We are more than our work: Recapping my art endeavors from 2024
Starting 2025 with something I've never done before - sharing my art in this publication!
And just like that, it turned into 2025!
I had planned to kick off the new year with a post on how I used AI last year. While I’m very excited to share those use cases, I keep thinking about a different recap I want to do instead - showcasing the various art projects I took on in 2024.
Discussing my art in this publication feels meaningful to me because, well, it’s not something I’ve done before. I’ve wanted to! But I started this publication to discuss professional topics like data science, and it felt like the squishy topic of art wouldn’t mix. It’s also a pretty vulnerable act to show one’s art publicly than it is to show (off) how one uses the latest hot tech.
But it’s a new year, and I’m feeling bold. And I think data science can benefit from more heart, art, and creativity! Where data science focuses on accuracy and identifying signal from noise, I’ve learned from working with art to throw away notions of right and wrong and to revel in failing because embracing what is “bad” is necessary to become better. The noise is what makes the product beautiful.
The beginnings of an artist
Before I jump into a recap of 2024, I’m going to travel further back in time to share a little bit about how my relationship with art developed in the first place.
I have always been an analytical thinker, so growing into becoming a data scientist was a natural progression. Following my gut and passion and interest led me straight down a path toward analysis, experimentation, and coding.
This has not been the case for my development into becoming an “artist”. I have always had a creative streak, but translating bursts of ideas to paper quickly stalled once pen hit paper. I was horribly perfectionistic, and I couldn’t stand the visceral twisting in my stomach when I saw something I produced that looked ugly and wrong. For most of my life, I had art envy.
Then came Instagram. I hopped on the viewer bandwagon about 5 years ago, and the algorithm learned to show me content from doodlers (like @mrdoodle) and lettering artists (like @gracecallidesigns). Exposure to these artists’ beautiful quirky drawings day after day snapped something in me. I had to try it too.
Fast forward to now, and nearly every day I’m creating (usually drawing) something. When I started out, I decided to post on Instagram to document my art journey. I loved the idea of sharing something I made that was “bad” because 1) it was my way of rebelling against all the “perfect” content on Instagram; but 2) more importantly, I saw these posts as snapshots of a single point in time where, if I kept drawing, I that “bad” drawing wouldn’t show up again because I would have improved. It actually felt a little bittersweet, like seeing your toddler grow up to learn to say “spaghetti” instead of “skapetti” (true story).
And now, 5 years later, I still post my work regularly. And honestly, I don’t really see my art as “good” or “bad” any more. It just is. I look for ways I can improve, but I also deeply appreciate what I create because I can see the progress I’ve made.
Recap of 2024
So here is my snapshot of 2024! I traveled through several different styles this year, learned new techniques and returned to old ones.
Digital cartoons - In 2023, I started drawing digital cartoons inspired by my daily life, so these spilled over into the new year. At the time, I didn’t know how to draw people, so I used fruit to represent me and my kids, and the easiest fruit to draw was an orange!
Real-time sketching - I’ve always been inspired by urbansketchers, who drew “in the wild”. When I could, I would snag a few minutes to draw what was around me, usually while waiting in lines for boba, a Costco order, or even a ride at Disneyland.
#the100dayproject - Then came February and the annual #100dayproject. The premise of this project is to pick an artistic theme, then create something toward that theme every day for 100 days in a row. And post it on Instagram for accountability. This year I chose a theme that I didn’t know how to do but always wanted to know how to do - draw people.
Florals - After successfully completing the intense 100 days of daily drawing and posting, I needed a break. I worked through a book on how to draw flowers (Florals by Hand), another artistic theme that I had always wanted to learn how to do.
drawabox - After I finished the book, I really wanted to go back to basics, so I took up the drawabox challenge, which is an exercise to draw 150 boxes. I love doing drills, so I had a lot of fun drawing box after box after box. I have a newfound appreciation and understanding for how to draw deceptively simple sets of geometric lines.
Zentangles - Toward the end of the year, work and life was piling up, so I had little capacity or energy leftover for art. I returned to one of my favorite drawing styles - zentangles. It was blissful to zone out while drawing repeating patterns of lines.
Sketch journaling - In the last month or so, I’ve been sketch journaling (inspired by the amazing Samantha Dion Baker) where you record your day through illustrations. I used to do this years ago but stopped because of the time it took to create detailed drawings of my day. Since then, I’ve learned about how to let go and create without agonizing over every line, so I can more easily skate in that state of flow to capture these little invaluable memories.
Oil pastels - And finally, the last art endeavor I have embarked on - oil pastels. My sister-in-law and brother-in-law gave me a set for Christmas. I’ve never really used them before, except for one time in an eighth grade art class, and that toucan turned out so wrong, I’m pretty sure that’s one of the core memories that convinced me art wasn’t “for me”. But now I’m a wiser more seasoned art person, and I eagerly dove into this medium. I have been loving it ever since.
How about you?
And there it is! A short summary of my overall art journey, and a short showcase of the different art styles and mediums I explored this year. Isn’t it a wonderful thing to be a multi-faceted person who can work by day in coding and forecasting models and by night be a creative being following the whimsy of one’s own wild imagination?
How about you? What did you create in 2024? How did you let your creative spirit run wild? And what are you excited to try in the new year? I’d love to know!