No words this week, just scribbles.
Viewing entries tagged
pen
For the longest time, I hated the very notion of calling myself an 'artist'. It always seemed like the kind of thing clueless wankers said about themselves in an effort to sound more interesting than they actually are. Perhaps it's because I've always been around musicians and artists, and there have always been a cohort that take themselves way too seriously.
I've often talked about tools and constraints and how limitations can help drive creativity, but sometimes it's good to remember that it's a balance after all. This week I bought some new pens and as reminded just how nice it is to use a pen that's full of ink and hasn't had its nib damaged from use. Turns out there's value to be found on every point of the spectrum.
Whenever tragedy strikes, it leaves us with a mixed bag of emotions and thought. Of course there's the sadness of loss, but this week I think I'd like to look at the creative inspiration we can draw from personal tragedy.
It's funny how every time I sit down to write this weekly post, I always want to focus on things that have no relevance. What I mean is that I'm trying to keep this particular series focused on creativity and everything related to it. The hard part is that sometimes it feels like everything informs our creative output without question.
Let's talk resolutions, because why not? I don't usually go in for the whole New Year thing very much, as it's just as arbitrary as anything else, but change it always good in my book. Why not use the calendar to mark an occasion for change… maybe it can do some good.
We don't do Thanksgiving in Australia, because… well it's irrelevant here. Although, I do like the idea of taking some time out in the year to actively engage in some positivity and express what we're thankful for. There are so many random circumstances we could all find ourselves in, so let's take a moment to appreciate the good things that have come our way.
'Tis the holiday season, which I'm now going to use as an excuse for the relatively light posts as of late. I just haven't felt like there's been much to say, but the funk is nearly over and we'll be back to regular programming eventually. So why not focus on a bit of positive reinforcement this week.
The doodles went a little weird this week, but I'm kind of digging it. After all, I was going to talk about why I choose to focus on certain subjects, so it's the perfect time to change. I usually avoid trying to justify anything I draw simply for the sake of it, but hopefully we can avoid any amount of artist wank-speak along the way.
This one's being posted late, because I always write these posts right before they're posted, and this weekend has been busy. Honestly though, I don't think it really matters at the end of the day though; these deadlines should be considered to be a little more fluid.
It's not often that I get to be happy about a lack of content, but when it's the result of being productive in other ways, I'm cool with it. So this week there's only a few doodles to show, as I've been spending more and more time putting paint on canvas.
I can't remember if I've talked about confidence much in the past, but it's definitely been on my mind this week. The usual theme might be how to overcome a lack of confidence, which is important to learn, although too much can be a curse. In fact, there have been many times in life that an overabundance of confidence managed to lead certain folks astray.
For a fleeting moment this week, I thought I might focus on doodles that aren't faces. Then I realised that I've yet to exhaust my interest in faces, and I'm not sure I ever will. Nevertheless, there's something to be said for forced diversity, as it keeps the juices flowing… or so they say.
It was bound to happen sometime, but I skipped sketchbook 84 last week thanks to a bunch of personal commitments and generally being too busy. The up side is that part of the distraction was related to a big art project, so I figure it all balances out in the end. I'm still not keen on skipping weeks, so here's hoping it's a rare occurrence either way.
Sometimes it's easy to forget that the world is a constant mass of writhing organisms, constantly changing and evolving into different forms. I suppose it's what people mean when they say "back in my day", as their 'day' felt a lot different to the now. Of course there are tangible changes being made at all times, but I had the pleasure this week of experiencing a more ethereal form of nostalgia.
This week I spent a bit more time on a digital sketch, so it's not really a doodle per se, but I've included it on purpose. In comparison to the limitations of pen on paper, I was reminded that digital sketching offers a lot of nuance and detail. I was also reminded that I don't suck as much as I thought I did.
The monstrous offspring of Pasiphae and the white bull, the Minotaur was sentenced to by Minos to the gigantic Labyrinth near Knossos. Later, Theseus would venture through the labyrinth with the aid of Ariadne's thread. The journey would see Theseus battle the Minotaur, and ultimately slay it with the sword of Aegeus, before abandoning Ariadne on the island of Noxos.
Lately it's been a bit hard to find the words to put to these posts, but that's just the rolling nature of life. It's bound to happen in a long term cross section of experience, as we can't make them all winners. I suppose the best we can ever do is implicit in the doing, thanks to all the aspects intrinsically linked to one's ability to do.
Just a couple of visualisations this week. Mainly because my mind and body have been elsewhere lately, and I've been doing other things.
Going to keep the words super short this week, as I'm soaking up some time away and enjoying the view.