Skip to content

Tin Toy Exploration 1.2


Deprecated: Calling static trait method Neve\Customizer\Defaults\Layout::get_meta_default_data is deprecated, it should only be called on a class using the trait in /www/natalieshahmiricom_440/public/wp-content/themes/neve/inc/views/post_layout.php on line 181
Vintage tin wind-up toy illustration of a red bird by Natalie Shahmiri

A month in on quarantine and still drawing away. I have to admit, learning to draw has been a nice distraction from things. It requires a level of focus I’ve always struggled with in life and this newfound skill has taken me quite by surprise.

Earlier this year my neurologist told me I had a mini-stroke in late 2019. The husband and I joke that my previously nonexistent drawing skills are a by-product of my mini-stroke which makes me laugh every time.

In reality, people who acquire incredible talents after a stroke are quite rare, but I’ll just pretend. It at least makes light of a pretty lame situation and is a fun story: “I could never draw, but then I had a small stroke and voila! I could suddenly draw! However, I could no longer calculate time.”

Enough about my brain and back to this little bird. Honestly, with as much as is wrong with this piece, I absolutely love it. I used a procreate brush to get the grid around the eyes which was a delight. The key shape is off, but is an improvement from the rabbit’s key and feels like plastic against the tin body. I feel like the tabs are fairly 3-dimensional and the weathering is similar to the rust on the actual toy. This one took me quite a few days to complete but was worth the effort. It’s still quite surreal to me that I drew this. I wish I owned this toy, I’ve become quite attached to it while drawing it, but alas she’s been sold!