my little sketchbook

I always carry a small sketchbook and an ink brush in my handbag. On the bus, train, tram, metro, or ferry, whenever I have to wait, or when I'm sitting in a bar or on a terrace, I take out my sketchbook and start drawing what I see.

Everyone who follows my stories on Instagram has probably noticed that I love drawing people. I enjoy capturing someone quickly and representing them on paper in just a few lines. The people I draw don't know that I'm observing and depicting them—they're not posing. These are fleeting encounters. I have to look very closely if I want to draw them, and that's exactly what I love about it. That's where the challenge lies for me. On one hand, the time spent waiting passes more quickly, but it's also a training for my "drawing eyes." Observation is something you need to practice. To represent what you see accurately, you first need to learn how to truly observe.

To be completely honest, sketching in sketchbooks with an indelible medium like an ink brush is also a challenge for me to partially let go of my perfectionism. There were times when I tore out a page if, in my eyes, it didn't turn out well. Learning to let go and simply move on to the next page is something I need to overcome.

I still find the first sketch in a new sketchbook very exciting. Well begun is half done, or something like that. If I'm not satisfied with those first lines, it keeps nagging at me a bit. I know it's going to be a bit of a struggle. Forcing myself to observe with such concentration is also an exercise in reclaiming control over myself. Because of my burnout, I often find it difficult to maintain focus on something. For example, I haven't been able to finish reading a book for a long time. My burnout coach told me that being able to focus well and for extended periods is like a muscle you have to train. The intense concentration required for perceptual drawing makes me fully present in the moment. Unlike usual, when countless thoughts race through my head, I am truly in the now.