Name: Cloudery
Location: SW United States
Website: http://somethingcloudery.com
How about a brief introduction?
I’ve been drawing in my current incarnation for a little less than two years. As a child I loved drawing, but as happens with many people, as I “grew up” I became hyper-critical of my work, and stopped. It was only when I decided to completely let go of all “rules” and all self-judgment, and just draw as a meditative exercise, that I found my voice. I use black pigment pens with teeny points (.2mm), and my drawing is like a stream of consciousness: organic, abstract, whatever flows out of my pen at that moment. No pencil, no eraser, no planning. It’s totally freeing.
Who/what inspires you?
Who: My significant other inspires me in all things, whether drawing, making chain maille jewelry, my work as a graphic designer, or simply life every day. Her feedback — objective and subjective — is invaluable. What: When drawing, sometimes I get a word, or a snippet of a song lyric or line from a novel, stuck in my head, and that tends to influence my path, even if only very abstractly.
What message would you like to send out about your work?
I don’t draw for others — meaning, I don’t draw what I think will necessarily appeal to the public at large, or be popular and saleable. It’s very private. However, I have a shop on Etsy where I sell limited edition prints and the like, and almost all of my sales benefit the non-profit First Book, which gives children from under-privileged communities their first new books to own and read. An avid reader and book designer myself, I find this a compelling reason to draw in those times that I might not otherwise feel like doing so, or when I feel stuck.
What is your biggest accomplishment to date?
Last year a design firm in the UK found my website, and commissioned a drawing for a series of wine labels for a new line coming out this fall. I’ve long had a small “art collection” of beautiful wine labels, so this was a particularly big honor.
Share a secret with us!
I aspire to: illustrate children’s books.
