January 2024 marks the time when I can finally get back to all the things I left unfinished in the previous months. It's not about procrastination or laziness, but about the dedication and effort I put into the Christmas and New Year festivities. As a mother, these dates are full of responsibilities and planning for my family, home, and celebrations. I don't know any mother who says this is a vacation. It's the time of year when I work the hardest. That's why I've left everything pending from November to January (and November was also busy; Aurora's birthday, my kids activities and competitions, etc).
Sometimes I feel overwhelmed thinking about everything I want to achieve and realizing that time is not enough, that I am tired and just want to rest. However, I don't want to punish myself by thinking that I have to keep going when I'm exhausted. I recognize that I do a lot, and although there may be people who do more than me in their daily lives, each reality is different and it is important to respect our own rhythms.
Today I want to share with you something simple but significant: how I approach art at the beginning of the year. Comics, illustrations and storytelling are also my passions. I have always considered comics as important to me as painting, because I always tell myself stories, write them, draw them, paint them. I grew up reading everything I could get my hands on and literature has been refuge, warmth and home throughout my life. It has always been present.
A few months ago, I shared a comic to announce that I would start creating more comics (read it here), but I didn't share much after that. It wasn't because of laziness or forgetfulness. Along the way I realized that I still had a lot to learn. I remember feeling frustrated when I realized that my initial sketches didn't convey what I wanted. It was then that I decided that I needed to study more about the theory and techniques of this art. Little by little I felt like I had a better understanding of how to make my stories flow from panel to panel. Comics never completely disappeared from my practice. As soon as I had some free time I dedicated myself to studying more about the history, composition and narrative of comics... and I continued.
Now I feel more relaxed because structures are no longer something I question, but rather something I know and that allows me to feel freer to make "mistakes."
In this simple gif I wanted to show you "At home". That woman with a birdhouse on her head is me, but I know it's you too, because home is something we carry with us.
The figure of the woman with the birdhouse on her head is something common in my work, and the appearance of this character as a central figure in one of my works is in "The Nature of Home", whose text co-written with Jody is perhaps one of the most beautiful descriptions of my work.
The Process
In this gif I show you how I immerse myself in my home and let my ideas fly.
Here's a little bit of the process, which was originally drawn on bamboo sheets and then digitized in Procreate.
Many things to do and I'm excited about the beginning of the year!
Until next time!
My links
https://linktr.ee/alejandraher
Art and review By ©Alejandra Her