Are you a doodler? You know, do you sketch out designs, little characters, or everyday objects on the side of your paper? As a nurse, my doodles often feature small pairs of lungs, a talkative kidney, and dancing stethoscopes, but maybe you’re a flower or airplane type of doodler.
Doodling can be relaxing and seems to speed time up during a long lecture or business meeting. For most doodlers, this past time remains hidden between notebook pages. But one young English schoolboy is going public with his talents and landing gigs as a professional doodler. His creativity and love of aliens is making people see doodling in a new light. (1)
No Doodling In Class!
Joe Whale, a nine-year-old from Shrewsbury, developed his obsession with doodling in school. Joe’s father, Greg, told Metro News that his son loves a lot of activities, including cricket and footballing, but he is a whiz when it comes to drawing. Unfortunately, his school didn’t offer Joe a lot of time to sketch and when he set out to doodle on the class whiteboard, a teacher would rebuff him. No time for creativity sadly.
However, Joe’s parent saw something more in his work than his school teacher and enrolled him in an art class at Bloom. Dad Greg told the media, “‘His mum and I decided to get him into an art class outside of school called Bloom, he’s been there for about six weeks and he loves every minute of it.”
Bloom is an art studio designed for kids just like Joe, who are young and beginning to learn their talents. Yet, Joe was an exceptional student from the start, requiring no practice and producing immaculate work straight away. He was immediately moved to an older class. Today, Joe’s friends at the studio have nicknamed him ‘doodle boy’, and he has decorated an entire wall there with his sharpie pen characters. (1, 2)
Restaurant Number 4 Becomes Doodle Central
As Joe’s instructor at Bloom shared his work on Facebook and Instagram the local Shrewsbury restaurant Number 4 took note of the boy’s work. At first, they reached out to Joe and his family about a singular piece of art for the restaurant. But upon coming to visit the restaurant, to see the feel and vibe of the space, the owner suggested Joe do an entire wall. Greg Whale said, “…he, of course, leapt at the chance to do it so we have been going there after school where for a couple of hours a night he’ll put his creativity on their wall.” As well, Greg has posted Joe’s work on LinkedIn, where it went viral by racking up more than 1,500,000 views and comments. (1, 3)
Facebook: @bloom4buddingartists
More Art To Come
Joe’s parents have said he has been doodling since they could remember, but really in the last couple of years his talent has expanded and grown. Joe’s dreams and sees doodle characters all day long! It’s really exciting to think of where he could go next with his work next, especially as Joe strives to become a full-time artist when he grows up. (3)