I have found that a sketchbook is a very useful and popular tool for an artist. It can be used for a variety of different subjects and is a versatile piece of equipment. They can be very small and easy to carry in a pocket or handbag, or they can be much bigger and used as a normal drawing book. It can be made of any kind of paper, cartridge paper is probably the best if you are using a pencil or pen, but different textured papers are fun to experiment with, the choice is yours. If it feels too daunting to fill an entire book with a drawing on every page, many people use a scrapbook as a sketchbook, pasting in their favourite and most useful sketches.
I include general observations in my sketchbook as well, it is a valuable aid to jot down ideas and impressions. They can be preliminary sketches or comments on colour and sense of place. Sometimes it is nice to include a quotation or a poem which is relevant to your ideas. Often just a minimum of marks can jog your memory, which could be used as a reminder of an idea, which can be developed in the studio later. My sketchbook often includes experiments of different mediums to explore, varied techniques and approaches. In this context, I have found my sketchbook to be very helpful.
My studio is situated away from the house in the garden and in the depths of winter, when the daylight fades early and the temperatures sink, it is not very welcoming. So a quick look at sketches made in the summer when it was warmer and lighter is often a great help, as it jogs the memory of drawings made in more pleasant days. Apart from your work, I find it useful to include photos, postcards, pictures torn from magazines and newspapers, leaves, feathers, pressed flowers, and studies from nature. Sometimes a picture of work from an artist you admire can be helpful. I like to experiment using watercolour, collage, pen and ink, pencil, and pastel. A sketchbook is a record of your journey and development as an artist.
Sketching can be done anywhere; in the town, out in the countryside, by the seaside, en plein air or inside your home. Maybe your pets will be your inspiration, or a bunch of flowers, still life, fruit, vegetables, or even kitchen objects. If the subject of people is of interest to you, sketches of people can be made while sitting in a café, observing the people passing by outside. Buildings and architecture are good subjects too. If you’re travelling in a car or a train, jotting down something which is of interest to you and mark-making are good techniques to practice. In the examples from my sketchbook, I have included one of the shells made in oil pastels and watercolour, using the shapes in an abstract design. Another is of small drawings of one of our pet dogs as a puppy. I took the idea from flowers to experiment with acrylic inks using lines and washes of watercolour. Studies from nature, using leaves as a source were developed into a drawing with black ink onto coloured shapes of tissue paper to suggest the colour of the geraniums and flowers. Using the theme of nature, I overlaid leaf shapes onto a page of background colour so that the realistic forms became abstract.
Basically, the choice of what you put in your sketchbook is yours. The world is your oyster!
About the Artist
Website: www.clarissarussell.com
Instagram: @clarissa.artist