Can’t think of the perfect birthday gift/Christmas present for your parents, relatives or friends? Don’t know what store to start with? Then maybe consider creating something, as opposed to buying it. Although you might not always think it, there’s great value in putting in the work to both think of and make something of your own, something designed only for that one person you intend on giving it to.
After having made
many drawings to my parents and relatives as a child, there was a long period of time where I felt that giving them one of my artworks was “cheap” or not a “real investment”. But lately, I’ve come to realize that giving someone your artwork can actually be a lot more valuable than something you bought at a store. Think of the amount of time you put aside for making it and the reason you had for doing it. It’s the greatest example of the phrase “It’s the thought that counts” — except you also have something to look at for decades to come. And isn’t it more common for your parents or older relatives to show you a drawing that you made for them a long time ago, rather than something that you purchased?
I’d say it is.
(The illustrations below were made as a Christmas gift for my stepfather last year and a recent birthday gift for my mother. They both portray they’re old summer houses back in Sweden.)
Andreas von Buddenbrock,
Programme designer/
facilitator of Ready Set Draw at CMW