Sherlocked

Day 4

I have recently been catching up on Sherlock.  Being winter break with my regular shows and taking off a semester of school, I actually have a bit of time to finally check out some of the shows I have been missing.  So, having been thoroughly Sherlocked for the day, I of course had to do today's sketch of Benedict Cumberbatch.  Having never been one for sketching and laying down a quick and solid foundation of a drawing, I ran out of time before I had much more than his eyes in place. Too much drawing, not enough sketching.  My problem has always been focusing too much on the details from the jump, instead of the whole shape.  This is one of the main areas I am trying to fix by doing this project.  I figure a few months down the line I will revisit this reference and see if I have made the improvements I am hoping for.

Day 5
Spent all day at work, was so tired, and it was 11pm. No sketch yet.  I initially thought of vintage toys, like my oil painting from last semester.  Well, I ended up looking through images of vintage trucks.  There is a photographer I discovered through Deviant Art years ago who is awesome, so I thought I would try something different.  Of course, last night I couldn't think of his name, so settled for what I could find. Eh, maybe I need to make my time limit 15 minutes instead of 10? I have only been using a basic B drawing pencil for my sketches so far since I just carry the book around to work and stuff.  I'm thinking tonight I might add a splash of color. :)

There Is No Owl

I didn't really know what to expect from myself when I set my Sketch A Day goal.  I guess I assumed the same thing would happen that always does when I think about having to sketch something- I dread it. As it turns out, I spent my time in the bath this evening finally reading the copy of The Once and Future King that I had purchased no less than 8 years ago and my mind wandered to what I might sketch tonight. One of the rules i had set was "No planning," but I don't think this really counted since I was already counting on knocking out today's page right after my bath.
I found I was looking forward to tonight's page, thinking about how much I loved the Disney version of King Arthur and used to play the vhs tapes at night and pause them to sit and draw it out on a large sheet of drawing paper on the coffee table (I should dig this out of my box in the attic just for nostalgia).  Being eager to do any sketching is definitely not something I expected.  I know it's only day 3, but I am starting to believe I may actually get to enjoy this project.  It's definitely nice not having to worry about homework and deadlines for a change and just throw down whatever image interests me. Today it was Archemedes, Merlyn's owl.

I pulled T.H. White's book down from the attic the other day when I was going through some boxes.  I also happened across a small journal my best friend had sent me for my 30th birthday.  It would seem it all had perfect timing, so now I am also using the journal for my sketches since it is nice and small.  The paper is also handmade and toothy, so I like it much better than the bristol board I was using earlier.  I don't know how people can draw on such a smooth surface. It was horrible for just doing quick sketches.

Another day down. I am looking forward to where tomorrow will take me.

Sketch A Day 2015

It has been long established that I am bad at keeping a Sketchbook. I have been since high school. For this past semester oil painting class I had to keep a book updated with regular assignments. Honestly, I did half of them the day before I turned it in.
So, why I am I setting a goal to complete a sketch every day for the next 365 days?  I see the benefit of sketching, and now that I am taking a semester off and won't necessarily 'have' to sketch regularly (Yes, the "having to" part makes a big difference for me) I am taking it upon myself to learn and grow by doing unplanned daily sketches that I will not let be the detailed portraits that often take up so much time and frustration because I am a perfectionist. 
My main goal with this project is to learn to let go (stop thinking of Frozen, that was so 2014)  When i do any sort of drawing or art project, i know ahead of time that have at least several hours of work ahead of me. I often envy the quick and confidant strokes of many artists. I get caught up in the details, and while it all comes together in the end, I would like to broaden my scope by practicing quicker techniques and different subjects.
For this project I will also have to accept the fact that much of What I share will be crap, but I will share it anyway because no one is perfect and I am setting a time limit of 10 minutes each to keep myself from overlooking like I am prone to doing. Be prepared for lots of cats, faces, and hopefully a few non-boring sketches over the next 365 days. I'm starting off with Koopa wishing everyone a Happy New Year. She wouldn't stay still, so I had to take a picture for reference  :/