Art Journal #36

I find it really hard to see my sketchbook as a place to play and experiment. More often than not I start something, fall in love with it and want to finish it off...perfectly. Which, of course, defeats the point of a sketchbook. But this 'sketchbook perfection' stems from doing GCSE Art, where your sketchbook is submitted as part of your assessment so it always had to be impeccably presented. It wasn't a place to practice, but rather show your thought process and development of your final piece.

I'm still trying to shake this way of thinking, but I still find myself starting to draw something, and subsequently erasing and re-drawing it until it's perfect. I find it hard to start over despite the fact that these days there is nothing wrong with having 3 pages of half finished, wonky or shitty sketches. That's what my sketchbook is for now. 

I spend a lot of time fighting with the perfectionist within me. Trying to find a comfortable balance where this, sometimes irritating, personality trait works for me instead of against me. I like things to be neat and tidy- even my abstract work has a sense of coherency and order.

I do however regularly try to do something outside of my comfort zone that challenges my perfectionism- paint with my left hand, get all the colours muddy and dirty, hold the pencil at the end to allow for looser drawings. I don't usually like the end result but I'm beginning to enjoy the process as it helps me unlock new ideas and can lead me in a direction I wouldn't have otherwise taken.

Rhiannon xx
**I really enjoyed this post by Samie (a.k.a Journal Girl) where she writes about a similar feeling and was the inspiration for this weeks page

Art Every Day Month 2013 - Day 2

I'm a day late in signing up for this challenge but I wanted to join in as my attempt at this in September fizzled out about half way though. As I'm approaching the end of my pregnancy (seriously...there are only 9 weeks left now), I find myself spending more time on the couch- I'm getting tired pretty easily!

I don't have a theme or any rules about what I need to do each day. Instead I have one word to get me through the month: practice. I might practice drawing cats (this will probably happen a lot actually), or practice painting geometric shapes in watercolour, or drawing girl faces or painting shells. Just practice!

Today was spent on the couch (quite nauseous and incredibly low iron) so I drew some sea creatures.

'Animal Royalty'

I've started a series of paintings. 

I don't even really know how it happened. I supposed after finishing Aria's painting, I still had so much energy and ideas that I jumped into creating the next one (Fox). And then another (Polar Bear). And then another and another.

This feels like a break through for me; on believing in myself and knowing that I am capable of creating amazing work. Before I had it in my head that only real artists create series of paintings, in big spacious studios with ample natural light. Working on this series has made me realise I AM a real artist, even if I don't have all the fancy fluff that I assume goes with it!

Each painting is very different, yet similar in many ways. I continue to experiment with different medium and improve on each and every painting. Each painting brings new challenges and causes me to research a new product. 

My ultimate goal is to have a minimum of 10 completed paintings which I will sell prints of, as well as some of the originals. I won't be listing these officially until the series has finished, however if you are interested in a print, feel free to contact me before then. But without further ado....  

Welcome to the start of my series - 'Animal Royalty'

My September Challenge - A page a day

After my wavering creativity recently I have realised how important it is not to loose momentum. It becomes very easy to say to yourself 'I'll do it tomorrow'- but of course tomorrow never comes. With the start of motherhood slowly approaching (18 weeks left!), I need to get myself into creative habits now. It's only going to be harder once little Aria is here and needs my devoted attention. 

So I have decided on a challenge for the month of September: Fill a page a day. I'm using an A5 spiral bound sketchbook which is a realistic size for me to tackle every day. I have also made a list of things to draw so I always have something on tap. 

There are a few rules I'm giving myself to stay on track:

1. It must be a full, finished page page.
2. It must include some colour (either from paints, pencils, felt pens, crayons...whatever.)
3. It should take between half and hour and an hour to do each day. More if I have time.
4. It doesn't have to be pretty or perfect.

Here is my page from today (day #2):

While I will do an update or two on the blog, I will be posting mostly over on Instagram. If you're keen to join in, use the hashtag #septemberpageaday, I would love to check out what you've done :)

Rhiannon x

The Learning Connexion: A Mushroom Project

Hi lovely followers! I'm back! The combination of a bad winter flu (which I'm still trying to shake) and getting into a new routine of course work each day has meant this blog got a little neglected. In fact the last time I wrote, it was still autumn. I'm now on the couch, sandwiched between two cats and feeling the warm glow of a fire in winter. It's not really cold enough for a fire but there is something so cozy and comforting about it I can't resist. 

Where was I? Oh yes - lets start with today and a few whimsical mushrooms!

I had one of those days where ideas were flowing and everything in my head was making its way very clearly onto paper. I've said it before and I will say it again- I love drawing mushrooms. Especially more stylised versions like those I drew today.

I had to pick a theme for my painting this term and because you could take this subject in so many directions (the colour combinations, shapes, patterns, etc) I knew it would be perfect. What I decided today though is that I want to take one concept and finish it in different mediums. Such as chalk pastel, oil pastel, acrylic, watercolour, oils, collage, and maybe even appliqué. I want to see how one subject, or one senario can translate across many different mediums.

Today was about trying to find the best composition through concepts, something I tend to avoid. I'm the kind of person who will draw something once and say "well that is probably the best version" and move onto the next stage. I also tend not to finish pieces of work since I find flaws later on (something I could probably avoid had I spent more time planning and exploring at the concept stage).



I ended up with 6 different ideas, and I am yet to decide which one I prefer so I would love to hear which you like best in the comments below. I am really excited about this project and I can't wait to see it come to completion in a few months time.

