I confess, the first drawing in it was the hardest. I was told, by serious Moleskiners, that the first page entry is the most difficult - once done, the rest is a matter of acceptance and diligence.
Note how I created a new name for art fanatics that use little books to capture an artistic moment in time - Moleskiners. If you google “moleskine sketchbook” and open the search in “Images” you will be blown away by what people draw in theirs.
I am accepting of my art (and its failings - part of the journey) and my diligence is undeniable - I am a persistent old gal! (cute, and a bit over the hill as it were, but persistent nonetheless)
Isn’t there a saying - “you get better with age” - well then, need I say more! (Vanity be my name!)
Although I won’t be blogging about every single solitary page in my first ever Moleskine - and it would be oh so tempting to do just that - I am going to share my second page entry, for now! (since that’s as far as I got - sheepish grin inserted here)
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Page 2 - soup bowls (one full, one empty) and my left hand.
I am using a 6B pencil, and a kneading eraser sparingly.
My goal: plan before I draw thereby minimizing my need to erase.
The dark blob in the middle is what my first kneaded eraser looks like after far too much erasing in my drawing classes.
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Turning my sketchbook sideways I drew the clenched fist, so I'm showing it here that way too.
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Here to lend me a hand (or two) is a page from Courtney's Moleskine. Her personal goal was to complete one hundred hand drawings - this is a sampling of those hundred.
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| I like looking through Courtney's Moleskine - it's motivating and inspiring. |
Well, that just about covers it for this “hands on” post!
And you…
Do you have a little book you drag along to capture your inner child’s frivolity and unbridled imagination? (be it written or drawn)
Cheers, Jenny
You have inspired me to dig out my sketch book again this weekend and just draw. No moleskine but a lovely Canson visual diary came with me outside yesterday as I soaked up a little sun and attempted to draw the garden bed in front of me.
ReplyDeleteI do need to just draw more. I find it so relaxing.
Everytime I see what you have done I am just so blown away with how wonderfully you are drawing.
You are amazing (definately neither old nor over the hill)
Gosh, I'm blushing, Mynx - thank you for such a lovely comment.
DeleteYou made me smile with your comment about digging out your sketch book - Courtney said the same thing to me. While she "draws" for a living she said she was getting a little slack with her personal art journaling.
It tickles me to know my ART adventure is stirring the passions of others - like you, with your recent art give away and your encouraging post for others to express their artistic side.
Must be something in the air! Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. :)
I'd never heard of moleskin or moleskinners before Jenny so this was a very informative post from the get go. I love your various sketches in here too, there's something very modern and sculpted and vibrant about it, it's hard to put my words on but it's very different if you know what I mean?
ReplyDeleteI'm giggling, Matthew - you're too cute! The brand name of these particular sketchbooks is "Moleskine".
DeleteAs to the word "Moleskiners" I thought of it as I took a look on google and saw all these amazing artists' drawings...there's a sort of hmmm, how do I say, "groupie" effect going on - each better than the next, each drawing madly in their little book - worshipping the ART god - and I thought, oh no, I'm a Moleskiner now - that's how it came about! (I'm a bit of a nut job that way)
As to the hands - Miss CP has pages full of them - and I'm using them as guides. Also, she draws hands more animated - I'm still stuck in realism.
Today, I'm having another session with Courtney - I'll address hands in more detail. Yeah!
Hi Jenny - you are achieving loads and moving on - congratulations .. I think you'll have da Vinci sketches everywhere in the year 2418? Just wonderful that you're enjoying your new skill ..
ReplyDeleteVery clever .. cheers Hilary
Sketching everyday is my secret to the fast progress I am making - there is something to be said for "practice makes perfect" (whatever one's perception of perfect is)
DeleteI am really and truly having the most fun I've had in years. I've opened a door and fresh air is blowing through my mind. Now, if only a mind could blow in I'd be set - so forgetful lately.
Thanks for stopping by, Hilary - much appreciated. :)
I love that you have Courtney's Moleskin for inspiration - fantastic. As for you my dear friend, your progress is nothing short of amazing.
ReplyDeleteConfession: I still have not printed the picture from the other day (the upside down guy - forgot his name). It sits upon my desktop mocking me. IMG_5061!!!
Think of my lessons with Miss CP as interest paid on years of footing the art bill! *grin*
DeleteAw, that sounds pooey - in fact keep thinking of all the money I'm saving not paying for private tutoring - pays to have connections, eh!
Oohh - confessions - love it! Of course we can't get me started otherwise ART will be tossed and a confessional will be set up. Then look out, all hell will break loose and there's no telling what pile of smelly diapers we'll be rolling in then! (such a visual - leave it to me to come up with it too - right brain has come alive...the monster lives)
Don't worry about the upside down guy - although...it will only require 30 minutes of your time and you will be so stoked you'll be blogging all about it...just sayin'...
this is great, jenny--i am so happy for you---and no i don't have the little book---but i think it is a wonderful idea :)
ReplyDeleteI think a little book for your ongoing poetry creations is in order! A must have! *grin*
DeleteIf you're happy, then I'm happy and pretty soon we're all happy - me likes Happy, better than Dopey or Grumpy any day.
