Strathmore shares some very good videos on youtube. This video is worth watching as it is more than the usual ‘just add water’ advice. Sarah Becktel demonstrates using watercolor pencils and shares some useful techniques and tips.
I particularly liked the idea of creating a paper palette from swatches. Not only would it be handy to carry around when sketching outside but if you used it constantly you would really know how each pencil colour behaved.
I have a simple image today of three jugs which are drawn as a prompt for the facebook A sketch a Day challenge which for day 23 proposes that the group draws a jug. I was a bit pushed for time yesterday so this was a bit of rush.
This sketch was done in a Strathmore mixed media sketchbook which is 5.5 in x 8.5 in (14 x 21.6 cm) using artist pitt pens, Derwent watercolour pencils and watercolour paint.
I knew this would be a challenge to draw. It is part of the Sketchbook Skool bootcamp (yes they misspell the name of the name of School) drawing exercises. The task was to crumple a note and draw it but Australian notes are made of plastic and dont stay crumpled! It is actually week 2 of the course but I decided to get it done as I knew this would take an age to draw. Now why is this an issue?
Well …. she shuffles in an embarrassed manner …as of tomorrow… I am doing the 5 day art challenge. This is a challenge to post 3 drawings for 5 days in a row. Now the drawings don’t have to done on the day… but I am going to attempt to do at least some on the day. For this challenge I was nominated by Jules Woolford of Needle and Pen
What is with all these challenges you ask?
There is a method to my madness. I decided that for the month of January that I would take on too many challenges. Simply put, I deliberately decided to go on overload to see if the pressure could help me establish a habit. I am a great one for not starting something until everything is nicely organised and ready. You know the routine, materials at hand, house clean, work area tidy, family warned and time allocated. I decided that this year if I hang on to this all ducks in a row approach I would not achieve my goal of sketching daily, from life.
So, I decided that for the month of January (the summer holiday month in Australia) to accept the chaos and take on what ever challenges were offered, I decided to go on overload and see what happens. I will not achieve all the challenges, but that is not the point. The point is to use them to establish a daily habit of drawing. I am half way through the month and I can already see benefits. The pressure has given me a boot, to get on with it, stop getting side tracked or thinking about it and simply do it. I will write more about about the experience at the end of the month but I would love to hear if readers have ever done a similar thing ie go on overload in order to achieve a goal.
For this drawing I used watercolour paints, Derwent watercolour pencils, Derwent Inktense pencils, and Faber Castell artist pitt pens in a Strathmore mixed media journal. As usual click on the image to see a larger version.
One thing I am finding is that many of these challenges cross over. This drawing exercise is also for The AJW Sketchbook challenge run by Palma of A Creative Journey who proposes a daily prompt throughout January which is shared in the Artist Journal Workshop Facebook group The prompt for day 9 is : coins and / or bank notes.
This drawing is also #191 on the EDM challenge list which reads: Draw some paper money. The Every Day Matters group also has a Facebook page where people share what they have done.
Tones and Tints is my personal take on sketching, and I use it to develop my skills.
