When drawing, it becomes so easy to get caught up in the details and ignore the big picture. We worry how it will look, if it will be like the image we have in our minds or if it will meet other people's expectations. Therefore, we create 'beautiful' drawings with all the details and we forget the beauty of drawing itself. We forget to enjoy it.
How would you present yourself to people who have never seen you before? Do you want to be the way you are, or someone totally different? So much of us try to look beautiful in our selfies but The Blind Selfie is the antithesis of that. It is ugly, creepy, mysterious and multifaceted. It is a description of ourselves.
I created this drawing with 2B, 4B and 6B pencil on paper. I taped the paper so that it does not move. With the pencil on my left hand and the phone on my right, I started creating a blind, continuous contour drawing. This meant I had to look away from the paper and never lift my pencil off of it. I changed the pencil once I drew myself 8 times, which means I went over it about 24 times.
It was very difficult not look while I was drawing. I was so curious and I really wanted the drawing to look good. I realized that was essentially the problem. If I looked, I will try to 'fix' it when in reality it did not need any fixing. This drawing taught me to let go. Not everything in the drawing process has to be deliberate or 'perfect,' whatever that is.