If you know me through Facebook, you likely saw a post from a few weeks ago featuring a flash sale on a Dungeons & Dragons drawing that was destroyed by my cat. He gained access to my flat-file and proceeded to dig. He loves to dig in the dirt when I walk him, and he also loves to play in boxes full of paper where he will bite the paper and dig. The cracked flat-file ticked all these boxes and provided a new tactile experience for him. Unfortunately, what he was digging and biting was not dirt but several drawings from client projects. The most severely damaged drawing was the one that had the most protection and was sealed in plastic. It was also the only drawing of the bunch that I can share. It will likely be March before I can share the other drawings, and at that time, there will be another discussion about this. To start things off, here is the drawing that was destroyed.
Elemental Essence Shard
Tasha's Cauldron of Everything
11 x 14 - Pencil on paper
Original - SOLD after being damaged by my cat
Art Director - Kate Irwin
© 2020 Wizards of the Coast LLC
This drawing is damaged beyond repair, or to put it another way - it is destroyed. Nothing can be done to address the damage and restore it, save for completely drawing it again. This piece of paper only has two options now, to be thrown away or to be sold at a significant discount to someone that takes pity on my loss. Thankfully, a friend stepped forward and purchased the drawing so that it was not a complete loss of my time and energy.
At the time of my post, there was a lot of talk that this was now worth more because my cat destroyed it. That this destroyed drawing was now a collaboration between him and I. Let me be clear that is NOT a thing. One of my drawings is not worth more because it is now destroyed. To think this is extremely disrespectful to the time and energy I put into my work, not to mention the decades of my life that I have put into honing my skills and building my career. My cat did not add anything or contribute anything except to destroy the drawing. No one had yet to step forward to buy the drawing at a price I was asking, why would someone suddenly pay more now that my cat put holes in it? That is not a thing that happens.
Artists will sometimes destroy their work. This work is sometimes very old, represents failed efforts, or merely results in more frustration than enjoyment in its creation. While this practice doesn't sit well with me, I have destroyed my work from time to time, and I will never interfere in another artist destroying their work. It is likely one of the two real powers of an artist. We can create, and thus, we can destroy. When it is our choice, it can be liberating, and when it is done to our work against our will, it can be extremely painful. Seeing this and the other destroyed drawings caused, and still causes, me a great deal of pain and frustration. To make light of it with comments about it being worth more does nothing but rub salt in the wounds. Think twice about how you speak of the destroyed art of the artist you know in the future.
Here are additional images of the damage to the drawing.
I will leave you with the one responsible for the destruction. After I save him from the park as an abandoned four-week-old kitten, this is how he repays me. Note that he is biting my thumb as I try to take a photo of him so that I might shame him on the internet.
Mietze the Destroyer
That's all for another exciting Thursday on the blog. See you back here on Friday! Until then...
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