Exquisite Arts Magazine Vol 6- Summer Issue- July 2017 | Page 18

My love for graphite started at a very young age,
primarily because that was what I next to always had
access to when I wanted to draw. Pen followed suit
as a fellow favorite a little while later for the same
reason. What I personally love the most about both
of these mediums is their simplicity and that you can
capture such amazing depth and contrast with both
graphite and pen, whether separately or together.
You mentioned that sometimes you implement
color into your drawings. Is there a particular
reason why you prefer to create monochrome
styled artwork?
When it comes to drawing, I would (and still do, in
most cases) shy away from using any form of color.
I believe that the main reason why comes back to my
love for graphite and pen from years of use. There is
something about a drawing in graphite, pen, and
sometimes both that creates this energy that I have
always been drawn to, even back when I first started
drawing. To me, it is almost as if I can relate to the
concept of monochromatic drawings on an
emotionally deep level.
Your winning piece “The Seer” is a very creative
and innovative piece. What was the inspiration
behind creating this piece?
The inspiration behind “The Seer” essentially stems
from my personal experiences throughout my life. “The
Seer” is actually first part of a six-part thematic series
that I developed earlier this spring in my Advanced
Drawing II class at The University of North Carolina at
Pembroke. The focus of this piece was to depict the
harsh reality that many people like myself go through
on a daily basis. “The Seer” represents the struggle and
after effects of witnessing a traumatic event. Of course,
this traumatic event is meant to be left up to the
interpretation of the viewer, since everyone goes
through and experiences everything differently. The
robotic aspect that can be seen in this piece represents
the concept of one losing one's “humanity," or parts of
themselves that, essentially, make them human through
the witnessing of a variety of traumatic events.
Your work is predominantly done using graphite
and pen. What do you love most about working
with these mediums?
Page 17
As a traditional artist, do you feel that traditional
art is becoming a dying art form?
I have recently discussed this same topic with a few
good friends of mine, and this is one of those topics
that can be debated for quite some time. I do believe
that traditional art is becoming a dying art form, but
not at an exponential rate like some may think. As
our society becomes more and more enveloped in the
world of technology, this technology affects every
aspect of our lives. If I were to compare the amount
of students concentrating in drawing verses those
who are concentrating in digital, those in drawing are
easily outnumbered. It’s because we are constantly
being told “digital is where it’s at! If you want to get
anywhere as an artist, you need to focus on digital!”