Sacred Sketchbook

[Psychotime]

I'll be honest, I only just started using BOTH sides of a page as of last year.

I hope I wasn't the only one scared of "ruining" my pages by doing that. I went through 10 sketchbooks before finally changing it up and doubling the use of a single book.

I'm also one of those people who wouldn't think of tearing out a page in the hardbound sketchbooks I use. I saw some other dude who does that (with a similar type of sketchbook), and I have to admit I found it kind of shocking that he apparently went through it with a box cutter, which is the cleanest way to do it for these kinds.

Those spiral types are nothing, though. It's not hard to just tear a page out and discard it. But only recently would I think of drawing on the back of a page.

[QueenGwenevere]

Funny, I started out with the habit of using both sides but stopped after a while because all the sketches would rub off on each other and get covered with schmutz, major pain in the ass to clean up if I ever wanted to scan any sketches later... (Plus the drawings on back would show through in the scans a lot darker than in the original... also a major pain in the ass to clean up.)

I still use both sides for warm-up gestures and thumbnails, though. Probably never gonna scan those, so it doesn't matter.

[blogmatix]

The only time I feel like that is when people ask to look through my sketchbook.. which happens quite often for some reason.
I feel like I have to explain to them that most of the stuff in sketchbook are supposed to suck, lol.

Tell them they can look through your sketchbook if you can have a look in their private diary. :-)

[vineris]

Funny, I started out with the habit of using both sides but stopped after a while because all the sketches would rub off on each other and get covered with schmutz, major pain in the ass to clean up if I ever wanted to scan any sketches later... (Plus the drawings on back would show through in the scans a lot darker than in the original... also a major pain in the ass to clean up.)

Yes, me too. I hate pencil sketches all rubbing off on one another. After a few months of the sketchbook getting kicked around in your bag, you can't tell what the heck it is you drew.

My most recent sketchbook is all ink so I decided to conserve paper, but otherwise I only use one side of the page.

[Psychotime]

Funny, I started out with the habit of using both sides but stopped after a while because all the sketches would rub off on each other and get covered with schmutz, major pain in the ass to clean up if I ever wanted to scan any sketches later... (Plus the drawings on back would show through in the scans a lot darker than in the original... also a major pain in the ass to clean up.)

It's annoying, but it doesn't bother me anymore, I always put my sketchbook scans through photoshop for a quick fix, anyway.

I haven't had the problem of pages showing through the back in a scan (which I feared was gonna happen). I guess it's just the grade of the paper.

Of course this is only when it's graphite. I won't risk it with ink.

[JeffX99]

I do the multiple sketchbook and loose paper thing. I have maybe ten SB going ususally? So yeah they fill really, really...reallly slow but who cares? They're all different formats - different papers - some toned, big, small, etc. I do the majority of my ideation on standard copy paper though...and I just file really meticulously. Loose paper works a bit better for me because I can bring tracing paper into the process, vellum, scan easily, lightbox stuff, pin/tape stuff up, keep sketches and reference/inspiration in the same folder, etc.

The important thing is to be doing it.

[Arshes Nei]

I remember having those Bienfang sketchbooks in high school. SMUDGE city. It did make it interesting when you got a plastic or kneaded eraser to erase in highlights.

[HunterKiller_]

As some mentioned, 'messing it up' is a good start.

There's also the prevailing trend these days that the sketchbook should be some kind of gallery. I think the sketchbook is best kept as a diary - for your own records and not intended for other eyes.

[AndreasM]

I gave up on keeping sketchbooks years ago. I like to get a good, not too thin, slightly toned sketchpad with at least a little tooth. Everytime I finish a page, I rip it out and place it elsewhere.

[KONM]

I've always just piled up on printer paper or newsprint because its all I can afford (with the exception of a few toned sketchbooks). I highly suggest doing the same.

Newsprint sketchpads are cheap, but you don't even have to get those. You can just get the huge rolls of it almost anywhere.
It eliminates the "I paid so much for this, it'd be a sin to even touch it" - thoughts.

If part of the issue is that you are afraid of others seeing your sketches, don't show 'em it. There's no rule that says you have to show them anything.

[blogmatix]

I've always just piled up on printer paper or newsprint because its all I can afford (with the exception of a few toned sketchbooks). I highly suggest doing the same.

Newsprint sketchpads are cheap, but you don't even have to get those. You can just get the huge rolls of it almost anywhere.
It eliminates the "I paid so much for this, it'd be a sin to even touch it" - thoughts.

If part of the issue is that you are afraid of others seeing your sketches, don't show 'em it. There's no rule that says you have to show them anything.

People can be very irritating about wanting to see one's sketches. Just tell them your sketchbook is pretty much like a diary: private. :-)

I like ballpoint pen as sketching tool: it eliminates the issue with smudging, and because lines cannot be erased it also forces a certain amount of decisiveness.

