One of the most intimate and revealing aspects of an artist’s practice is their sketchbook—a visual diary of daily thoughts, imaginings, and renderings. Frida Khalo, for example, filled her sketchbook with watercolor illustrations, many of which were reworked and incorporated into her work, along with passionate love letters to Diego Rivera, thoughts on pre-Columbian Mexican culture and communism, and references to her failing health due to a life-threatening accident she had at the age of 18.
Loney Abrams, from 5 Steps to Starting a Sketchbook Habit
Your sketchbook is quite possibly the most powerful tool you have in your illustration arsenal! Use it to reflect on your day, practice your skills, and fill it with your unique visual thoughts!
For this week’s discussion, read Loney Abrams’ 5 STEPS TO STARTING A SKETCHBOOK HABIT on Artspace.com, then consider the following:
- What are the writer’s suggestions about keeping a sketchbook?
- Have you ever kept a regular sketchbook?
- Are there things that have stopped you in the past from doing so?
- What do you hope to gain by keeping yours this semester?
In the article the writer shares the following quote:
“Drawing has a lot in common with meditating and a still life can be like the candle you use to focus your attention. It takes commitment, sustained focus, and a desire to quiet your mind and deal with the present. Don’t confuse the objects in the drawing for the subject of the drawing. Whether you draw the content of your fridge, the interior of a coffee shop, or junk found at a garage sale, the subject of your drawing is your experience of that location and moment in time.”
Steven Reddy, IllustraTor
- What do you think this means?
Share your thoughts here. Be sure to read and respond to your classmates’ observations! Be sure to READ the ONLINE DISCUSSION post before you begin!
In the articles some of the writer’s suggestions are to keep a good habit of drawing on our sketchbooks, remember that not everything have to be complete or perfect finished sketch. The point of the sketchbook is to simply doodle and gather ideas.. I usually keep a sketchbook around to sometime doodle some simple art/ideas and from time to time do elaborate sketches. However I have a small bad habit of ripping out the pages on something I don’t like so I’m learning to not throw them out and instead use them as a sort of note on what to avoid when sketching. In this semesters I am hoping to build a good habit of sketching everyday so then I can improve and learning other kinds of habits that can help me improve! 🙂
No ripping out pages! 🙂
Roger doger! 🙂
One of Loney Abrams suggestions on how to start/keep a sketchbook is to not worry about being a perfectionist. This stood out to me because I’m always trying to perfect the way my art looks and little did i know that’s holding me back. He suggests to be free and express yourself freely when you draw, which is something i have to work on cause I’m so controlling of my art sometimes. In the past i was never good at keeping a sketchbook mainly because i was lazy. But in recent years i have been able to consistently keep a sketchbook and I’ve completed i believe four so far. In the past it was mainly because i was too lazy to draw to keep up with a sketchbook. It was either that or i just got a fresh new sketchbook and wanted to use that immediately even though i literally just started a new one. I hope to see a lot of progress in my art because its good to see how much you improve in a little amount of time.
The writer’s suggestions about keeping a sketchbook is practically to draw every single day. Don’t draw from imagination, try drawing what you see and putting it into your own works. I have had multiple sketchbooks from time to time since I have been driving for over 12 years now I would always sketch every single day. I also sketch on my iPad with the Medibang app. I would always love sketching and I never ever stop sketching. There are things that we’re stopping me like teachers telling me to stop drawing in class which was a bit embarrassing since drawing is my passion and I was pretty addicted to it. There was also me being a bit anxious about pursuing my career and the fear of being judged by people because they expected more from me. But as I grew up, I managed to move past it and continued to sketch every single day. What I hope to gain by keeping my sketchbook is to learn more about color and sketching and about how to properly build my own world like my biggest inspiration, Eiichiro Oda
I agree with the suggestion saying that “There’s Always Time to Draw” because I believe there actually is always a time to draw. However, I usually chose anything else over drawing, and used the time doing stuff like watching YouTube or checking my phone. I did this mostly because I had no idea what to draw or where to start even if I did. It wasn’t until one time I was on a train and it halted in-between stations, there was no service for my phone and I didn’t know when the train would go again. I had a small sketchbook in my bag, so I decided to use that time to sketch and draw. While I was focusing on sketching, I didn’t notice the train started moving again but I kept drawing until my stop. After getting off I looked at the sketchbook and felt that what I just did was a more productive use of my time then just scrolling Instagram on my phone. I still have the problem of choosing not to draw, but I hope in this semester I can get over that problem.
Basically the writer’s suggestion in regards to keeping a sketchbook is that you have to find time for it, and to do it every day. All that time we spend doing other small things such as scrolling through our phones and doing nothing on the train when we commute could easily be better spent sketching and making our drawing skills better. Other suggestions are that it’s okay that our drawings don’t look perfect because at the end of the day they’re only sketches and we progress with them and whatever we finish with the time given to us is fine. In addition I like how Abrams mentions how it doesn’t matter what materials we use when sketching and that what we use doesn’t matter unless we understand the essentials and that the best practice is still life, which is among my favorite things to draw. I have kept a regular sketchbook before but in the past I eventually just stopped drawing it which is a shame..due to time or I just sketch on pieces of paper. In keeping mine I hope to use this sketchbook to see my progress as a designer/illustrator and to better myself in regards to drawing things and people in motion. In regards to the quote that Steven Reddy says, what I think it means is that when drawing still life and things of the sort, to focus on the then and now and just draw your heart out and to just focus and be in that moment in time so you can get everything.
I believe that what Steven Reddy is trying to suggest, is to never put constraints on your passion. Drawing is a safe space for most, so it is done with both intent and feeling. Be it a commission, excitement, or any given emotions, there’s an innate desire to covey your thoughts through any of the given mediums. If you find your process stifled or forced, you can then lose the passion that motivated you to draw in the first place. It becomes less of an outlet and more of a chore. As Reddy suggests, the focus of your art is not the literal subject matter, it’s the feeling/urge that prompted you to draw in the first place; it’s what made you stop and commit to creating.
The writer’s suggestion in keeping a sketch book, is tough love. All shown in different ways, such as with time, the excuse of not having time to work on a sketch book, and instead to use the time, when you’re ‘busy’, such as when waiting on a call, scrolling through social media, etc.
I have kept a regular sketch book at some point, but eventually had stopped doing so. Having stopped due to lack of motivation or interest. By keeping my sketch book now, I hope to be able to draw, despite motivation or interest in order to be able to eventually turn it into the motivation and/or interest I am looking for.
What I think the quote means is that there’s no rush, take the time to calm your mind, sketching being a way to be able to do so by focusing on a simple object or scene, and being able to look back at it and perhaps recall the experience of when the sketch was done.