I often get asked whether or not I can draw, I usually say 'mmm no, not really' - but I am never satisfied with that as an answer and I'm not sure its true!
I do draw, I make lots of drawings, some with pencil and paper, some pencil, paper and medium. I'm currently working on some stitching drawings. It is a big part of my practice.
When I am making a large work or something which is going to take a long time I investigate it through drawing. Not always the whole work, in fact hardly ever the whole work, mostly I pick out small details and behaviours in the material. It is a way of pausing the work and pointing out the interesting bits, both for myself and potential viewers. They often don't look like much, a collection of lines, but they are a way of saying - 'look at that, thats cool' which is not as instant as a photograph, but needs less maintenance (in terms of developing/printing/framing etc.) and seems more personal, more caring somehow.
So why can I never say yes when someone asks me if I can draw? I don't often know what they're asking - scared that if I say yes they might go 'OK! Draw me right now!' and I won't be able to. I sat down recently and started drawing people from Art Review and I just get bored copying real things. I only enjoy it if it doesn't take too long and is of something I've made or for my own practice. It might have to stay as a question I can't really answer.
