Reignited

6/20/25 Green Lake

It’s been well over a year since I first became interested in the concept of on-location comics, inspired by Drewscape. Ever since, I’ve been intrigued, challenged and motivated by trying to capture the story of a location with multiple small sketches on a page in comics style. I’ve also enjoyed watching my process evolve into my own current style.

Just lately, though, my interest had started lagging because I felt I had pushed the concept as far as I could go. Whenever I try something new, I seem to eventually hit this point in the process when it starts to feel less challenging, like it’s coming too easily, and then I look around for something new.

5/13/25 Roosevelt neighborhood

This recent YouTube from Drew came just in time. Showing his approach live, he reignited my passion for this unique approach to urban sketching. Once again, he talks about how combining multiple small sketches on a page tells a more complete story of a place than one sketch could. For me (and these are my own thoughts, not his), not knowing what the next sketch might be and not being able to plan it means I have to trust the process. That’s what creates tension and also excites and motivates me to keep going.

Sometimes this approach leads to a dull page without much story, and I’m disappointed. But how is that different from a single sketch turning out less appealing than I had wanted and feeling disappointed by that? It’s exactly the same. I still love the comics approach, and I’m grateful to Drew for once again inspiring me.

Maybe my challenge now is to find a way to push it in a direction that I’m not yet aware of. Or not. In any case, I just have to trust the process. 

4/25/25 Pike Place Market and Seattle Art Museum