It is one year ago that I picked up drawing/sketching (again). Since then I’ve been drawing pretty regularly. So let’s see what I have done so far.
I think that I am doing pretty good so far. There have been times where I was really productive or really lazy and being uninspired by anything. I have promised myself several times that I would draw every single day. Well, I found out that that one promise is really a tough one to keep. I am still not able to fulfill that promise. However an easier approach is to not blog everyday (to post drawing) and use the time to draw instead. I find this approach gets me a lot closer to achieving the goal ‘draw each day’. So that is the reason why I upload my drawings only on Sundays now. I give the post the same date as when I do my drawing. I safe so much time to draw more or do other things, which is really great.
Within one year, I filled about 4.5 sketchbooks/journals with bad and good drawings/sketches. Filling in every single journal page with a ‘good’ sketch is very hard for me to achieve at least at this moment. However I do notice that I am getting better at sizing my subjects and therefore I lately get them right on the page the first time. I also notice that the smaller the sketch book (e.g. that journal with the medieval Utrecht map on the cover) the harder it is for me to get the scale of my drawing right. I almost always miscalculated the size of my subject and the size of the paper.
I notice that my style is looser. I like that a lot. However, I often have difficulties in finding what to draw, eventhough there are actually many possibilities. That I hope/want to change in the coming year.
I have been playing with various medium. But so far, I haven’t used acrylic and oil. I think I’ll try to use them this year.
Composition is something that I have to study this year as well. I usually don’t think about composition when I am drawing something. It’s just usually trying to get whatever I see in front of me on the paper. Often, I am not very satisfied with how my drawings turn out, eventhough the drawing itself is good. Paying more attention to composition will help, I think.
Back to sketchbooks, photo above shows the sketchbooks filled with drawings from the past year. Only one of the spiral bound is half filled. It is only filled with my sketchcrawl and vacation sketches. I keep that sketchbook as my ‘side’ sketchbook.
Below is a photo of a new journal, which I am going to use starting tomorrow.
I am threatening my new journal to co-operate here. 
And I hope it will.
Eefje – well done! Always nice to hear people reviewing their work and saying what they learned and how they plan to carry on – makes me want to think!
I agree, I found this very interesting. I like your tips for making time to draw. The blogging can be very motivating but on the down side, take time from drawing. I’ve found that too. Nice to see photos of your sketchbooks. You don’t say what make they are. I thought you used Moleskines but they look similar to a pad I found recently in a Swedish paper suppiers – I’ve forgotten the name now.
Thanks Katherine and Felicity!
Felicity: I used sketchbooks from several manufacturers, also unknown one. I have used 1 Moleskine sketchbook so far, and I have a mixed feeling about it. The first image above shows sketchbooks by:
- Michael Roger Press, New Jersey (spiral bound with a selfmade tag)
- Unknown binder, from my local art store (with selfmade red paper band)
- Only Natural (with the map of medieval Utrecht on the cover)
- Moleskine ‘sketchbook’
- Windsor Newton (spiral bound)
The second and third image show a handbound journal/sketchbook by Papyrum, Barcelona. That is what I am using right now.