Drawn: The Art of Ascent

After an intense and anxious vision, "both geographic and artistic," Jeremy Collins commenced on a four-year journey, traveling in the four cardinal directions--north, south, east, west--to create art, climb new routes, and "live out his own map."

But Collins is not an untethered lone wolf climber. He lives in Kansas City, with his wife and two children. While climbing, he often asks himself: "Why am I here on this mountain instead of with them?"

His answer is gradually revealed in Drawn, an intimate visual exploration of how one reconciles family, career, and personal passion.

Collins chronicles ambitious first ascents in the United States, China, Venezuela, and Canada with climbing partners including James Q Martin, Mark Jenkins, Pat Goodman, Jeff Achey and Mikey Schaefer. At the same time, this contemplative dad shares his dreams and desires, and always finds a route back to his family.

Collins's art is a rich and textured mixed media of pencil, charcoal, watercolor, torn paper, and photographs. Drawn features pages from the sketchbooks he kept on these climbs with hand-written text.