Drawing on memories
When I was about 8, I asked
my grandmother, a portrait artist, to teach me how to draw horses. At 8 every thought I had was horse-related. She agreed, and gave me a photo of a horse skull. “Draw this 50 times”. WHAT?! That was not at all what I had in mind! But I did it. I didn’t ask her for any other drawing classes, though. It was a great lesson, and today I am very grateful for it. She showed me the importance of understanding how things work on the inside.
My next horse-drawing instruction came from my Walter Foster books. I treasured those books and collected several; “How to Draw Horses”, “Horses’ Heads in Oils and Pastels” and “Horses and Riders of the Old West”. I must have drawn every image in there at least a hundred times. Imagine my delight when several years ago, I found them!! It was incredible because I have moved more than 25 times in my life, and somehow, these books stayed with me. In fact, I had two copies of the “How to Draw Horses”, and gave one to my niece, Claudia, when she was about 8 and really into horses. Today, Erin has custody of the books, and is enjoying drawing those same horses. I love that!
