I picked up a pencil at 55 with no natural talent, no art background, and, as it turns out, no mind’s eye. This is the story of what happened next.
Going digital saved my art. Here is the honest story of drawing tablets, Clip Studio Paint, aphantasia, and why Control Z is my new best friend.
Everyone knows the trick: close your eyes and picture something. Sheep jumping a fence. A beach. A loved one's face. I have never once been able to do that. This is what it is actually like to live with aphantasia.
Most artists close their eyes and see what they want to draw. I close my eyes and see nothing. Absolutely nothing. This is how I create botanical art with a completely blank mind's eye.
Bob Ross made painting look effortless. What he never said was that you need to learn to draw before you paint. I spent years and a lot of money finding that out the hard way.
Can you really learn to draw as an adult? After 50 years of believing the talent myth, one book changed everything. This is the story of how I went from "no talent" to artist at 55, and why drawing is a skill anyone can learn.