Fan Art and New Project

Some people draw celebrities and post them on online galleries which is brilliant.

I have recently started a project drawing inspiration form this. At the start of the year a book of portraits drawn by Premier League footballers was auctioned off for charity. Most of the drawings were terrible as one would have expected, but I guess there aren't many artists who can play footballer particularly well. Here is Wayne Rooney's self portrait..

There seems to be a huge disconnect between celebrities, in this case footballer, and the public who idolise them and in many cases help to fund them. There are huge barriers enforced to prevent these super humans from actually interacting with common people and actually being able to sample what real life is like (maybe they can remember back to the days at 15 years old before super stardom). I guess mainly the reason that people with lots of money are kept apart from people without lots of money is probably because people would generally go beserk  if they saw David Beckham in the Post Office buying a book of stamps. Although I did once carry a bag of multi-purpose compost to George Best's car for him and no one really bothered him when he was walking around the garden centre. So I suppose the hype is created by the media and money men to help sell things, in turn creating celebrity sports-people, in turn separating them from normal people.

So, I'm going to try to break down some of these barriers in a very small and insignificant way by attempting to interact with some of these famous people. Drawing someone's portrait is a pretty intimate thing, especially when they have no knowledge that you are doing so. Over the next month i'll be drawing footballers and sending them their portrait with a letter. In return I hope they will sign and return my drawing. I'd imagine that something similar has been done before, but this is more for my own amusement and self-interest as opposed to anything poignant. I'm hoping to exhibit my interactions eventually, fingers crossed I get some correspondence.  Below is my Wayne Rooney, I hope he likes it.