If you sketch on a trip, I think your memories are more indelible or tangible than when you only take photos. I put a sketchbook, Micron pen .005, water soluable pencils, pencil sharpener and Niji waterbrushes loaded with water in my purse. From the minute we hit the road, I didn't know what to sketch and thought...what the heck...I will sketch anything in front of me without giving it thought!
Believe me, my sketches look as if I didn't give them any thought. The road goes by FAST and is bumpy! But it was fun to mark the path with pen, then color with watercolor pencils and wet the marks down as well. I don't think this was my favorite sketching solution, but I love having a rough 60 pages of marks and some memory flags to remind me of what to paint when I get to it at home. One should paint her 50th anniversary!
After I wore down the Micron point in Castine, ME, I made the exciting discovery that there are Sharpie fine point pens now that don't bleed through the paper, and more than that, there are Sharpies that come with a retractable fine point so you won't have to look for lost tops under seats in the car! When I couldn't replace some of my Caran d'Arche watercolor pencils in the USA, I found Derwent watercolor pencils in Rockland a surprisingly good substitute. Heavenly. And of course there are different results for sketching on arrival but this was an experiment! Click photos to enlarge.
Yes, making a sketch does something that many, many camera clicks can't come near. I'm a determined nondrawing klutz, but there have been occasions when I couldn't help myself and grabbed a pencil. I've been amazed years later when I run across one of the clumsy renderings how the memories flood back. Thanks for the reminder. Maybe I'll give it yet another try.
ReplyDeleteI do love your trip drawings--please!--post some more. And, of course, I'm eagerly waiting to see the paintings that these fun sketches inspire.
Connie Brown told me that on a trip she draws stick figures of people and places she visits to make more memorable her experiences...that the results way outweighed snapping photos. Both photos and drawings are good, but there is magic in rendering the moments with pen and pencil.
DeleteI saw the water color "sketches" a Rice professor did instead of taking photos --- did them everywhere they went - marvelous! You can do ANYTHING, Linda! ss
ReplyDeleteSo can you,
DeleteIt's interesting to read your comments on and evaluation of the different pens/pencils/brushes you used as you created your pictures. That whole project was such a wonderful way to capture "moments in time" in much more creative ways than by mere photographs. Photographs are only a picture, albeit often most interesting or with special meaning, but to paint what you're seeing or thinking about adds a dimension beyond what can be captured in a flash by a camera.
ReplyDeleteI get carsick if I take my eyes off the horizon. You're lucky to be able to do anything in the car. I can't draw, but when I want to remember something I take notes, even though I may never look at them again. I would love to be able to sketch ANYTHING! I have been guilty of using stick figures, but NOT in the car.
ReplyDeleteI once got carsick but out grew it...As for sea sickness, it helps to eat! However, I know that up and down those hills and around those corners as on Prince Edward Island can take their toll on one.
DeleteLove this post! Sorry so late getting to it, but maybe it came in while I was out of town. You make a persuasive case for the importance of sketching. I have NO drawing or sketching ability and am intimidated by the very idea. But I need to be more courageous. Loved the photos of your sketches and the wonderful materials you take along. Excellent!
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