sketchbook ep 16 | overcoming an ART BLOCK ✏️| I finished a sketchbook! ⭐ | two new sketchbooks and my initial thoughts on them | April’s theme announcement | very long post ☕ (Patreon)

Hi!

You’ve read this right – I’m in the midst of my first serious art block this year.

This post is going to be a VERY long one, so go make yourself tea and enjoy!

Actually I feel like I’m finally coming out of it, yayy!!

If that’s something that’d interest you, I could make a whole post about art block – what I define as one and my go-to techniques to overcome it.

I rarely experience it but it still happens sometimes. To me, as for right now, art block is not about the lack of ability of drawing or not creating for extended amount of time. It’s more about the meeeh feelings. Okay, I really should make a post about it!

As you might noticed, I haven’t announced the theme for April yet and we’re in the second half of the month already!

That’s because I had an idea, then stared questioning it (my ability to make it interesting, to be more specific), came up with two more ideas but I wasn’t 100% sold on them and tried to force them. and well… that’s the recipe for an art block, if you ask me!

I’m not absolutely certain yet but I think FORGET-ME-NOTS would be the theme for this month. I just can’t stop thinking about these beauties. I tried with lilac and dandelion but as much as I love these flowers, something just didn’t feel right this time.

Today I want to share some of my recent works with you.

If you’re following my stories on IG, you already heard the news – I finished a pencil sketchbook!

I immediately made a new one cause at this point I can’t imagine my art practice without this kind of sketchbook. The only differences between this sketchbook and the previous one is the amount of pages (the new one has only 32) and the cover.

This time I used a really thick paper I usually use to secure envelopes. If you ever got a mail from me, you know what I refer to :D So the cover is nice and thick! The paper I used in sketchbook is a paper from drawing pad for kids. I had only 16 pages left, thus the sketchbook has 32 pages.I followed this tutorial on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2FRKbQI2kY  

 Okay, let me show you last pages of my previous sketchbook first!

Here I tried a new style of typography. I’m just playing with writing at this point, having no idea what I’m doing but it’s fun! I also made some notes about wood sorrel (aka one of my favorite Spring plants!) I also illustrated lilac and dandelion.

Oh, the shape of dandelion is SO wrong here but hey, it’s a sketchbook, it’s a practice, it’s ok.

and the last, final page of the sketchbook, dedicated solely to dandelions!

It started to look better! I went on a walk earlier that day and took million pictures of this flower, from several different angles and it truly helped me understand the silhouette of this flower.

First page of the new sketchbook.

Lilac! I don’t know if you can see this on this scan, but… this sketch has a sketch :D

Since lilac has a lot of tiny flowers, I figured it’d make sense to do a sketch of my sketch first. I used a blue pencil for that!

If you look closely at all of my sketches, you notice that I always lightly sketch general shapes/silhouettes first and then make a final sketch putting more pressure on the pencil.

This time I did it but with two different pencils. I like it! You can still see sketch lines but the illustration looks clean. A lot of artists do that when drawing with fineliners actually!

THIS SPREAD is what cured my art block. Not to be dramatic but it’s true! :D

During this art block I could draw and I was doing that but I just felt like I don’t know where I’m going with my art. I still need more time to process that to be able to fully express what it was but it definitely was an art block.

Okay, so what’s going on here?

I started from the right page.

That day I spent long hours editing coloring page and the video. When I was heading to bed, I realized I didn’t draw anything that day (and I sketch almost everyday no matter what).

I did something I never do, which is drawing in bed! It was so spontaneous. I didn’t use any reference photo or wasn’t thinking about what I’m doing. Nothing.

I started from the portrait of the girl, with no plan. Then I found myself adding these giant earrings and putting this kind of circus make up. The girl looks kind of tired and for some reason made me think of tragic clown???

I just re-read one of the S.King’s book – Duma Key. It was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC by the way.

I could write a whooole review of this book (the main character is an artist so it’d be relevant :D) but let me just tell you that I’ve been thinking about S.King’s writing and his practice as an artist a lot.

I read his books religiously as a teenager. Later my taste has changed and now I read mostly classic European literature but oh my, I have TONS of respect for his craft. Tons. I read most of his books and re-read some of them recently. They have some weak points, of course, but it wouldn’t stop me from admiring this work. He also has a book about writing practice (I forgot the title but it’s on my re-read list!) and it’s a great read for artists of all kinds.

ANYWAY, I digressed! I don’t know, maybe this kind of clown girl came from thinking about King’s work??

Next I drew this grin. I like this one.

You can’t tell if it’s a creepy or happy grin. At least I’m not sure what I was trying to show here. That’s what I love about these sketches.

I was just drawing and not thinking about it. I went to sleep feeling light and happy.

Next morning I couldn’t get circus out of my head.

We’re onto something!!

All of the sudden I felt the need to draw a xylophone. I dreamed about having one as a little kid but my parents didn’t like the idea (looking back, I don’t blame them, lol) So I did. I googled a xylophone, looked at some pictures, then drew it, not using any particular pic as a reference.

What one do with a xylophone? Play music! I used to be able to read notes when I was a kid. Here I drew a stave and treble clef. Then I found notes for circus music and just drew them!! I love adding this kind of Easter eggs to my drawings! Looking at these notes you wouldn't tell there's a meaning to them but now you know.

This spread just made me so happy. All of the sudden I felt like I’m a creative person again.

I’m alive.

Then I drew the eye, cause of course, it’s something all illustrators draw at some point!

and the left side! I started this one a few days ago (continuing with blue + black sketch technique) and finished it today.

Today I woke up with this quote in my head.

The only way out is through.

That’s how I overcame an art block this time. I used a few extra tricks (like reading something, trying new things, etc, I have a full spectrum of things I could do to unblock my creativity). This page is just full of floral doodles and I like how it turned out.

Uff, this post is long!

Let's finish with showing you my NEW SKETCHBOOK!!

It’s another Royal Talens art creation sketchbook but it has… white paper!

I made color swatches and some doodles to try out the paper.

The usual sketchbooks from this brand (all sketchbooks I have actually) have ivory paper. This one is different!!! I didn’t know these existed. This one has cork cover. All sketchbooks with painting on the cover also have white paper!

My first impressions?

The paper is a bit different, has a different texture (I think it’s less textured) but it works amazing with all mediums I use.

So far I love it!! I’ll report back and tell you more once I make some actual illustrations in it.

Let me know if you want to hear more about this sketchbook and differences between it and my other sketchbooks. Well, I’ll probably share these anyway, lol!!

HERE I did something I’ve never done before. I covered part of the page!

I really didn’t like what was there.

I used a scrap of copy paper + paper from marker pad (Canson Marker XL). The copy paper was used here just because the marker paper is transparent, so the illustration in the sketchbook was showing through it!

I don’t have a glue, so just used washi tape to attach the paper to this page. What’s under that? It was my attempt to draw lilac but I started too big and didn’t like the colors.

The idea that I’d need to finish it made me miserable. Then I realized, hey, it’s my sketchbook, I can do whatever I want. So I did!

Here we have unfinished forget-me-nots illustration and some dandelion doodles.

I’m playing with my style a bit, using more pencil lines and less shades of markers. We’ll see how this one turn out.

I’ll make a few more forget-me-not illustrations in the next few days and show you how it’s going!!

I hope you enjoyed this SUPER LONG post :D

Love,Marta