True Joy: A Tribute to Joy Sikorski (1952-2009)

The Joyous Interview

Chris Dunmire Interviews Joy Sikorski (2004)

Q: In Squeaky Chalk you write:

"I worked in my father's factory at an early age. I sharpened pencils and played on the typewriter. Meanwhile, out in the back, big pots of metal boiled. Later in life, I picked apples in an orchard. Now I write and draw."

Have you always been aware of your creativity, or was it something you discovered later on in life?

A: I've never questioned my creativity — from our earliest days my mother gave us pencils and paper to keep us busy. There were six children, and Mom went to school as a commercial artist, so she passed that interest along to us. In fact, Mom would unroll white shelf paper along the table and give us a big box of crayons, and we could play for hours.

Q: When did you first get interested/started in writing and art?

A: When I was 5 or 6 years old, my much-loved grandparents moved to Florida and we children couldn't visit them as much as we once did. We started writing letters to them. These were my Mom's parents — I think she inherited her creativity and good humor from them — they were absolutely heavenly in our eyes, warm happy people who loved us and encouraged our creativity and play. At some point I started a newsletter and had my brothers and sisters contribute to it. Every month or so I would send Nana and Grampa an edition of "The Daily Dribble," with a bouncing basketball as it's logo. Why a basketball? I have no idea!

Q: What inspired you to write your first book, How to Draw a Radish? How long did it take to complete it?

A: One evening I was at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. My husband Nick Sunday and I had stopped in the museum cafe in between galleries. I showed him some of my drawing lessons —- things I did on a chalkboard at work to entertain my colleagues — and Nick said I should put them into a book. I did! It took about 6 months to assemble them all and design the pages.

Q: How did you feel when your book was accepted [by the publisher] and when you first saw the cover of the finished product?

A: I was delighted of course, that How to Draw a Radish found a publisher, and very thankful to the friends who pointed me in the direction of Chronicle Books. They have been very supportive and encouraging, and a perfect place for my creativity. I designed the cover myself, and in fact was alarmed that they gave another person credit for it. That person's role was to add a green spine and to change the typeface somewhat, making the "a" between "draw" and "radish" a strange dark red color. There's always a little bit of angst involved in book covers. I let it go, though.

Q: How does it feel like to be a published author and see your books gracing the shelves of bookstores and coffee shops?

A: I feel lucky, especially knowing from the inside how very difficult it is to get through to editors and publishers. It's really sort of a miracle, and it definitely depends on knowing someone on the inside. I also feel a bit silly when people make much of me and my books. "It's only me!," I tell them.

Q: What advice would you give to writers just starting out?

A: Keep at it, don't give up, and publish it yourself until you find someone who will publish it for you.

Q: Who inspires you?

A: Edward Lear for his persistent silliness, Charles Dickens for his wonderful writing, Kamalo Kupihea (a surf instructor in Maui) for his goodness as a teacher, Greenpeace and the Central Park Conservancy for their mission, my grandparents Nana and Grampa for all goodness and sweetness, my Mom for her completeness, my husband Nick Sunday for his creativity and hard work, all my readers and fans for their appreciation and their talent. I also like the word "Ahimsa", which means, "love embracing all creation" — that's a wonderful guiding word.

Q: What other creative projects are you working on?

A: I have a daybook that I published for 2004, that I am sending out to publishers as a sample for 2006 perhaps. Stationery coming out from Galison/Mudpuppy in the fall, and a few more projects with them. A project for a museum — too soon to speak of now, and a class I conducted last week at a historical society/museum which was very much fun, and an upcoming arts fair.

Q: If you had to choose another line of work, what would it be?

A: Something to do with the sea — a ferry boat captain or oceanographer in Maui.

Q: What do you do to unwind and relax?

A: I read, right now Dickens and Charles Mayhew and William Hickey, and I love boat rides, and I love strolling about in New York City.

Q: What is an unknown fact about you?

A: I have a very nutty mother-in-law, Frances, upon whom is based the Frances character in How to Draw a Cup of Coffee. I would love to do a video documentary about her.

Q: If you could leave your readers with one legacy, what would you want it to be?

A: I hope my legacy is to let everyone know that they can draw, it's easy and fun! And to be silly, which helps in everything in life.

Chris Dunmire's Din-o-mite! Pterodactyl Paper Sculpture Project

Create your own mini Jurassic Park with this creatively fun Pterodactyl paper sculpture based on Joy Sikorski's free drawing lesson.

As you can see, you don't always have to limit your playful drawings to flat paper! To make this fun Pterodactyl sculpture, follow the step-by-step directions below.

Materials Needed:

• Thick colored paper for your flying Ptero
• Newspaper and shredded colored (or painted) paper for the nest
• Three or four of thin craft wires to hold the Ptero in place
• Pencil
• Thick black marker
• Scissors
• Tape or glue

Instructions:

1. Using Joy Sikorski's above drawing lesson, draw a Pterodactyl on thick colored card stock or reinforced construction paper (construction paper glued to card stock). Draw with pencil first, and then outline the picture with a thick, black marker.


2. Cut out the Pterodactyl, leaving 1/8" empty border around the black outline.


3. Build the nest by sculpting a base with plain newspaper and then gluing shredded colored paper inside and out.


4. Attach the Pterodactyl to the nest by gluing or taping the thin wires to its back and sticking them deep into the nest.


5. Optional: Add some "empty" decorated eggs into the nest and you have yourself one fine Pterodactyl Momma!

Encountering Creative Joy

I first discovered Joy Sikorski as a young adult through a little newspaper review of her book, How to Draw a Radish long before Amazon and digital downloads were a click away. Intrigued, I acquired a copy the old-school way: at the local library. After reading it I was forever changed.

It wasn't just the whimisical drawings or weaving of words in Joy's book that altered my perceptions, specifically about shedding childhood wonder, 'growing up', and the expectations I had for myself as a budding adult. Rather, it was the way Joy's infectious creative spirit emanated from the pages that spoke to me, revealing the importance of lifelong authenticity as an indelible foundation.

She demonstrated that while growing older meant taking on more 'serious' adult and career responsibilities, it didn't exclude enjoying a childlike sense of adventure and good humor. Yes, creativity, play, and fun (even at the office) are truly ageless expressions we can choose to engage in and celebrate at every stage of life.

When I embraced these lessons early on, the trajectory of my life path changed into a more creative one. Creativity Portal was launched, and nine years after finding her first book, I interviewed Joy Sikorski for this web site because of her influential creative mentoring (see The Joyous Interview).

If you want to embark on a creative adventure, especially one that involves more childlike play, doodling, drawing, and artistic expression, I highly recommend taking a tour through Joy's books.

A final amusement: Through all the years I've been writing about Joy Sikorsi, my spell check has prompted me to substitute silkworms for sikorski. I smile at the thought of her name change to Joy Silkworms and can easily imagine the squiggly little creatures she'd have nibbling on green foliage in one of her leafy-larva drawing lessons.