Forget about perfection.
Sketching isn't always focused on experimentation (as it was the topic of my last Newsletter), but it can also be a good tool to keep memories alive by drawing them. This means, to capture experiences of a day or a special adventure or to simply note down with pictures the things you have done during a normal day - a sketched diary.
When we sketch a day, this should not take hours – otherwise we have spent more time sketching memories then creating these memories. Simplifying is therefore key to be quick in sketching. Instead of drawing a complex breakfast scene with room, table, dishes, bread, butter, cups and so on, we can focus on some important elements and sketch them with icons.
At the beginning you might prefer to test different icon types on a separate page to find the style that fits to your journey drawing. This will become more and more a habit and you’ll soon be able to sketch parts of your day in a simplified and quick way.
How was your day? Smooth & comfortable or rough & hard? A line, that is symbolizing the course of the day, can show a lot already. Think about its loops & hills, ups & downs. This is creating the basis for your sketched day.
Vary in size: depending on the importance of scenes during the day, the icons can get different positions and sizes. Some pop out of the page, others are more in the background.
Who wants a clean page with exact lines, all look like drawn with a ruler... without any traces of hesitation? The charm of a sketchbook is its imperfect style, the quirky and rough lines.
So, don’t limit yourself by trying to make it perfect. Feel free to sketch and embrace the result no matter how it looks it. And, isn’t a quirky rough line more expressive than a straight and perfect line?
PS: I was sitting in a car when I was sketching these pages – so I had to say “Good Bye” to perfection rather quickly – what a wonderful feeling!
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Hallo, I'm an award-winning illustrator and drawing tutor from Austria. After great experiences in the Marketing and Database sector, I finally realised that I simply need to follow my enthusiasm and fascination for drawing and illustrating.
What fascinates me most, is this way to communicate without using any words. So expressive, so global. And this leads me to my second fascination about drawing: the exchange with others, with you! In my drawing courses I simply love to see the enormous developments of each participant - initiated by exchange and practice. That's what I like to do here, too.
The idea for this blog comes from the bottom of my heart: to get you close to drawing and to show you that you too can draw #drawinggang It's all about learning to feel the drawing!
© 2024 Barbara Baumann Illustration. Feel the drawing.