It will be my happy thought, today, as I look out the window and see the rain pounding madly on the pane, relentless in its pursuit of wreaking havoc on my otherwise dry, stable world. (well, how stable can a world be if I'm in it, begs the question)
Thanks for dropping in and leaving some happiness behind. :)
Yes, I have several Moleskines, and use them for travel, and for writing. What I like is the strap that keeps them closed and the little pocket at the back. I discovered them in Books A Million in Florida in the aughts. Yes, I was hooked on the fact that they were a 'tradition' for writers. I've bought them for everyone in the family. You can order them cheaper than buying by ordering them from the 'Ship the Web' site, just click on Moleskines.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I need a new sketchbook. I remember doing hand studies like that. I think yours and your daughters' drawings are both very well done. Thanks for sharing your work.
Good tip - I'll check the online options. In Chapters this size was twenty-five dollars (given the quality of paper and that each book is handmade I'm thinking it's not an unreasonable price) but I will look around now that I know what I'm looking for.
DeleteIt was a last minute thing, the flimsy little blank paged notepad I was using was not up to snuff for Miss CP and so I was told to get with the program and get a Moleskine - how fashionable am I now...haha)
Thanks for taking a looks at my "hand(i)work" - having my daughter's work to motivate me is very helpful, as are my sessions with her. (heading there today for one)
You are so talented!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Claudia, with smiles!
DeleteI like your latest "header." A great photo to sketch, so much texture. Hand sketches are good, Jenny.
ReplyDeleteThis header is taken in Lübbecke, Germany, in a friend's garden. I thought it was real at first and just had to have a photo of it. I figured it was time to share it and made it into this header.
DeleteYou're right, it would be great to sketch...I think I need more practice under my belt - it seems quite complex. (but I have been thinking about it)
Thanks for stopping by. :)
Hi there Jenny. That is a really good word - 'moleskinners'!! My goodness me, what a talent you have there. I love the hand and the clenched fist. You are coming on in leaps and bounds, so all your practice is obviously paying off.
ReplyDeleteHi Diane - thanks for your kind words. I'm enjoying the process and my lessons, the classes I'm taking and the tutoring I'm getting from Courtney, are making all the difference.
DeleteIt was by chance that I decided to enrol in a drawing class this fall and it's like new life has been breathed into me. I feel the passion of my youth being rekindled and I'm running with it.
Practice is the key - I am probably overdoing it, but better to get a good base going and then, as my skills strengthen, I can lighten up.
In the meantime, all this wonderful encouragement is making this a truly blessed experience. :)
Wow! These are amazing! You are very talented. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks Ermie - I think we are all talented. (but thanks for singling me out *happy grin*)
DeleteFor me...it was the art class that lifted the lid on my Childhood Box and let ART come out to play. With the help of my daughter, and a great drawing book, I am finding there is ART in all of us waiting...patiently waiting to be set free.
Wow. I never could draw hands worth a hoot. My figures always ended up with those cartoony three fingered hands like Mickey Mouse. But then I wasn't really all that interested in reality back then either. That might explain some of my style. (grin)
ReplyDeleteThey (not sure who "they" are exactly) say hands are the hardest things to draw with respect to human anatomy. I agree with you, and them!
DeleteMany of Courtney's hand drawings have a cartoon quality given the field she is in. I am, at the moment, stuck in reality. (oh dear...sounds ominous)
Last night, at my drawing session with my daughter, I did some still life using My Little Pony characters - yes...it's true, you read correctly, toys and more toys line virtually every shelf in Miss CP's home studio - all for inspiration I'm told! (The inner child is strong in this one, Master - a little Star Wars for effect) *grin*
I'm just working on a post about it...so you'll be able to fall of your chair twice! (laughter will do that - does for me)
I bet you are one heck of an artist, given your many artistic endeavours...have you tried the upside down drawing? That was a huge turning point for me - it's in the book I'm reading; fascinating stuff.
As always, dear Rev - your visits make me smile...for that I say "thanks and hugs to you"
Wow, Jenny, give a girl a pencil and a Moleskine and see what she can do!!!!!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you and Miss Mermaid are having a great time drawing together. I'm so happy for you!!!!
I love my Moleskines and have become completely spoiled by using them.....nothing compares. xo Carole
I just knew you'd be a Moleskine girl, Carole - little giggle - I bet you take yours with you everywhere!
DeleteMiss CP is cracking the whip - wait till you see my next post (working on it as I type this) - I'm feeling the love!
Cheers, Jenny