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Thursday, October 23, 2014

Sketching... It's Time to Be Brave

The Documented Life Project's prompt this week is
Sketch in your journal. I was uneasy about this. I just started trying to sketch anything other than doodle flowers and your basic jack-o-lantern.  When I do mixed media I know I can easily fix any big issues with a bit of acrylic paint or a piece of scrap paper. 

Sketching is a whole different animal. Most of the time an eraser doesn't work and whatever is there is there. I have written several times that it's ok to make mistakes in my journal but I found that when it came to sketching I really didn't want to have what I considered a "lousy" page in it.  That made me pause and realize that it was time I took a few more risks.... that I push my boundaries a bit.   It was time I put my pencil to paper and do what I've been writing about.  I needed to be brave and not afraid of screwing up.

I think I was pretty successful with my water bottle. I'm very pleased with how it turned out.  The background is a inktense blocks and wet paint brush. I sketched the bottle with a regular pencil and found that my gum eraser worked better on gesso than I thought it would.  I traced over my pencil with a gray Sharpie and then used ink tense blocks for the color on the bottle.  

Here's what I've discovered about myself and sketching thus far. I usually can sketch from a line drawing better than the actually object.  (this bottle is the exception for me so far).  I have no training with perspective and I think that is why I have an issue with objects.  I also do better with simple objects and straight lines.  

I love Snoopy. I really want to draw him and I've tried. He never looks like Snoopy.  I'm not sure why. I'm going with because he's all curved lines.  If you have Snoopy pointers for me, please leave me a comment.  I want to be Snoopy when I grow up (he is brave, loyal and adventurous) and so I'd really like to be able to draw him.

I would like to thank Terri at Let's Sketch-Sketching for Everyone  for the encouragement and weekly challenges. They are helping me a lot.

Link: The Documented Life Project , Paint Party Friday, Let's Sketch-Sketching for Everyone Facebook Page

5 comments:

  1. Kudos for pushing out of your comfort zone - well done! I'll be watching to see how it goes for you. Thanks for stopping by my 'Julie post' and commenting - much appreciated!

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  2. I really really like this Boo and am so proud of you, andnot a little jealous, for sketching in your journal. I too am of the mind that I don't want a lousy page in my book - but I think I have anyway,lol. It can be gessoed over of course, so I don't know why I'm holding back. My eraser is my friend, but I'd like to be fearless like Tracey and use only pen and paint. One day perhaps, one day. In the meantime, I shall join you in keep on sketching and practising. I'm enjoying Terri's challenges too. ((hugs)) x

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  3. Do you hear all the applause? That is one good sketch Boo. You are brave and the colors you used looks really good - so is you printing!
    Sandy xx

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  4. I think your water bottle is GREAT!!! I'll have to say to you what I said to Mo...that's an awfully good drawing for someone who claims they can't draw! (And then I called her a fibber... :) ...so it's only fair that I call you one too!)

    I think it's easier to draw from a line drawing too, instead of from real life...plus, it helps us learn how to look for the major lines when we do try to draw from real life...it's amazing how much the way we see things changes when we start looking at things in an artistic way!

    Have you tried googling "how to draw Snoopy"? I can't remember the name of the site, but I had drawn a page of cartoon characters for a friend at work, and there's a site I used that has step by step videos for a lot of different cartoons...it helped me a lot.

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  5. Really good sketch, Boo. I'm not sure I would have dared... I hope you continue with those sketches!!! Thanks for stopping by my hedgehog too :)
    Cheers!

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