Sketchbook Challenge

The theme announced for the Sketchbook Challenge this month is Highly Prized. My first thoughts are, my hubby and daughter, and my dog. Well, I almost never work figuratively, so I guess the dog is my subject. He was very obliging to take a nap in the middle of the living room floor so I could sketch. I used a graphite stick for this, it makes big smudgy marks that allow for tonal drawing. When getting the drawing muscles going again, not having to commit to a hard edge is comforting.

Ok, so I am reasonably happy with this. So next I started thinking about other items that I find fascinating, and are for me highly prized. The stuff that I collect. One thing I have a really nice collection of is entomology specimens, - bugs and insects. so I did a quick sketch of some beetles. This was done with a mechanical pencil, the more linear material forces you to be a bit more decisive. Even though you know you can erase, you also have to make your marks with a bit more commitment. ( It is also the most common tool at hand in my life )

SO here you have three beetles. They are all in the same specimen box. The large one is a giant Dung Beetle, it is 2 inches across. The other two are much smaller, but both bright green metallic. The color is stunning, and eventually I will do some color drawings of them. Right now I am busy getting the lead out and simply drawing with no real other need than drawing. You know, for a topic that had me stumped at first, ideas are starting to flow.

I am also interested in fossils. I have a slice of an ammonite that I find intriguing. One side is rough, as you would see it if you found it in the ground, the other has been polished and you can see the structure inside the shell. The actual shell part has been replaced with a mineral that looks alot like hematite, and the soft parts of the organism have fossilized with other minerals. I didn't have it to hand at first, and based on my memory of it I did the top drawing. I think it would make a great stamp, I may have to carve it. But then I got out the actual object and did a "from Life" version. I used a black brush pen for the hematite part, and pencil for the rest. Interesting differences between the imagined drawing and the from life versions. Notice also that I felt strong enough to use an unforgiving mark maker like a brush pen for some of it. The biggest part of getting back to drawing for me is getting back the fearless factor. A sketchbook is a private thing, it will only get shown to whom, and when I decide to share it. There is no need to be afraid to make a mark. There is no need for perfection. The value in the sketchbook practice is in the thought process that happens when you draw. But more on that at another time.