Beyond the Stairs by David Roberts

An exhibit of Etch A Sketch renderings of cartoons, portraits, and architecture. The drawings were created on several different sizes of Etch A Sketches, from the “World’s Smallest” to “Classic” models.

“From the moment in the late 1950's when a French electrician took a pencil to a plastic decal coated in aluminum dust, the Etch A Sketch was destined to become a simple toy for creating even simpler drawings. But for me it would become my primary means of creative expression. This body of work represents nearly 20 years of exploring the Etch A Sketch as an artistic medium.

Although it started out as nothing more than a convenient way to cull boredom and impress my friends in high school, I soon began drawing pictures of things that were important to people close to me and attempting to preserve them as gifts. Their reactions of disbelief inspired me to continue exploring the limits of the popular toy as an artistic tool, and I began to take my work more seriously.

In order to hone my craft, I've chosen to draw a variety of subjects: cartoon Disney characters, with their smooth, curved lines; human portraits, with their subtly varying tones and textures; and landscapes and architecture, where the hard diagonals of buildings meet the wild organic shapes of trees and shrubbery. I've also experimented with different ways of preserving the drawings, as well as varying methods of presentation.

Ultimately, my goal is to create fine art on a toy that most believe is only good for drawing straight lines. I do this by combining play with classic and photo realistic drawing techniques. Through these means, I hope to inspire in the viewer a sense of wonder and the desire to go out themselves and push the limits of play.” --David Roberts. See more at EtchBeyond.com.