Looking back to the time I started holding pencil to draw hibiscus flowers in primary school when doing integrated science subject to the time in secondary school as a teenager where I would sit together with the art-talented guys in class, gathering the latest series of SupaStrikas to start drawing the characters.
My class teacher would depict my course of study in tertiary institution to be ART back then, unknowingly to her that her favourite pupil was one of the numerous kids who wants or desired so much to be a medical doctor. Getting to Senior Secondary School, I chose to join the science class based on my choice to be a medical doctor. I was doing perfectly fine but within me, I knew i was off the path but I could never tell what exactly it was.
My journey into drawing started fading off after writing our final exams and there was no one to draw with anymore. The only thing left for me and that was within me was the Passion and the talent I had and on every wall I see that is owned by someone close that won't scold me for drawing on their walls 😀 turned to my sketch books then.
As a growing teenager, in the midst of storming thoughts of working towards the career I decided to chose for myself, I got lost due to my inability to meet up with cut off marks laid down for entry into tertiary institution to study medicine so I decided to switch to computer science.
To cut my story short, on a fateful day, I was drawing on the wall of my late mum's restaurant (may her soul rest in perfect peace), not minding the customers on seat either they were looking or not, one of them unknowingly to me that he's into art as well, saw what I was drawing and said he would love to come back to see the result of what I was drawing, I smiled and continued drawing. Before the end of the day, he came to have a look and was happy to see what I had done. He asked me if I would want to do art as a profession or just loved drawing so I said I just loved drawing and he encouraged me to go learn more either I'm still gonna do it as a profession or for the passion of it and that was it ☺️.
So,one day I came across displayed portraits of an ex-president in Nigeria and two other Nollywood actors with the artist's contact on it. I called him hoping to make a portrait for a friend's birthday since I know I wasn't good enough to make one but I loved to gift my friend an art portrait after seeing the displayed ones. On getting to his studio to give him the picture I wanted to draw and make a part payment, I mentioned my talent of drawing and he got so interested in seeing my previous drawings and gladly I told him I would bring them when I come to get the portrait.
He saw my drawings when I came to get the commissioned work and he implored me to learn considering the fact that I'm a lady is an added advantage because not many of my gender have an interest in art (I also have it as my desire to learn sir was running through my mind, not even when I had seen how beautifully the picture I gave him came out 😍 like he finished it awesomely). So we talked about the learning fee and we agreed on my resumption date and boom 💥 I came back on track 🥰💃 and like the elders in my tribe would say, "if someone could ride horse in me that day, the horse will not fall". That's the extent at which I was happy that day.
My first week of resumption at studio as an art apprentice was amazing, full of memories, curiosity and anxiety. The curiosity of how my boss was mixing the primary oil paints to get skin tone colours, the face bringing out the exact thing I was seeing from the picture he was holding 🤦 OMG! How is he doing this? At times I would ask him and few times I would bury it in my mind since he had told me that I would get to understand the whole concept with time but within me I was thinking "I hope I don't spend an extra additional year to know this rightly 😁😀".
Later on I started understanding the concepts based on the fact that I was very much ready to know it coupled with the passion I have, how to get the skin tone colors, some themes in arts and many more. Amazingly, my boss started giving me some of his works to do after a while, he will paint the face while I paint the dress, hands and legs (My boss never jokes with the face of his works 😁) but still, this gave me much more confidence that I was doing extremely well.
I drew so many pencil portraits but I was afraid to try out painting because I felt it was the hard part. However, with time I tried it and my first paint practical work was Wizkid. I was so happy that I wished I saw him physically back then to show him that "see man! I drew you 😁😄".
Since then my morale increased that I was extremely confident in myself that I'm achieving my aim already even if there might still be some slight errors. Later on I did many other commissioned portraits both pencil and painting of which I created a page on social media to post them. Though they might have not fetched me so much money like that but my happiness was not in the money acquired but the fact that I ended up learning and knowing what I've always been happy doing right from being a child.
Paintings done in the year 2017
Painting done in the year 2022
I felt fulfilled and I was always praying for the man who encouraged me to learn Art more either I want it as a profession or Passion and also my boss. They would always be in the story of my life no matter how hard I try shortening my story of being an artist.
I wish I could see the first man again and shout to him "Yay! I learnt it and I'm now a professional drawing artist sir"🥰 and I know he would be wearing a great smile on his face hearing that. Up till now I still draw, even when I was an employee and had little or no time for myself, I couldn't leave art because it was already a part of me🤗😍. Thought there are still some major parts I still wish to learn as I'm only very good in portrait drawings and a little good in thematic arts.
Since then I believed that no matter how well or good you are at your naturally deposited talent, you still need to explore learning more about it either physically or virtually from a teacher/mentor. Learning goes a long way as it appears in all phases of life
When a child is born, he or she learns to crawl, from crawling to taking one,two or three steps of walking like a staggered drunkard😁🥰,before he/she could be able to walk perfectly.
There's no magic to being perfect, it's all about learning to be better or be the best at what you do.
Thanks for patiently reading ☺️🥰