Crayons. Markers. Pens. Pencils. Paintbrushes. Clay. Computer mouse. There are so many things we can pick up with our conveniently opposable thumbs and use to create art.
We all engaged in this process when we were kids—when arts and crafts were understood by our elders to be an important part of our development. And if you recall the cheerful houses we all drew, with curls of smoke unfurling from the chimney, smiled over by a yellow sun, you will remember something else. Children rarely question whether their pictures are good enough. It’s enough to have made something that, at least to our eyes, and hopefully to our parents’ eyes, looks like something we have seen before.
Some people never stop questioning their need and their right to make pictures and concrete things whose purpose is to express our feelings and provide a focal point for thirsty eyes. These people are called artists. Often, an artist’s true development begins when they stop trying to make something that looks exactly like something we have seen before and instead begin making something that captures the essence of an object, of a person or of a feeling. This is often the point at which painters, drawers, sculptors and other creators begin to feel ready to share their work. This is the point many contributors to Litrus have reached.
Some people never stop questioning their need and their right to make pictures and concrete things whose purpose is to express our feelings and provide a focal point for thirsty eyes. These people are called artists. Often, an artist’s true development begins when they stop trying to make something that looks exactly like something we have seen before and instead begin making something that captures the essence of an object, of a person or of a feeling. This is often the point at which painters, drawers, sculptors and other creators begin to feel ready to share their work. This is the point many contributors to Litrus have reached.
Are you an artist? If so, we would love it if you would share your work with the Citrus College community and an Internet-connected world by e-mailing it to us at citruslit@yahoo.com. Your splash of color and symphony of texture can help enrich our site and the experience of visitors. Your photorealistic recording of real life, your expressionist cry of joy and pain, your flying hippopotamus and swimming bird whimsy: each of these are worthy of sharing and capable of touching others. And for those of you who put away your little smock long ago, consider picking up where you left off. Don’t try to be perfect, just try to try. The tools are the same as they were when you were young: Crayons. Markers. Pens. Pencils. Paintbrushes. Clay. Computer mouse. Show us what you can do with them.
—Sarah Torribio
