Artist Only Draws In His Sleep

Lee Hadwin is a talented artist. He has drawn sketches of horses, celebrities, and beautiful landscapes. He only draws in black and white. Oh, and there is one other thing. Hadwin only draws in his sleep.

Ever since he was about four years old, he has been waking up to discover detailed drawings beside his bed. But he doesn’t remember ever having done the drawings. When he is awake, Hadwin says he can’t draw at all. In fact, he has no interest in art. During the day, he works as a nurse.

When he was young, Hadwin, who now lives in London, England, used to cover his walls and tables with his sketches. In his teens, the drawings became more detailed and intricate.

He started leaving charcoal, paper and pencil crayons out for himself. While he is asleep, he gets up out of bed and sketches, without ever waking up. Even though there are paints and coloured pencils for him to use, he never works in colour—only black and white.

Sometimes he draws twice a week; other times he will go three or four months without drawing. Hadwin, 33, says if he has had some alcohol to drink the night before, he is more likely to draw in his sleep.

Once, Hadwin woke up in the morning to find that he had cut up a pair of his favourite jeans in the night and incorporated it into a piece of artwork.

Researchers at the Edinburgh Sleep Centre are going to be doing some research on Hadwin to understand how and why he can sleep-draw. He will also be the subject of an upcoming documentary film.

Other people have been known to sleepwalk, to eat in their sleep or even drive a car in their sleep. The sleep researchers say Hadwin’s sleep-drawing condition is unique. One researcher speculated that it could be a rare form of epilepsy.

Hadwin is planning to exhibit some of his artwork (which has raised thousands of pounds for charity) at galleries in London and in Paris. He says his biggest fear is that he will suddenly stop drawing in his sleep. He says that every time he wakes up and sees some new art by his bedside he breathes a sigh of relief.

Edited by Nirrosa Muniandy