Digital Art – Who am I?…

I came to Korea with a Blackberry I didn’t truly know how to use to its fullest. My Korean friends didn’t even know what it was. Android, Smartphones… those were words I thought or deep down hoped would disappear.   Technology scared me.  Back in South Africa I didn’t have the money for a fancy – anything, so avoiding it was my way of coping. That is also how I fell behind – big time – on all things tech – I was also too shy and insecure to even ask a coffee shop if they had Wi-Fi. It was clear I was out of my comfort zone and didn’t want to look like an idiot. 

If you had told me 10 years ago that today I would have a laptop, two tablets, a Smartphone, a digital sketchpad, a fitness watch and a Smart TV, I would have laughed so hard and then I would asked you what half those things were. Then I would have convinced you that you had, without a doubt, the wrong Ané!  

However, while living in Korea I had no choice but to get a smartphone and slowly but surely my curious nature got on track with the rest of the world. Having younger friends who know nothing else, but this world of instant connection, filters and influencers also taught and keeps teaching me a lot about what is hip and happening in the world of tech and social media. I love that and I’m grateful for them. 

I remember when technology started taking over all areas of our lives just at a slower pace than now; my mom would sit and figure it out. When she got stuck, she would do research or consult the right people and was just generally open to any tech information that came her way. My mom would simply adapt to it all. I asked her once why she was so adamant to know how all the tech stuff works, and her reply has stayed with me for the last 20+ years. She said: “I never want to become one of those lost old people who got left behind in the world.” And I thought to myself, “Yes Queen! What an example for your kids. Count me in.”  

There are many days I get frustrated or feel like it’s all too much, then I think of my mom as this hip tech granny teaching all her buddies and I fear I might end up in one of her “classes”. With that in mind I keep pushing through, learning and locking it down.  

But, in my heart, at the fabric of my soul, I am a pencil and paper kinda gal. Since I was little, I remember thinking, there is nothing more beautiful than a crisp white page. All the possibilities that I can create excite me like nothing else. I felt that way then and I feel that way today. More than just drawing but also writing a poem or a story. And oh, be still my heart, writing a letter in pen on paper and posting it… The only thing better than that is receiving one of those, oh boy, baby is in heaven.  

Being in the world of art, of course I knew about digital art. I even appreciate it, as I do all art, but I had no intention of personally creating anything digital. That was until a much younger artist – a great watercolorist – started creating her art digitally. It was beautiful, fast, and easy to correct mistakes. I thought I would play around. Why not? I am my mother’s daughter after all. 

Very soon, to be honest, I created my first series. I created it days after my 40th birthday…kind of as a nod to myself in the prime of my life, being who I choose to be, keep on learning new skills and my love for walking around my house in the nude. The series will therefore be released on my next birthday … that’s a promise! 

After I created “the birthday series” I started doing what I love just as much as knitting; I started designing clothes again – this time on my tablet. I have designed clothes my entire life. It is how I relax. At first, I thought I wanted to be a fashion designer, but I soon realized my true desire was to create and play. Design and then show it off.  That is who I am to my core. Create and then play with all the ‘proverbial kids in the street’, rope them in, dress them to the nines and psych them up for a show – or as I like to call it just a good time.   

Designing clothes is my pastime and a happy place. Doing this series has been 100% a joy. It is my greatest honor and pleasure to share it with you. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed the design and artistry of the digital medium. 😊 

Thank you for your coffee break spent with me. It truly warms my heart. And I love hearing from you too. 

Live, love, laugh, let go and light up the world in your own unique way.   

With love, always  

Ané 

PS: If you want to write me a letter, DM me. I promise I will write back! 😊