I can't exactly remember my first moments of deviantART; my first encounters with its mellow, olive-green layout. I just remember that I was rather young at the time, and just as messed up (or maybe less so) than I am now. Trying to bring the memories back into existence, I know that a few friends talked me into it towards the end of middle school. From there, it became my sanctuary.
Throughout my entire childhood, I had a massive fascination with lots of little things: magnets, lights, creation. My mother and sister always helped those fascinations grow, especially in the case of creation. I had my first camera by the time I was 8. Albeit, it was a "novelty," cartoon-themed digital camera that was no better than the ancient webcam we had on our computer at the time. (Ah... old technology...) By the age of 14, I was snapping pictures with my first "real" digital camera: a cheapo, screen-display-only Vivicam. It blessed me with quite a few memories, including some of my favorites within my gallery.
Over time, I discovered more about photography, thanks in no small part to some of the wonderful photographers on this site. I eventually began using a better camera, and while my interest in photography was waning, I simply couldn't help myself when it came to capturing what I saw.
When photography simply couldn't convey what was on my mind, I turned to poetry. My early attempts were disastrous. Most have been hidden away, never to be seen by anything other than dust. In fact, there are few of my written works that I feel proud of, and a vast majority are simply bad memories that I never stop wishing away.
But the memories make me who I am.
I never truly wrote because I wanted to, or because I liked to. I only ever did it because I had to. I was compelled to let the toxic thoughts escape me in the only form I safely knew how to do. It was always so simple, so
natural to put the pencil on the page, or open up Word, but only when I was miserable. My love, my joy, my determination, could only ever be showcased by
creating.
Throughout the years, I tried time and time again to get into drawing. The ability to summon an insurmountable quantity of details from the tip of a pencil and force them to arrange themselves flawlessly is the envy of many an artist. But it's not always so easy. Learning to draw
well takes years of dedication and hard work.
As much as I willed myself on, I never felt like I made any progress, despite revisiting this work 3 years down the road.
I, personally, had advanced, but not at the speed I had imagined; not anywhere near as fast as those I followed on here. Much like photography, it became more of a chore than a hobby; constantly trying to improve so that I may accurately convey may imagination. Thanks to the wonderful amenities at my high school, though, I was offered the opportunity to do that which only a limited population in this country get to attempt: glassblowing.
Unfortunately, the road to glass is paved in shattered hell. (That feels backwards, but we'll go with it.) Before being allowed the chance to blow glass, students had to complete a year of ceramics; half introductory, half wheel-thrown. This time, I found my love.
I absolutely loved working with the soft, moldable clay. It felt so natural, and came so easily to me. Wheel-throwing was particularly exciting, and allowed me to create something I was particularly good at: vases.
Granted, my aptitude for vases was only because I could rarely get a lightweight base for my pieces.
Much to the chagrin of my teacher, who had a tendency of reminding me that "the wheel is not a lathe!"
Pottery still has my heart, even after 2 years away from any clay.
The deviant. The silent watcher, and the silently watched. The "random deviant" button victim. The llama-gifter. The artist.
You make deviantART. We make deviantART.
And whether we choose to acknowledge it or not, we all influence each other.
It will be 7 years I will have spent in this glorious community come November. Half of deviantART's life, and over a third of mine. I've come across all sorts of artists, from every different walk of life imaginable.
There's
ShawnCoss, the dark comic I've followed since pieces as early as Love Slave,
whose works have inspired many (read "all") of my attempted drawings.
And
kris-wilson, who used his massive following to throw hoards of fans (myself included) at Shawn in the first place.
His comics are legendary in their own right.
There's also
IMAGINeye, who initially drew me in with his BUGZ comics,
and further inspires me with his work on The Walking Dead Game, and his ability to lose 50 pounds.
The list goes on, endlessly, and while there are at least a few more artists I would like to mention (due to their inspirational photography,) I'm sad to note that they've since left the community.
Here's a song for seven years
Of filling lands with art;
A place where all can gather,
From countries far apart.
Here's a chant for seven more,
The most recent amassed,
And while we'll party merrily,
The time will quickly pass.
Here we are, at fourteen years,
A joyous, grand event,
We couldn't ask for fourteen years
Of time that's better spent!
