The LUCY Drawing Tool on 'Shark Tank': What is the cost, who is the founder and how an old masters' tool can improve your art
People often assume that to be an artist, talent is key. And while talent does give you an edge, it all boils down to practice. The more you draw, the better you get. And sometimes, having the right tools to help you allows you to fastrack the process.
While The LUCY Drawing Tool has been revolutionizing drawing for artists, will it be able to impress Mark Cuban, Robert Herjavec, Kevin O'Leary, Lori Greiner and Daymond John? Continue reading to find out what The LUCY Drawing Tool can do and how it can help you improve as an artist.
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What is The LUCY Drawing Tool?
If you're an artist or just someone who enjoys making art, then you know that getting proportions right isn't always easy. If you've looked at old masters' works in awe and hope to reach that level someday, The LUCY Drawing Tool is for you. This drawing tool creates reflections on the paper or canvas, allowing you to recreate the object, figure or scenery before you.
As per the brand's website -- "The LUCY Drawing Tool is an improved reinvention of the classic camera lucida. Even though the camera lucida was not patented and given a name until the early19th century, the optical concepts behind this device have been known for over 400 years. It is hard to know how long artists have been using camera lucidas and similar devices, such as the camera obscura, but we know these devices have been available and used to one extent or another for centuries."
Who is the founder?
Lee Cookson is the founder of The LUCY Drawing Tool. When he came across the camera lucida in 2005, he had one question -- "why don't people know about or use these anymore?!". This led to him "researching and reading, experimenting and building, tinkering and testing, reinventing the camera lucida into something that was useful for today's artists", over the span of four years. Eventually, Cookson was a "solved all the historic problems with the classic camera lucida but retained all the magic."
More interestingly, this is Cookson's second shot at bagging an investment on 'Shark Tank'. Longtime fans of the show might recognize him from Season 2, where he pitched his product CarSik Bib. The Sharks were far from impressed, with Kevin O'Leary joking that he rather “would throw up in this thing” than invest in the product. However, The LUCY Drawing Tool might just prove to be his redemption, seeing that Cookson has "sold tens of thousands of his reinvented drawing tools, optical toys, and hand-built replicas to artists, universities, and museums all over the world, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. He has also supplied his creations as TV and movie props for production companies like Disney, Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, and Paramount."
What is the cost and where to buy?
You can purchase the LUCY flex from the brand's website and Amazon. As per the product details, the LUCY flex "reflects an image of anything onto paper or canvas. Just draw or paint over the image to quickly start your realistic masterpiece. The technology behind the LUCY has been used by artists for hundreds of years, and the new LUCY is the latest and greatest camera lucida evolution." The LUCY flex comes with 2 Optical Filters, microfiber cleaning cloth, and instructions and retails for $97.
Where is The LUCY Drawing Tool now?
With the pandemic taking a toll on everyone, many people used this time to revisit old hobbies and improve their skills. The LUCY Drawing Tool was undoubtedly a tool that appealed to people, with more people picking up art to express themselves. As per the reviews on the website, customers have been making use of The LUCY Drawing Tool to the best of their ability. One reviewer, Theodore Heublein wrote -- "I use my LUCY Drawing Tool to more accurately capture my subjects. Due to isolation from COVID-19, I have been trying to capture my garden over the changing seasons and this tool has helped tremendously. I am able to use this both indoors and outdoors. I like that it has so few moving parts and comes together quickly and easily. Well worth the expense. @theodoreheubleinart."
Rocky K, another customer, also wrote -- "Getting the proportions down really speeds moving onto refining the piece much faster. Also is very portable, and I travel a lot in my work so allows me to produce pieces during off hours in the evening. I am still working on getting set up faster. There are nuances to the process which I am gradually learning…. I've only had it a couple of weeks and have only had the four opportunities to use it but know I will continue to use it frequently in the future."
Who will steal the deal?
It's hard to tell who might take the bait, but if the numbers are promising, Kevin O'Leary might just give the product a shot.
'Shark Tank' Season 13 Episode 19 airs on ABC on April 8, 2022, at 8 pm ET. Catch the latest episode featuring products like The LUCY Drawing Tool, The Dirty Cookie, BusyBoxSign and SwiftPaws.
Missed an episode? Been wanting to catch up? Episodes can also be viewed the next day on demand and on Hulu. Not just that, you can also watch old seasons and episodes on Amazon Prime Video and iTunes.
