Monster on My Ankles

You know those little floor or door ledges? Well, this drawing was inspired by that.  

My home has little moulding ledges in each doorway.  

Really, any SLIGHT rise or lift is problematic for me. I must stop, take thought and carefully guide my legs and feet over that 1/4" lift.  

My entire being has to be dedicated to this moment.

Sometimes, I can achieve this in one try and sometimes it takes several.  

This calculation would be while wearing braces. However, if I am not wearing any braces or shoes it is much more difficult to impossible.

One day I was stuck in the doorway having a problem with lifting my foot over this silly rise.  If you step back and watch me it is almost comical.  I mean, how can something so little give me such problem?  As I stood in the doorway trying to will my legs, I imagined that perhaps a creature or monster of some sort was preventing me from victory.  

"Darn monster grabs my ankle and just won't let go...every time!" I thought.  Perhaps it is angry with me.  Perhaps it wants to be near me and has a crush on me.  Perhaps it has something to tell me I'm not sure. Whatever it is, it makes everything so much more difficult then it needs to be.

So, this came out of that moment.  That tiny moment. These tiny moments are where my mind wanders, more than usual, and I try to explain these moments to myself.  Forget about explaining it to everyone else I try to explain it to myself first.  

This piece actually took a life of its own during the process or drawing it.  I had a completely different style/concept in mind.  I was struggling a little with the drawing, but eventually the style morphed into this.

Again, I am kind of learning illustration as I go. I am not trained.  All I know is the message.  I start with a moment and see how the piece transpires as I go. I have recently had some people ask me to do some illustrations for them, and I told Jason that I just don't feel that confident yet. I was trying to dissect it, so that I could understand my process of how I am learning this medium.  

When I draw these they come from me and my experience, so in many ways it feels effortless despite the lack of my technical know-how. The story is already there and thus the inspiration I feel towards it.  These moments are ripped completely from me and I try to put it on "paper".  When I draw one I am completely lost in the moment.  I don't need to "will" it to be something more or attach layered meaning, because it is already meaningful.  It's real.  So, the meaning catapults the result.  

If I was to draw someone else's story or something else, I am not sure I would feel as confident in achieving a final product.  

For this drawing, I was definitely was inspired by Persepolis' illustration style combined with Frank Miller's stark black and white contrast affects.