Do you ever watch Devon Rodriguez, the trending Tiktoker who draws people on the NYC subway? My favorite part of his videos is when he hands the drawing to the person. Often they cry. Why is that?
I have a few theories…
Surprise. I think we go through our days expecting little in the way of attention and affirmation. To see yourself created in a piece of art is ninja level validation, and it triggers the tear ducts.
Depth is another theory. Words only express so much. At some point we have to sing, or jump, or write poetry, or cry. When something hits us in those tender places in our hearts, tears appear.
And lastly, beauty. Beauty gets us every time. It’s visceral, emotional, overwhelming.
That’s why I love a teary response when I hand over a commissioned piece of art. It tells me that my small efforts of capturing on the canvas the worth of a person has possibly paid off. My prayer is that beauty and affirmation will always be part of the portrait painting process.
