more inspiration!

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2vPlpq/fiveprime.org/hivemind/Tags/art,moleskine/
love the variety in the sketchbook art on this site, it gives good examples of representational studies, abstract, surreal, and humorous takes in sketchbook doodling.

getting past the blank

sometimes, like now, i neglect my sketchbook. i am the kind of person that never neglects my documentation missions. i've been journaling for 8 years now and i've kept a sketchbook for 4 or 5.

but we all hit our dry spots. it might be the anxiety or the non-stop work or being burnt out, the life crisis, the depression, or spending too much time eating, but i just can't fit in a good sketchbook (or journal) session.

IF it is high enough on the priority list, i would advise checking out this blog: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/5mGHu6/anidea.com/creative/dust-off-that-sketchbook/
to spice up your sketchbook and get those creative juices flowing again.

that is an awful phrase that i can't seem to shake.

audience! (forgot to publish this last week!)

audience is a flexible concept when it comes to sketchbooks...since most of my research has been online, the majority of the sketchbooks i've viewed so far have been publicized, that said, i think that they are, generally, a more private genre of art.

most sketchbooks are intended to be a private collection of an artists visual musings and plans for future works of art. (by private i don't mean so much secret diary private but more along the lines of 'just not publicized' private) ... personal. all the fine artists sketchbooks contained experimentation and layouts for works in progress. an informal compilation of progress that isn't intended for anyone but the artist to refer back on. for instance, most fine artists sketchbooks don't reach the public's eye until they are dead, and even then you have to be pretty damn famous for your work to warrant attention. 

recently, with the internet, everyone's sketchbooks are going viral, which takes a lot of the 'personal' element away from things. as much as i see the element of privacy as important, i believe that the publicity is  allowing this genre to 'take off' as an art form. there are countless blogs and websites devoted to sketchbook art, i havent had any remote issues at all finding sketchbook material on the web. they are everywhere.

why, exactly do i find this art form so appealing, so inspiring? (i asked myself this as i was drooling over this blog: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1VZYMr/designinstruct.com/visual-inspiration/sketchbook-secrets-50-beautiful-sketchbook-scans/ )

and i think it is the variety. it is that magical combination of fun, loose, experimental style and materials, any subject matter, no-rules, un-art-kind-of-art stuff. seriously, i would get bored with anything else.

BASICS OVERVIEW

FORM

•MOST IMPORTANTLY…you need a BOOK.

•

• sketchbooks are typically BLANK (no extraneous details to interfear with your beauteous creations)

•

•Spiral-bound, hardback covers, one of those ‘moleskine’ thangs, whatever strikes your fancy and inspires you to get those creative juices flowing!

•

•Usually PORTABLE.

•

•Same goes for materials, pen, pencil, watercolors, mostly things that won’t trash your purse while you’re sketching on the run. 

CONTENT

•Personal

•Creative/Artistic exploration

•Sketches (OBVIOUSLY),

–doodles

–cartoons

–collage

–found objects

–paint (watercolor usually),

–Observational drawings

–Experimentational work

•Informal

•You can get all up in other

people’s content on websites like:

Artist’s sketchbooks online

http://gis.net/~scatt/sketchbook/links2.html

http://www.urbansketchers.org/  

•The key compontent to sketchbooking:

 YOU CAN DO WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT IN THERE.

AUDIENCE

•Yourself.  (artistic reflection)

•future generations of art appreciators

*IF you’re inspiring/actually have artistic talent

•The world wide web if your sketchbook goes viral