from foot traffic. I like having the freedom to observe and ponder, quietly. And if you feel self-conscious drawing in public, finding an out-of-the-way spot can help.

The night my flight into JFK got delayed again and again and again.

• Gaze Perception is a thing: You’re observing a group of friends catching up over a coffee. You start sketching them. Something about your drawing doesn’t look quite right. You look up, studying your model and it happens: they spot you drawing them. There’s an evolutionary reason for this (gaze perception) and the science is fascinating. TL;DR: if you look at people for extended periods of time, they will eventually notice. That can get uncomfortable. So casually observe, but try to keep the looking low-key. Unless, of course, someone’s asked you to draw them, in which case, lucky you! Also, as a rule of thumb, I avoid sketching those who look like they’d prefer privacy (i.e, anyone involved in a serious conversation).

• Keep it simple: While I do love taking a travel paint kit on the road, if I’m sketching in a coffee shop or in a waiting room, I tend to keep things pretty basic. Most of the time, I’ll stick to a ballpoint pen. Sometimes I’ll add marker. The less variables I have to think about, the easier the process is and in turn, the less self-conscious I’m likely to feel. I’ve minimized the possibilities, making the process feel more predictable and comfortable.

The accordion player was right across the street! For real!

If someone notices: Don’t take criticism from strangers to heart. Accept compliments graciously. That said, wearing headphones/ear buds can give you a buffer if you’d like further privacy and want to cut down on din and distraction.

Via del Portico d’Ottavia - Rome

• Things will go wrong: It’s not a matter of if, but when. I have spilled coffee on sketchbooks, broken pencils, lost my seat when I got up and the like. Roll with it and embrace the disaster. Which brings me to the next thing…

• Have fun: If you’re sketching in public, you aren’t trying to make the next Mona Lisa. You’re working on your observation skills. You’re enjoying some community. You have zero expectations other than to make art. Don’t put yourself under huge amounts of pressure — it’s just a sketchbook. You wouldn’t strain over a spelling mistake in your diary, so just adopt the same laissez-faire attitude here.
  
  Also, go ahead and get that cookie you’ve had your eye on in the cafe bakery case.