Drawing means to pull something and is also the action of making a drawing, with a tool, usually a pencil, a pen or other such implement. The first early drawings where probably made with the finger. It is a doing word which means it is about tangible events. Something that can be observed and even measured or used as a measurement in, and of it’s self.

This leads to something else. If drawing is an action then all the thinking in the world will not make any drawing real or tangible because it is about doing not thinking. That does not mean there is no thinking involved because it is quite the opposite.

Drawing is informed in two ways at least.

It is informed by what you think and what you do.

Drawing in this context is a learning mechanism much like the process of learning it’s self. You make a drawing and whilst doing it, as well as after doing it, you think about what it is you are doing, and reflect on what you have done. That information informs what you do next and so your drawing skills develop in an informed way. This happens through action which is the description of learning, action and reflection. It would be difficult to do drawing in any other way because it is an action and you cannot move any part of your body without thinking about it first.

Anybody could read about the drawing process and understand the mechanisms of how drawing works in theory but to get the full extent of the whole process necessitates action on the part of the learner.

Drawing is a valuable resource.

Drawing is used in so many ways by people who create, from engineers to film producers, even teachers use drawing as a means of delivering knowledge to others. The visual space is easily accessible to most people because we only need to look. Looking takes little effort on the part of most people and visual images can be powerful. Human behaviour is influenced by the environment. Visual information is a large part of that human environment so must be influential.

It is among the easiest as well as possibly the most practical way for conveying visual concepts. The fairly convenient supply of simple drawing tools could easily amount to drawing being more commonly used as compared to the majority of alternative tools of expression.

Drawing really is easy, expectation is the issue.

At the basic point of ability everybody is able to trace drawings from images. Everybody can create their own unique images doing this, even those people who believe they can’t draw can do this. Almost everybody can draw. If they can move their arm and make marks following a line around a shape they can draw. Beyond that drawing becomes many other things, all of which are heavily based on expectations.

I must repeat again that human behaviour is influenced by the environment. Visual information is a large part of that human environment so must be influential upon us and our expectations. Our expectations are subjective based on our knowledge and environmental influence giving us differing degrees of expectation. An influence that impacts upon our decision making processes and actions.

My drawing is derived out of a broad Knowledge base of disciplines both analytical and philosophical in origin. This together with the utilization of social spaces, performative actions, community arts, public arts, installation, visual, dramatical, textual and audible interactions. Acting on the world in which we live as a participant and observer.

All because I was lucky enough to believe drawing was an important action to take.

An interesting collection of artists make up the 43 uses of drawing.