Large Scale Sketchbook: week 1

Yesterday was the first session of ' Large Scale Sketchbook'  with Tony Hull  at City Lit . I got a lot out of ' Reading the Paint Surface' I did with him a couple of years ago and the Contemporary Drawing Sketchbook course  with Amanda Knight  so it seemed the logical next step particularly as 'scaling up' is something I want to tackle. 

From experiences of others who'd done the course before I was expecting an A3 softback sketchbook  but the course should really be called  Very Large Scale Sketchbook  as we were given a  Seawhite A2 wire-o hardback! 

 We were all seated around a big table ( with extra tables added to extend it when we opened our sketchbooks)  which was a lovely way of starting. After  introductions , a still life was set up  in the centre of the table of some of the usual random selection of objects: bottles, tools, a teapot, a  large metal 'P' (above); a creepy looking doll.  Starting several pages into our sketchbooks we then  drew with charcoal  over a double page  A1 spread ( bit tricky with the wire in the middle). Lots of rubbings out which  gives a lot of lovely ghostly marks then  measuring, trying to make it a more accurate drawing.   

We then made up a very light ink wash and painted all the darkest areas with it, letting it dry during a teabreak  while we filled in the  admin forms. 

On our return we turned our sketchbooks upside down so more aware of shapes rather than objects  and started  cutting into the pages with a  Stanley knife

Initially the shapes cut out were glued  to the page beneath so that superficially the upper page still looked the same but then we became braver and stuck pieces on different places/pages. 

Every so often we  walked round the table to see what other people were doing - considering it was the same materials and objects being drawn , the approaches used were very different and  inspired by others  we started  cutting right through the pages, creating flaps  and holes. 

Finally we did a tour around the table again , opening and closing folds , revealing different combinations , before putting them away in a drawer until next week ( they're definately not very portable...)

So many possibilities  and ways of looking in just 3 hours! We have another session of exploration  next week  before the site visit to V&A Cast Courts in week 3. Unfortunately I'll be away for that  so will have to make a visit  under my own steam. My current sketchbooks ( A5 and A4) suddenly seem very small.

The Vital Spark - Sketchbook Project 18

With my studio out of action for more than 4 weeks while redecoration and refurbishment of our bedroom was going on ( I slept on a mattress  there!) , my creative project  was finishing ( ok starting)  my submission to sketchbook project 2018  with deadline  looming. I've  taken place in 4 previous challenges , 2 digitised  here and here.  It was brilliant seeing the sketchbooks in the flesh when they came to London. 
I'm thinking about having Sketchbook Project 13  and 'Special Edition' digitised.

I based it on the artists book I produced during Contemporary Drawing Sketchbook course based on electricity exhibition at the Wellcome Collection . I made the same concertina with pamphlet structure but attached to the cover through one of the pamphlets. 

The work was carried out at the kitchen table and what took the most time was imitating the  woodcut that inspired it , drawing on  7 x 20" watercolour paper strip  with a 0.1 Unipen!  My wrist is still recovering from all those lines but it worth it for the effect it produced. 

The other side with repetition of the phrase ' the elusive moment of the vital spark' was less strenuous! 

The pamphlets are a mixture of paper and stitched fabrics and as with the previous book, turning the pages gives a multitude of different combinations. It'll be interesting to see how they digitise it. It was posted 2 days before the deadline! 

Contemporary Drawing Sketchbook : final results

I'm rather pleased with  the artists' book  based on the theme of positive/negative I produced as a result of the Contemporary Drawing Sketchbook  course at City Lit. I'd done a lot of preparation in advance of the class : painting the cover and stitching and drawing a variety of pages  so what I did in the final session  was draw with white ink on the cover and tracing the same pattern on the reverse but write the text associated with 'the elusive spark'.  

cover -  based on  fold out etching in book from 1787

inside

inside showing pamphlets attached to accordion

cover folded up

cover laid out flat

Inside with pamphlets towards centre

Inside  with left hand pamphlet opened

Inside with right hand pamphlet opened ( showing reverse of stitched page)

inside with text

However my sketchbook practise  itself hasn't altered that much from the start. Seeing what other  students  had achieved in their sketchbooks was very interesting, with  one page leading  to another, inserts, collage,  space left to add additional material , pages altered.  Overwhelmed with all the techniques demonstrated  and  with so many ideas to explore I tended to work on large separate bits of paper rather than in the sketchbook itself. I'd do it differently if I did it again!

 One of the reasons I chose this course was to bridge the gap ( ok chasm!) making links  between my observational drawings and paintings and the design work for my textile pieces .  It's certainly given me a lot  to think about in regards to my sketchbook practice. I've written before  comparing my lab book  records to my sketchbooks. Now I'm no longer working as a scientist , I'm not sure the lab book approach is as appropriate and I'm in the process of reviewing  how to make my sketchbooks work better for me as I develop as an artist.