Rhoda draws
Artist sketches her third chapter fast, loose & ‘free to be me’
At age 84, Rhoda Draws is as stylishly unique as the caricature art she creates. A vibrant woman of many hats (literally), Rhoda is well known and loved as an urban sketcher, cartoonist, figurative painter, and teacher.
But her creative path hasn’t come without challenges.
“As a child, drawing and painting came easily to me,” says the Chicago native. “But when I entered high school, my advisor said I was too smart to be an artist. So for years, I tried and failed to do what ‘smart people’ do. I finally returned to art at age 30, and thankfully, my talent was waiting for me.”
Around 1980, Rhoda began her career-spanning specialty of doing LIVE caricature entertainment at events — but there have been diverse creative branches along the way, including: Digital painting. Authoring books about creatively using Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter. Performing Send-a-Yenta singing telegrams. Even a short stint with Fiddler on the Roof dinner theater.
Creativity was flowing… until the mid-90s. Crisis arrived BIG time with a $30,000 bill from the California State Board of Equalization for supposed uncollected sales tax and penalties for her live caricature work.
“It took about 2 years to prevail, and I went bankrupt in the process, but my victory made me fearless,” says Rhoda, who fully embraced her calling in 2009 with a legal name change to Rhoda Draws.
In addition to her Chicago roots, this unstoppable artist has resided in Lake Geneva, WI, and the San Francisco Bay Area. She’s also traveled throughout Europe, to India, Israel, and Morocco… And in 2018, at age 77, she moved to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, which she happily calls home.
“I speak English quite well,” she jokes. “Spanish, not so good.” But from her San Miguel base, this octogenarian heads not one but two businesses: Rhoda Draws and On the RHODAgain (sketching tours of Mexico’s Pueblos Magicos). Each centers around the custom techniques she’s developed to creatively capture the essence of any subject quickly.
Rather than shrink with age, Rhoda’s creative boundaries keep expanding.
“Capturing the essence of a pose in just a minute or two is not a warmup exercise for me, it’s the main event,” she explains. “My favorite subject is the female nude, especially a full-figured one. Digital paintings inspire my work at the easel, and my goal is to retain the fresh energy of quick studies in my canvas paintings. I never tire of finding new ways to blend digital and traditional techniques.”
Rhoda’s robust life includes in-person & online “fast and loose” sketching workshops, and taking sketching students on adventures throughout Mexico and beyond. Plus, she still brings her signature live caricature sketching and painting entertainment to parties, weddings, and other events.
“Over time, I’ve explored various techniques to develop my own unique style, which isn’t too simplified, exaggerated, distorted, or insulting,” she says, adding, “I walk the line, like Johnny Cash.”
Humor is another specialty Rhoda uses to comfort clients, including regular icebreakers like: There’s no extra charge for that double chin. And, I’ve waited all week to draw a nose like that.
“Caricature sketches are a great source of pleasure — for me and the people I’m drawing,” Rhoda says. “I just say ‘trust me,’ and they do.”
Learn more about this inspirational
mentor at her website Rhoda Draws Fine Art & Commissions), and by contacting her via email: rhodadraws@gmail.com.
Rhoda’s Insights at 84
What are you most grateful for?
Being able to make a living with my art.
What is your greatest joy?
Teaching others to draw, especially people who think they have no talent.
What is your greatest current challenge?
Finding the time, energy & discipline to do everything I want to do. Like learn to speak better Spanish, study new forms of art, and de-clutter my house.
What’s your greatest motivator?
Watching my stock portfolio dwindle, as I contemplate running out of money before I run out of time.
What’s the top meaningful more you still want to explore?
Developing and publishing a graphic memoir. It’s in progress!
Within the wrinkles of time, what helps you stay strong & confident rather than feeling lost, invisible or “over the hill”?
Dressing in bright colors with bold, asymmetrical earrings & shoes, and a variety of stylish hats. I’m especially drawn to purples, reds, and saturated pinks -- in painting and in my clothing and accessories (including most of my 55 hats). These colors act like pheromones, giving me a virtual “high” without side effects (like “the munchies”).
What is your “edge” — your superpower, that’s evolved with age?
Willingness to take risks and be vulnerable. Examples include moving to San Miguel at age 77 after only two visits, and performing one-woman shows based on critical events in my life. Also, my sense of humor and skill at using it, in writing as well as everyday life.
What's your greatest SURPRISE (so far) about becoming an “older” woman?
People “look up” to me – which is a challenge for them, since I’m only 5’ 1.”
Name a 50+ woman, real or fictional – or share a quote – that inspires you. And why?
Oh, so many choices... Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Jane Fonda, Maya Angelou. I’ll go with Gloria Steinem, who said: The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.
Anything else you’d like to share or suggest for women in their third chapter?
Don’t listen to anyone who says you are “too old” or “too” anything to achieve whatever you want!