I hope you enjoyed a look inside at my course work :)

-Rhiannon

Inside my sketchbook

I haven't been working on many final pieces recently. In fact I have felt quite lost but I am taking steps to get more focused again. Being at home all the time is still very weird for me. I have been sketching and doing little paintings and doodles each day though so today I wanted to share a few of my favourites.

-Rhiannon

Finding my own inspiration

You may be noticing a bit of a theme on the blog recently.

Nature.

I have made a conscious effort to steer away from scrolling through pages and pages of Internet 'inspiration', and instead I have embraced nature. It was a goal I made for myself this year- 'Focus on finding my own inspiration'. And it has made a huge difference to the quality of my work and frame of mind.

I'm sure most artists can agree (whether amateur or professional) that it's so easy to start off looking for something online to inspire you, only to find half an hour later that you have suddenly lost your will to do anything, let alone draw/paint because you will never be as good as the 'inspiration' you have found.  I have spent many wasted days not painting/drawing because of  this and I knew I had to take a new approach before it destroyed what passion I had left. I decided to stop looking online and start looking around me. Focusing on what mother nature has provided. For colour combinations you can't beat nature- one of my favourite things for colour and patterns are sea slugs.

There are so many things that can inspire you that aren't limited to nature. What about your own possessions? The shapes and colours of books on your bookshelf, the oddly shaped teapot hiding at the back of your cupboard, the jar of well used paintbrushes, the multitude of colours in a crystal collection, the pattern on your clothes, and of course food! And that's barely scratching the surface.

I still struggle with self confidence in my own work, but removing the opportunity for me to compare myself to others has led me to create some really cool sketches and paintings- some for which I have shared in today's post. It has been such a joy going outside and connecting with nature. But with Autumn here and Winter fast approaching, I'm a bit nervous how the change of seasons will affect my motivation to go outside. I'm already preparing a list of items/ideas etc to work though once the days are grey, short and rather miserable.

I would love to hear of ways you keep yourself motivated in the winter months. Where do you turn for inspiration?

-Rhiannon

Learning to draw Cats

I'm the kind of person who likes to tick as many boxes as possible when doing something- so it made absolute perfect sense to try painting my cats with watercolours instead of just drawing them. So far I have only done two paintings but I'm actually rather impressed with myself considering both were done in about 15 mins from start to finish. 

I think another cat had caught her attention outside at this point. 

Zeus isn't quite fat enough in this painting but none-the-less I am really quite happy with how it turned out. The big guy is actually lying next to me right now in that same position- awww.

I do plan on doing more drawing studies this year and learning the anatomy but these quick little paintings were super fun to do and I can see them becoming a big part of my cat project.

How is everyone getting on with their creative goals this month?

-Rhiannon

Watercolour Bliss - Progress

I've made some pretty good progress with Alisa Burkes Watercolour Bliss class- read the first post here. I have always loved watercolours but having some direction and lessons has helped me immensely. Here are a few of my more recent experiments.

The two below were experiments about laying down backgrounds but continuing to think about colour. On top of that I drew a couple of shells that I am so happy with that I am thinking of turning them into prints. One thing I have realised- working with proper watercolour paper makes the whole process so much more enjoyable! I might treat myself to some more paper next month.

-Rhiannon

Daffodil Day at Auckland Zoo~ 2012

At work this year, we went to Auckland Zoo and did a chalk drawing in support of The Cancer Society's Daffodil Day appeal. I think the drawing we did ended up looking amazing! Well done to everyone that helped out!

Still a small amount left to do but how pretty does it look?!

Rhiannon xxoxx

My Monsters

I really love how these two monsters turned out. I picked a random drawing lab assignment from the latest book I have bought: Drawing Lab for Mixed Media Artists by Carla Sonheim.

This book has been sitting on my 'to-buy' list for quite a while but I was so involved with paint and colours that I put off doing any kind of drawing. I wanted to create something bright and beautiful, full of texture and emotion. But just as the seasons change, so did my focus.

The recent move has forced me to go back to basics; pencil/pen & paper. No paint, no colour, no texture. Just good old fashioned drawing. So I picked this one particular drawing lab where you draw an eye. Any kind of eye; a big one, little one, eyelashes, no eyelashes, crazy eye, soft eye- anything at all. And from there you just draw. Doesn't matter whether you know what you are drawing, you just draw. I certainly didn't sit down and think 'hmmmm- lets draw a fishy/shark monster'. It's just what my brain and hand decided to do and I am seriously happy with the result.

I want to try and incorporate the bottom one into a painting or art journal page at some point. I really feel like I am bursting with ideas at the moment, I just need to finish getting the office sorted so I can begin!

What have you drawn recently and been surprised at the result?

Rhiannon xxoxx

My fear of drawing

I haven't been able to get out my paints yet so I've been sketching & drawing instead which has been remarkably refreshing. Usually I don't draw, in fact I have a fear of drawing. Being surrounded by people who are amazing artists (my partner who is a tattoo artist and does custom drawings for clients every day, two of my closest friends Louise & Alyssa who are both talented animators and my amazing friends Hannah & Leanne at work) makes me nervous to draw anything because I never think it will be good enough. Quite silly really, because everyone knows that the only way to get better at anything is to practice. 

Practice

Practice

Practice

And practice some more

So without all my other materials to distract me, I decided to pick up the pencil (and pen) and get drawing. I am actually quite happy with these three drawings and am getting ideas for journal pages I want to start once our office is set up at the new house.

A drawing inspired by the magnificent Tam from Williowing

This page was a drawing lab by Carla Sonheim - I have plenty of real life inspiration here, here, here & here.

My favourite is the little guy at the bottom left. I really want to develop him a bit more and possible create a painting.

Rhiannon xxoxx