Illustrations
In the spring of 2024, I was on a 2-month sick leave due to stress/burnout. My mind was overloaded, I kept crying inexplicably and I had trouble sleeping.
During this wonderful time, I found a way to partly escape the over analysing part of my brain:
I started doing something analogue, focus demanding and slow.
I’ve never been able to draw from imagination, and therefore I thought I was no good at drawing. After a couple weeks of doing absolutely nothing, I wanted to draw a strawberry. I googled a photo of a strawberry, and realised drawing it wasn’t actually very hard; I didn’t have to come up with anything, but mainly just execute a kind of prompt.
And then I realised I’m apparently very into composition – both of drawings and words. That’s easier to come up with – but it doesn’t have to make sense analytically, mostly just visually or by instinct. Perf.
Then I realised that I’d done this before: In my late teenage-hood I started drawing words, composing them into something resembling a translation of meaning. I believe this is what I do when I work with theatre as well – just slightly less visual and more dramaturgical. I haven’t totally figured it out yet, but there’s def something going on in the correlation between the two, and I really like it.
Here are some of the illustrations I’ve made since that first strawberry:
The first one: A kind of poster to the performance I was supposed to be working on, but couldn’t due to the sick leave.
The rehearsals of a brand new, alternative opera named “Eat The Document”.
The notes and lyrics in the background is excerpts from the score by John Glover.
Week 22 of my time in New York City
A very hot and smart friend of mine finished her degree
People i’ve seen on the NYC subway and snuck photos of
Week 11 of my time in New York City
The stage manager (and friend of mine) of a show I’ve toured with for years. In an airport.
From the rehearsal of the show I was supposed to work on but couldn’t due to the sick leave. The words are lines from the play.
Two friends living a couple of floors below me in New York. They called their apartment “Gallery 2C” because they displayed their broken porcelain during a Tour de Chambre.
A show I’ve been touring with went to play at St. Ann’s Warehouse in New York
Joe in between rehearsals at a venue in Charleston, South Carolina
Week 21 of my time in New York
things from a bedroom
My favourite writer (Kiley Reid) interviewing another banging writer (Kate Weinberg) about her new book
End of spring on the balcony
Week 4 of my time in New York
Runthrough with test audiences. Quotes are from audience in feedback-session.
Election day, evening, night and morning in New York
Week 13 of my time in New York