Drawing Wild

Drawing, for me, is a constant joy and passion. I have always loved drawing. I cannot remember a time in my life when I have not been drawing something.

- Linda Weil

From an early age I immediately fell in love with the line, tone and the immediacy that pencil offers the artist. Although at that age I really didn’t put that into such clinical thoughts. I just knew that for me, pencil was the most fun to draw with, even more than my treasured box of 100 Crayola crayons! When anyone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, without hesitation I would reply, ‘an artist’. If they said, ‘A painter?’ I would always respond with, ‘No, I like to draw’.

I was born in California and lived most of my childhood there. Long summers were spent outdoors in our backyard, and along the coastal beaches or camping in the big trees of the Redwood forests and Sierras. I loved the outdoors, nature, and all the flora and fauna I saw on our family camping trips. So it was the most natural thing to try to draw what I was seeing around me. Landscapes as a subject never really enticed me. What I enjoyed most was drawing the animals and forms I found in nature. A sketchbook and pencil always came with me. Though many of those early drawings are now long gone, I still remember the pleasure I enjoyed when drawing in the outdoors.

In my late teens, we migrated to Australia. This was the first big overseas adventure I had ever had. I immediately fell in love with the country, the people, the colourful birds and unusual animals. Something about Australia’s unique animals, different plants, amazing light and colours spoke to my soul. I knew I had to draw them. I still travel back to the USA as often as possible, but I also enjoy touring Australia and the world. I’ve to been Europe, parts of South East Asia, New Zealand and South Africa. Where ever I travel, my trusty pencil and sketch book come with me to take drawing notes of scenes of people, animals and ‘things’.