"If you're not falling and failing, you're not learning" | Drawn To Key West

"The first hour of juggling the fire I was kinda scared. But then after that, it was like nothing. And the reason why is because I caught the fire. And that's the thing- if you're not falling and failing, you're not learning. You have to fall and you have to fail, you might get a scab and you might get a scar, but that's a learning experience."

Drawn To Key West

I've had the huge privilege of being able to travel a lot and have been lucky enough to see many places (mostly) inside and outside of the United States. While I've had many great experiences traveling about there is really only one place I can name, other than Italy (where my family is from), that has truly captured my heart.

Key West is the southernmost point of the continental US and the last island in the chain of the Florida Keys. Other than the usual appeal of tropical weather, being surrounded by water, and the laid-back vibe you don't get up here in New York, Key West offers a unique experience unlike any of place I've visited. While the island, with it's rustic houses and lush tropic flora, has it's unique charm and visual appeal, I feel the true draw to Key West is the people. It has a high tolerance for unconventional lifestyles and everyone seems to be content with letting people live their life however it makes them happy. It's known for being a haven for the LGBTQ community long before the rest of the US began it's road to acceptance (the first openly gay mayor being elected in 1983) and the island has also been a creative haven to artists and writers as well. All walks of life seem comfortable here and with such a diverse set of people, there is no shortage of unique and intriguing characters that adds to the appeal of Key West. Everyone seems to be incredibly friendly and open to share a thing or two about their experience on the island.

One aspect of Key West that never gets tired for me is the Sunset Celebration, a nightly festival that overlooks the sunset in Mallory Square. Every evening street performers, entertainers, musicians, and vendors vie for the attention of tourists along the pier. I've been coming to Key West nearly every year since I was six or seven and I always make sure to catch the festival during my stay. One would think I would get bored of seeing the same thing time and time again but I can't help but be continually attracted by the unique personalities and wonderful acts of the street performers. I find that as an artist, I feel a special connection to their commitment to an unconventional career path and sometimes wonder if growing up watching them had any influence on my choice to work as an illustrator.

After my annual spring trip to Key West this past year I was really inspired to document the lives of the locals and street performers through a comics-journalism style story. It's my hope to share the same passion and love I feel for Key West with others, to showcase the unique characters that contribute to the appeal to the island, and to show the lifestyle of the street performers.

I just recently came back from a trip (like two days ago recently) and in the short time I stayed, was able to get some really interesting stories. When I first came up with the idea, I had a sense of what I wanted the project to look like but wasn't super sure where to start or what the structure would look like. Now that I've interviewed some people, I finally feel like I have enough to work out the framework of the comic.

A Busker's Life

With most of previous comics living in the realm of fiction, doing this style of project is a first for me. And as a generally quiet and reserved person, the act of having to go out and interview people I didn't know is completely, one hundred percent out of my comfort zone. So the fact that I was able to not only come up with the courage to ask but to also have a successful interview with a street performer was a huge win for me.

It took my friend (who was helping me with the project) and I quite a while to finally approach one of the street performers who stood out to us. We made several laps around Mallory Square while giving each other pep-talks and rehearsing what exactly we'd say. There was one point where we were about to approach him and someone else started chatting with him for quite some time; we almost took it as a sign that talking to him wasn't meant to be. But finally we asked him if he'd be willing to sit down and talk to us about his life and he said yes (to which I involuntarily responded "really?!").

He goes by Blue and his act primary involves acrobatic tricks with his hat and riding a unicycle while juggling with lit torches. You can find him on Instagram @nowthatsblue. He was so incredibly nice and happy to take time out of his day to answer all of my questions. He provided really invaluable insight into the life of a Mallory Square performer and his words made me really excited to continue on with this project and see where it will take me.

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Stay tuned for more updates on the project!

Ending question: what's your favorite place to visit?

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If you'd like to keep up with more of my work you can check me out at the following:

Instagram: @la.fumettista
Tumblr: http://la-fumettista.tumblr.com/tagged/art
Twitter: @TheresaChiechi
Website: https://www.theresachiechi.com/