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art for good 100 drawing challenge

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woman holding diwali diya drawing by nidhi chananicold comforts inktober drawing by nidhi chanani

I could let the ocean of bad news swallow me whole. My toes, ankles and knees are submerged. I keep my body up and dry with art. Art is my raft and although it cannot save me from everything, it gives me hope. As more human rights are stripped away by a callous government I am desperate for hope.
Tomorrow, June 28th, I will attempt to create 100 original drawings in a day to raise money for charity similar to the ink drawings above, made in 2016. I am placing my work obligations on hold because resisting and connecting is far more important. Each drawing will be available for sale and every dollar of the sale (less shipping) will be donated here. In order to do this I set a few parameters – each drawing will be in black ink with gold and red embellishments. Each will have a character plus something (animal, object, etc). They will not be named but numbered. Each drawing will be posted immediately, with the help of my office manager Nickole, here.
Lastly, I will take suggestions. Email, tweet or comment and I will do my best to create based on your suggestions. I will need your help. I will post process, WIPs, and perhaps even some live videos on instagram.
I need to create art. I need to build a raft of hope with you.
Let’s fight the good fight together.

the flow

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An artist career is one that cannot be charted or replicated – it has its own flow. As I sat down to draw today I remembered deciding years ago to reduce my daily drawings to weekly. I was nervous that it would impact my income and that I would lose the audience I had worked so hard to build. Stopping was necessary though – I needed to complete Pashmina.

I went from producing a finished illustration 4-5 times a week to once a week. I posted older images to keep connecting with people, but as Pashmina took my focus I reduced those posts as well. Now I find myself unconcerned with this irregularity. My career has flowed into new territory.

No longer do I attempt to create daily illustrations – often times I sacrificed the quality of the image for quantity. Pashmina is done and I’ve begun thumbnailing my second book, Jukebox. It demands my focus as well. I may not be creating illustrations every day, but I am creating daily. The opportunity to create longer narratives – to make books – is one I’ve dreamt of since I was little. Both disciplines are worthwhile – but for now, my heart is in comics. I will be traveling throughout the year to promote Pashmina – in April I’ll be at the Cleveland Museum of Art and in Juneau for the Alaska Mini Con. The opportunities to create illustrations in addition to my other projects and travel will be minimal.

But somedays, like today, I miss my daily drawings. So I stop. I draw. And I continue to follow the flow.

stronger together

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strongertogether

together

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together

i thought this week, along with many others, that our country would celebrate the first woman president. instead i have spent sleepless nights worried about a future full of open hatred. i wake up to stories of my fears realized – people attacking one another with their fists and words.

i also read stories about people bringing flowers to mosques, islamic centers and immigration non-profits. showing their solidarity and support. because we are suffering together.
we are immigrants, we are muslim, we are LGBT, we are differently abled, we are latino, we are ALL americans. and we are kind.
whatever comes next, we are in this together.

blossom

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blossom

finding hope

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findinghope

sometimes the news is too much and it seems like hope is a creature we have to quest for… that was my thought as i drew this.

on another note, orders from our shop must be priority mail to arrive by xmas – the deadline is friday december 19th. after that there are always gift certificates! ^_^

little light

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littlelight

I created this entirely in photoshop in 30 minutes – I usually do the base drawing in flash. I wanted to explore painting on just one layer but old habits die hard! I ended up with 12 layers but that’s a big change for me.

I woke up with this image in my mind because I felt a bit crushed by the news… it feels as though all we have is a little light – but hopefully that’s enough to grow out of these shadows.

rise up

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riseup

we have to believe that we are the change that’s coming.

lotta love

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lottalove

Reading about the repeated violence makes it harder to see beauty through the horrible headlines. We must stop hurting the planet, the animals and each other. I have hope that we can arrive at a place where we see our time here as precious and treat the world and those around us with respect. I believe we can change. Because I believe we have a lot of love. If we can free ourselves to share that love – to release it into the world without reservation – perhaps we can arrive there soon.

breathe in

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breathein