I don't claim, or desire to have an artistic pedigree, but will explain a few key moments of my unorthodox path...
My first determined artistic efforts began with my mother's effusive praise (not a prodigy, but well loved)... Or it could have been when I perfected the facility to draw detailed portraits of vain members of the opposite sex (flattery will get you somewhere). Or it may have been when I audited an anatomy and physiology course and carefully illustrated cadavers in an effort to gain some understanding of the interior of the human body.
Next, it was off for a short stint to an overly trendy art school in Nova Scotia where I was considered "unteachable" by the head professor who was a rigid conceptualist, who had a pronounced hostility for a young, arrogant, figurative primadonna (me). Since that time I have taken instruction where I desire (usually individual artists), attended art colonies, and have drawn many, many figures. Also worth mentioning is the sketching I have done in various art institutions (such as the MET and the MFA), some drawing was done at the aforementioned institutions' bathroom walls (probably a short run...).