"Drawing with an eyelash" is the technique currently popularized by artist Mel Kadel whose drawings are mix all together of dropped and stripped patterns, florals, ink washes and little characters; together she creates a visual narrative that communicates the idea we are all part of this system whether we recognize it or not. In addition to drawing with tiny pens, she also works with ancient papers, glue, cotton swabs, and is known for using coffee to stain her paper, although all of her materials are very basic it is very refreshing to see artists using their hands and raw materials to make collages in the age of technology.

Kadel has made Los Angeles her home for over a decade now, after graduating from Moore College of Art & Design in 1997, she moved to New York for a couple of years before settling on the West Coast. Previous collaborations include bathing suits prints with the Australian surf company TALLOW, a nine page story with with model Abbey Lee Kershaw (and with her photographer brother, Greg Kadel) in the May issue of NUMERO magazine, and an album cover to This Warm December Vol2 made up of Brushfire Records. This October your can see Mel Kadel's solo show at Merry Karnowsky Gallery in LA.

eclectic*: What music are you listening to at the moment?
mk: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Akron/Family, Babies On Acid, The Dead Trees, Grateful Dead, The Kinks, and a lot of NPR.

e: What is inspiring you at the moment?
mk: I'm mostly inspired when I'm busy drawing and keeping up momentum. I find that my ideas come naturally when I'm working on something, and thinking about what I'll be doing next.

e: What do you enjoy communicating in your drawings?
mk: The universal struggle that we all share, no matter where we are from.
I want to communicate the moments of strength it takes to move past the struggle, instead of focusing on the hardship.

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