Port Side: Drawing with my non dominant hand

By Mike Cressy

After rotator cuff surgery left my dominant right arm immobilized, I faced a new challenge: How could I keep from being bored and continue making art when I couldn't use the hand I'd relied on my entire career?

As a professional illustrator and concept artist who spent decades creating for companies including Pok mon, Xbox, Microsoft, Amazon Game Studios, and others, ... drawing was more than a job. It was part of who I am. During the long months of recovery, I began drawing with my left hand simply to stay creative and keep myself occupied.

What started as an exercise in adaptation became something much more meaningful. Over the course of my recovery, I created more than fifty left-handed drawings, each one marking a small step forward. Along the way, I discovered that creativity doesn't live in just the dominant hand. It lives in the brain, with the persistence, curiosity, and the willingness to begin again.

This book is a collection of those drawings and the story behind them. Imperfect, exploratory, and deeply personal, they document a season of healing, resilience, and rediscovery through art.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0HK15Q9P3
• ISBN13: 9798174554917
• Release Date: September 2026
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 114 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 8.5" x 8.5"