For my first assignment, I was asked to produce a sketchbook building on the work undertaken throughout part one on the theme of ‘the everyday‘. I had to visually respond to my theme, recording my work in a sketchbook, using any medium and working in any way I’d like. The sketchbook did not need to be finished but could be an ongoing work in progress.
The exercises throughout part one had given me a great deal to think about. I had spent time considering how I wanted to change my relationship with my sketchbook, the kinds of sketchbooks I wanted to work in, and the sort of work I wanted to produce. I had thought extensively about what the everyday meant to me and the varying ways I could visually explore this. I tried to collate these thoughts a little and plan some goals for my sketchbook in order to begin this assignment. This acted as a reference point for my sketchbook to grow from. It included snippets of ideas I’d had, areas of art I wanted to develop, and ways I wanted to improve.
As I had decided in Exercise 1.0 to use my handmade sketchbook throughout part one, I was ready to start without much thought. I also decided early on that as well as tackling the idea of the everyday from different perspectives – I would simply use my sketchbook every day. This would be my everyday explored through art from a much more abstract point of view. It also meant that I could be a little more free and absent-minded about some of my pages without having to consider how it relates to the overarching theme.
I then got to work. I tried to incorporate my sketchbook into my daily life – just making art whilst living and exploring whatever was on my mind that day. Some days all I did was sit and work in my sketchbook whilst watching YouTube videos, some days I barely picked it up other than to note an idea down. But my goal to have a sketchbook that felt closer to me was reached. My sketchbook became a part of my everyday, and I felt more connected to it by the end. You can see a flip-through of my sketchbook below.
Whilst I didn’t manage to achieve everything I set out to, I still feel like I have learned an enormous amount in the process. Not only have I started perceiving the everyday through a new lens, but I have also started considering what parts of my everyday I want to share and how I could do this. For example, two of the pages in my sketchbook focus on my experiences with derealisation and depersonalisation disorder, an area I hadn’t previously considered focusing on in my visual exploration. These pieces also lead me to having discussions with my friends about how much of my experience with mental illness was ‘too much’ to share – not because I’m uncomfortable sharing it, but because I don’t want my work to be inappropriate for academic contexts.
Having a list of goals and plans for the sketchbook was helpful as it gave me a place to go back to if I ever felt stuck or lost for inspiration. However, it also felt like a lot of pressure, especially the specific ideas I wanted to explore. A vague goal such as ‘create characters’ or ‘explore colour options’ was much less stressful as I could do this in any way I wanted, whereas ‘good, bad, ugly’ or ‘frog cowboys’ – ideas that stemmed from conversations that I wanted to illustrate – ended up causing a mental block. I think this is because I was envisioning something more akin to a finalised illustration, and it felt like too much work to explore. In future, I think sketching out these ideas as they come up rather than listing them to explore later would help with this.
As you’ll notice, there are several empty pages in my sketchbook – both throughout the middle and right at the end. This is due to the fact my sketchbook is made up of many different types of paper. I didn’t want to use the high-quality acrylic or watercolour paper to do quick timed sketches or nonsensical drawings, so I often skipped a few pages to find a suitable paper for my goal. I would then go back and use the page for painting or earmark it for a specific idea I wanted to explore. This then discouraged me from using the page for anything else as I really wanted to use it for that idea. I also found that I just didn’t like using the black paper as it was quite restrictive in how I could use it.
Because of this, the sketchbook is literally unfinished, as it has room within it for more drawings and exploration of ideas and concepts that were left untouched. I have been considering, however, whether the sketchbook would ever be finished, even if every page was ‘done’. I don’t know if there’s an answer. Before completing a sketchbook, I often find a page that I don’t think is quite finished yet and add something new to it, but I like the idea of it being ‘done’ at some point. I guess I just haven’t figured out what that point is yet.
As for the sketchbook theme, I both appreciated and hated having to stick to it. For the first few days, I felt really restricted in what I was ‘allowed’ to put into my sketchbook, but over time I realised that anything that goes in there is allowed and could be relevant to the theme of the everyday. It’s such a broad and generalised theme that rambling about the colour of my hair is still referencing it! I did do some focused pages, such as taking pictures of everyday moments and painting them, drawing daily things that happen to me, and painting an assortment of everyday objects. Overall, though, this has taught me that I prefer not to have a specific theme for my sketchbooks.
Above I have displayed a selection of my favourite pages. I don’t want to break down how and why I feel this way about every page as I feel I’ll be here forever, but I wanted to set them aside as my ‘top picks’. I either like the art itself, the colours, and the aesthetics of the page, or it was a page I really enjoyed creating and therefore feel positively towards. There are of course pages I dislike, too, which you can see below. My feelings towards these pages are similar, either based on the art itself or my feelings when creating it.
Seeing these pages together helps me identify what I want to do more of going forwards and what I want to do differently. I dislike it when my work feels rushed, lazy, or unfinished. I like using lots of colour and bold black lines. I have discovered the joy of using a 1.0 fineliner – something I had never done prior to using this sketchbook. I like being playful, fun, and exploratory in my sketchbook pages. I also especially like it when a page allows me to explore my thoughts and feelings either generically or on a certain topic. On my ‘page 28’ piece, you can see a list of things I felt I had learned by the time I got to filling out this page. I mention that ‘painting is boring’ – and that’s a big takeaway for me here. I love painting, but waiting for it to dry is a difficult endeavour for me. I think I will be painting less in future, at least in my sketchbook.
On sharing my work: I have shared bits and pieces here and there from my sketchbook with my friends on social media or with other OCA students. I intend to also post the video of my sketchbook flip through above and ask for feedback or just for people to see it. I would like to post more of my work on social media, but I struggle to keep up with it and the high energy output it demands. I’m trying to find a way to make it easier for myself to do this, but it’s proving difficult. However, I have also joined a sketchbook circle for this year, which you can find out more about here. I participated in one last year and found it quite fun! I am about to start working on my second sketchbook for the circle now. I find this is a great way to share my work as I don’t have to be present for the viewing process. Once posted, my work is ‘gone’, and I can focus on something else.
I’m delighted with the body of work produced for this assignment, even the pages I don’t like as much. I feel as though they address the theme appropriately and have helped me identify where I want to go next. Using my learning log to investigate my feelings around using a sketchbook has been hugely beneficial too. As I said on page 28, I’m learning so much about myself! I have genuinely loved working in my sketchbook every day and making it more of a staple part of my life – I’m ending part one with as much enthusiasm and excitement as I started with, if not more.
Learning Log 