Seeing the Parts AND the Whole

Drawing orchids used to be hard. I remember when I first tried to draw an orchid. A thank you card for a friend who had taken us into his green house to see his collection of orchids.

Drawing the orchid was HARD. I looked at photo after photo and saw so much complexity.

I practiced and practiced until I was finally satisfied with what I drew. Now, two years later, when I draw orchids, I see orchid for a moment, and then my VIEW SHIFTS. I see curves and lines, empty space and angles.

I don’t see “ORCHID” while I draw and so it’s easy to draw the orchid because it doesn’t become an orchid again – until it has transferred to my page. And then I shift back to seeing the whole as “ORCHID”.  

It is a wondrous capability I have developed: to shift from seeing the named whole to the abstract parts. 

Try it! Read this post if you are feeling stuck and this one if you are ready to dive in and discover a new view.