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A Line Is Enough
The caption says it all.
Don’t Stop, Keep Going
I think one of the biggest mistakes an artist keeping a visual journal or sketchbook can make is to stop when he gets frustrated. That’s when you kick it up a notch, hunker down, repeat, repeat, repeat. Keep searching for that line, or that likeness, whatever it maybe. If you give up too quickly […]
I Test the Ultra-fine Tipped Pentel Artists Brush Sign Pen
This ultra-fine brush tipped pen from Pentel—I don’t know what it’s called…The barrel reads: “Brush Sign Pen Artist.” It’s one of their Sign Pens in that it has dye-based, fugitive, water-soluble ink, but unlike their other “sign pen” it doesn’t have a solid fiber tip—it has an ultra thin, ultra fine, brush with individual […]
Post-Project Let Down: What To Do About It
“Post-project let down.” What is it? How do you deal with it? I’ve got a few things to say about this today as the year winds down because journal keepers often experience a form of post-project let down at the end of a year. If you feel you might be prone […]
Go Ahead—Overwork A Sketch Sometimes
I kept fussing and fussing with this sketch of a little dog. Why? because on the day, moving the paint around on an unsuitable (non-watercolor, non-art) paper was just too fun to resist. The process allowed me to play with different pens (including a white gel pen) and experiment with mark […]
I Test the COLOR Ink Tombow Fudensuke Pens
In November an email blast from Jet Pens mentioned Tombow Fudenosuke pens were available in COLORS!!!! I ordered a set of 10 (which includes a black—you can see the list of colors on my test page at the right. Click on the image and you can cycle through enlargements.) I’ve done several sketches […]
In Context: Some TV Viewing Post Eye Surgery
After my first cataract surgery it took about 10 months for the eye to heal and for a “scratchy” spot to on the eye to close up. On this page I’m still dealing with that. Or rather obsessing about it! Or trying not to obsess about it.
Sketching Faces: When You Feel You’ve Hit A Plateau
I sketch a ton of faces. I look back over the years and see how my approach to sketching faces has changed, how it’s constantly evolving. Often students write to me about experiencing a plateau in their drawing efforts. They feel that they have achieved a level of skill at which they remain […]
Nostalgie Is A Fun Paper
I think the sketch pretty much shows how much fun I was having on this paper so I’m not going to write more except to say you can use the category list or search engine on this blog to find more Nostalgie pages. The paper is smooth, heavyweight, and a delight for all […]
Paper Matters: Is There A Right Paper?
For artists making works on paper media selection and method of application of course both matter, but too often artists forget that paper matters too. Have you been seduced by an art supply catalog into purchasing a substandard, non-artist grade paper? I see it all the time in my student’s questions. They’ve spent money on […]