[Psychotime]

People can be very irritating about wanting to see one's sketches. Just tell them your sketchbook is pretty much like a diary: private. :-)

Boo, I say!

Unless you're drawing porn or writing the notes to some museum robbery you've got planned, why NOT let people see your sketchbook? As along as their hands are clean, what's the problem?

Yes, I AM the one who knocks one of those guys who loves asking to see people's sketchbooks if I know they're carrying one.

[blogmatix]

Boo, I say!

Unless you're drawing porn or writing the notes to some museum robbery you've got planned, why NOT let people see your sketchbook?

I don't really know. Perhaps it is just an issue of lack of confidence. But I absolutely hate it when people watch me draw, or look over my sketches.

[Psychotime]

The watching you while you draw thing is different than showing stuff you've already made.

[Elwell]

Unless you're drawing porn or writing the notes to some museum robbery you've got planned, why NOT let people see your sketchbook?

Because everybody is different and shouldn't be held, or hold themselves, to the same standard. If you want to show off your sketchbook, FINE. If you don't want to, FINE. If you want to treat it like a finished work in and of itself, FINE. If you want to fill it with scribbles, phone numbers, market lists, and the occasional proper drawing, FINE. THERE'S NO WRONG WAY TO DO IT.

[Kamber Parrk]

I find it useful to show select drawings, sketches and cartoons to a variety of people. I've developed a relationship with several people who know I'm open to blunt criticism-- it keeps me honest. Though these people aren't pros, the emotional response is usually what I find most useful.

Evidence that things aren't working?

Confusion or perplexity.

Sorta like: "It looks like you were trying to draw a _________________."

[QueenGwenevere]

THERE'S NO WRONG WAY TO DO IT.

Except for staring wistfully at the blank, pristine sketchbook and never daring to touch it with a pencil...

[Elwell]

Exactly.

[Pilgrim1099]

Don't be afraid to put down whatever comes out of your mind onto paper, or precious sketchbooks. I've been in that situation before. Years ago, during art school, I used cheap sketchbooks (mainly the Canson hardcovers with white paper) and worked out sketches or drawings. Even life drawing. It just felt like a workbook to me to solve problems. Then, over the years, I wanted something a bit nicer and more sophisicated that felt good to my pen or graphite. Something smooth and resistant.

I bought a moleskine for the first time, about ten years ago, and the moment I put my pen on it, I never looked back. It was portable enough for me to carry around or put into my messenger bag. Not only that, it reminded me of what Sean Connery's character used in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, penning his research on it.

Yes, the sketchbook is sacred, but as long as it is blank, it is NOT. Once full, it then becomes sacred.

However, my suggestion would be not to view it as some kind of precious spellbook that would vanish in a ball of flames, but something for you to record on. It's a living record of what you observe from and research on. Even if some pages have finished drawings, then that's great. I do that some times, jumping from preliminaries to finished in my moleskine. It's my personal preference to use this sketchbook despite the price and the surface is just wonderful. I even like drawing on toned paper (printmaking type) due to the resistant nature of it and texture. Again, it is expensive and I have a huge stack of them from over the years as I'm on my 14th moleskine, about to go on to the next in a few weeks.

EDIT: in addition, I usually take it with me to a speakeasy or nightclub once in a while, to chill out and draw with, and when it gets so loud from the live DJs, I jot down notes on what I'm saying to other people (specifically the ladies) because, well, I'm hard of hearing . And they do that in return. Maybe a tiny beer or wine stain here and there on paper but rarely.

So remember, you're not doing the illuminated manuscript within the confines of a monastery . Those guys had to be delicate and conservative with their use of papyrus, and to get it right the first time.

You, however, don't need to worry about that. That's what a sketchbook is for. To record your visual observations and grow from there.

[blogmatix]

Because everybody is different and shouldn't be held, or hold themselves, to the same standard. If you want to show off your sketchbook, FINE. If you don't want to, FINE. If you want to treat it like a finished work in and of itself, FINE. If you want to fill it with scribbles, phone numbers, market lists, and the occasional proper drawing, FINE. THERE'S NO WRONG WAY TO DO IT.

Yup. Besides, how many novelists would allow people to read their incomplete manuscripts? How many composers would allow people to listen to incomplete musical works, or look over their sketchbooks? How many people would allow strangers to read their diaries? There is perhaps no particular reason why they should feel this way, but so what? Nobody owes the world an explanation for why they want to keep their private notes private. It isn't really rational - I put up the worst of my scribbles, stuff I want to burn shortly before putting a bullet through my head, in full view of harsh criticism here on my CA sketchbook thread. It's somehow different. At least the critics here are accomplished artists and have earned the right to criticize my work, and I get to learn something from them.

Of course, if you are going to set up an easel in front of the rhino enclosure at the local zoo, and work on A2 paper with broad sweeps of charcoal, I guess you can't complain when people stop to look over your shoulder. But I get very irritated when I work on a little A5 sketchbook, hunched over it, and then people come and quite literally breathe in my neck trying to see what I'm doing, all the while making remarks as if I'm not even there.

