Here is a photo of the sketchbooks I completed in 2017.
They include:
Travel Sketchbooks
NZ Trip (Jan) – 1 x A4 Moleskine Folio Watercolour , 1 x A4 Fabriano Watercolour Notebook
Italy-Scotland trip (May/June) – 3 x A4 Moleskine Folio Watercolour
Chicago-Montreal trip (July/Aug) – 2 x A4 Moleskine Folio Watercolour, 1 x square Handbook Travelogue sketchbook
SF-Texas trip (Sept/Oct) – Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbooks: 1 x 8×10 softcover, 1x 9×6 hardcover, 1 x 5.5×8.5 softcover
Daily Sketchbooks
Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbooks: 5 x 8×10 softcover, 1 x 9×6 hardcover
Note: 1 of the 8×10 books was my working sketchbook for upcoming SketchingNow Watercolour course and I have not shared anything from this book! I also have two books that I filled up while teaching sketching classes, but I didn’t include this in this photo.
A few comments about this years sketching:
I did a lot of travel – 11 weeks! – and as usual these were by far my most productive sketching periods espeically when I am hanging out with fellow Urban Sketchers. I feel so priviledged to be able to do this!
I really feel as if I have stopped sketching during my daily life and if it wasn’t for my morning latte sketches my books would be very empty.
Apart from the monthly USK SYD meets or when there wass a sketcher in town, I didn’t go out on any just-for-me Sydney sketching adventures.
My sketching has gotten faster, and I am taking more risks and most of the time starting with paint.
I’m also doing more sketch just with paint (without any lines).
On the drawing side of things, I am doing quick ink sketches with my Lamy pen (the nib is somewhere between a fine and a medium) and don’t seem to be using my Sailor pen much (though I still love it). I am having a lot of fun doing these extremely rapid sketches.
And finally, I had a breakthrough with my people sketching – this was big!
So all up, it was a pretty amazing year for my sketching.
I hope you had some great developments with your art too in 2017.
15 Comments
Lovely stuff!
I have to ask. Where did you get your date stamps?
Thaks Susan, stamps are southport by Kelly Purkey. More here https://lizsteel.com/stamping-advice-needed/
Thanks for sharing more of your great tips and inspiration. I lost my son in October and having so much trouble getting back to any artwork. Just can’t seem to be able to start. He was just 51 and one of my biggest supporters and my best friend. I am blessed with two other wonderful sons I love dearly, but Keith and I were just so much alike. He was a very talented photographer and I have been sharing some of his photographs on Facebook. I do want to reproduce some of his work, just can’t seem to get started. Any suggestion would be of help. I know my life will never be the same. He lived in another state so sadly we didn’t get to see him as much as we would have liked but we did talk a lot. His lovely wife is still calling often which is a blessing. Sorry for this long post, but just trying to find a way back to my art that my son loved too.
Oh Linda! I am so so sorry! Don’t over stress… the desire to sketch will come back in time. Sending you a big hug.
Thanks you Liz for your reply and for your caring and encouraging words.
How do I subscribe to your blog?
Thanks,
Maggie
Hi Maggie – there is a link on the sidebar or here https://lizsteel.com/dont-miss-a-single-blog-post/
Liz, you had one very busy year! It was fun meeting you in Chicago and being able to take your workshop.
thanks Joan – was lovely to meet you too!
Doing sketches without LINES is hard and this is exactly what I’m attempting to do now and… am STRUGGLING! Because everything look messy without the lines…..
Been your follower on FB in the past 1.5 years and love to read your updates!
yes, it’s not easy. You need to have a good point on your brush and make sure your washes are juicy (what I will be talking about in my online course)
Maybe its my monitor, or more likely my failing eyesight, but I’d like to be able to read the Bible verses you choose for your daily sketches. Just a bit higher resolution would be nice 😉
Hi Dean! Happy New Year. Sadly I am restricted to this resolution at the moment, but hope to get my developers to look into it in the next month or so!
An exciting heads up for 2018: looks like Lamy is releasing a limited edition white Joy! I know the black version is really the same pen but still …
http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/330807-lamy-2018-special-edition-colours-leaked/
Oh! thanks for letting me know I might have to get another spare one!
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