What do you get out of drawing?

[Kaputnik]

I haven't posted anything on FPG for a while. I just thought I'd bring up something that I've been pondering lately, for a while, actually. What do I get out of drawing?

This is a rather late in life obsession for me, and I have to have modest expectations. One can get better at anything with practice, and I have, but "better" is not the same thing as "good". I see the efforts of others here, and realize that I'm unlikely to reach their level. Although I can try.

But what have I gotten out of it? I think there are two main things. It has taught me to be more observant; one never sees things quite the same way again after trying to draw them. And in fact, whatever or whoever I'm looking at now, I often find myself thinking how I would render it (or them) in pencil (mostly) charcoal, or ink. That doesn't mean I'll succeed, but I think about how I'd try.

And it's also teaching me to be more appreciative of what professional or high level amateur artists do. Whenever I look at a drawing these days, whether it's a highly realistic illustration, or a simply drawn cartoon, I think about how the artist got the effects that he did, what techniques were used. I notice what can be done with a simple line drawing, and think about all the work that went into a more detailed effort.

Oh, and I just like drawing. To re-purpose an old saying, a bad day drawing is better than a good day at work. And I'm glad that my job doesn't involve drawing.

That's me. How about you?