Most irritating remark of all time: "Why don't you just take photos?"

Reply I should be giving them, but don't quite have the guts to: "Fuck off."

Reply I usually give, with forced little grin and false cheer: "Now where would be the fun in that?"

[Psychotime]

Heh. Maybe I'd be singing your tune if it was more common for non-artists to look at my stuff, or had people doing the over the shoulder crap.

I can't think of the last time I've had a layman look at my stuff. But I need to take a chance to do that, because I'm pretty sure it'd be funny.

I need to start hanging around at the mall.

Ever meet any of those people that have some kind of issue with nudity? Or better, the types that try to interpret every miniscule drawing as some kind of statement, or even BETTER, as some kind of window into your psyche?

I remember one member here who draws alot of gory stuff talking about how much he has to bother with the latter.

[Brittneyok]

One of the things that got me to work more and love working more was just LETTING GO. Not every piece in a sketchbook has to be a finished piece. Not everything in a sketchbook has to be serious in subject or in effort put forth. As artists, we are visual storytellers and its good practice to get everything in our heads out on paper in some way. Another thing that helped me was learning to embrace mistakes and irregularities. Interesting pieces are not always perfect. A quirky gesture or the way ink accidentally dripped on your page can be more captivating than a polished technical drawing. Learn to love worn out pages. Sometimes I'll have marker tests, song lyrics, unused thumbnails, or a watercolor stain on my page, and I'll draw right over that. Maybe even incorporate some of those elements into whatever I'm drawing.

Try constructing a sketchbook for yourself. I gathered up unused scraps of different paper types and made a rough bound sketchbook from those. Filling it up with doodles is even twice as satisfying!

I'm glad my "nice sketchbook" that filled up slowly got water damaged. Only a few pieces were severely affected, but it turned the paper into a stained yellow tone with wavy texture. For some reason that helped me fill the book faster with more vigor. Since my "nice sketchbook" was damaged, I could do anything I wanted in it. And that was much more fun.

[blogmatix]

I can't think of the last time I've had a layman look at my stuff.

I AM pretty much a layman, which is partly why I am so shy about my sketches. :-)

Ever meet any of those people that have some kind of issue with nudity? Or better, the types that try to interpret every miniscule drawing as some kind of statement, or even BETTER, as some kind of window into your psyche?

I remember one member here who draws alot of gory stuff talking about how much he has to bother with the latter.

Now THERE'S an idea, though I'd have to get good at drawing first. People look over your shoulder, you start drawing stuff that would give Helnwein nightmares: hideously mutilated children, scenes of torture and rape, zombies eating squirrel brains, the president being shot, a famous landmark being blown up.

You'll sleep in a cell, but it might well be worth it. :-)

[Psychotime]

Er...no. I just mean drawing what you normally draw and then getting ridiculous interpretations from random people about them.

Maybe this doesn't work so well if you draw "normal" "artsy" stuff.

[Falchion]

Er...no. I just mean drawing what you normally draw and then getting ridiculous interpretations from random people about them.

Maybe this doesn't work so well if you draw "normal" "artsy" stuff.

Never really had that problem since I generally reserve finishing up drawings for the computer. Whatever shows up in my sketchbooks are typically just studies of parts of whatever I'm working on at the moment. Can't really get re-interpretations for a sketch of a hydraulic buffer for a delayed blowback operating system, or for the very abstract layouts for an environmental piece.

[QueenGwenevere]

Can't really get re-interpretations for a sketch of a hydraulic buffer for a delayed blowback operating system

I dunno, that sounds kind of Freudian to me...

[Medelo]

I like my expensive sketchbooks too much to not mess them up. It's like insulting a sketchbook to not draw in it.

[Crane]

My personal solution to this problem.

[Psychotime]

I wonder if there's anyone who holds back on using a particular sketchbook until a set moment just because of the cover?

Red covers I treat very special. Currently I have one saved to serve as book number 13 (Yep, I number my sketchbooks, as well as date the days I start the first page and finish the last.) The main reason is simply because I've always bought black ones until recently, but the second reason is a little silly.

( Click to show/hide )

Heh. Yeah. If you don't get it, think of the SNES version of Doom. Get it now?

I actually tried out another brand for #11. It had nice paper, looking back. It just cost a little more.

Oh, forgot to mention. I NEVER use multiple sketchbooks. The chronology becomes confusing and they're hard to organize after they're full. It's much easier on myself to keep everything in one place.

[Januz]

I have two spiral bound SB, one is an A5 I use for whatever and the other is an A3 I use on my desk for more "serious" studies.

I've been thinking of adding a hard cover to the small one (or the next). Sorta of stained and rusty, so it looks like a really old book. Like one of those Indiana Jones notebooks Pilgrim1099 mentioned, love that look.