I write a blog post at this time each year looking back at what I have done during the year.  This is quite a long blog with a few photos. Once again, I realised that I had a very busy year!
( I have done this in 2018,  2017 as well as  2014  2015 & 2016 )

• Daily sketching. I filled eight Moleskine watercolour sketchbooks 13 x19 cm of everyday sketching. I scan every page of my sketchbook and put them all on Flickr (an image sharing website) Some go onto Facebook at Alissa Duke Art , some on Instagram alissaduke1. I have fewer daily sketchbooks than previous years as I have spent more of my “everyday sketching time” on private commissions.
• I have maintained my weekly art blog. Thank you to everyone who follows my weekly art blog. I hope that you find it enjoyable and interesting to read and full of information. I hope that I am able to share a bit of my passion for drawing and watercolour pencils. Please let me know if you have any questions or would like me to explain anything I do. I still hope to be able to produce a video one day, (but that is in the too hard basket again) You can subscribe to my blog to receive it via email.
• Etsy Sales – I have an Etsy online store selling my Greeting cards. This year was quieter as I focused on promoting other areas of my art. Once again, as I promised myself last year, I need to learn more about marketing in the new year, and making people and organisations aware of my art.
•  Newsletter. I sent three newsletters this year to the 112 people who subscribe to my newsletter, in January, March and September. The newsletter is for people who are interested in my art and would like to know when major events happen – new card designs, markets, exhibitions and classes. They may not necessarily be interested in my Weekly Art Blog, but still want to be updated.
• Instagram. I now have over 1300 followers on Instagram alissaduke1. I post an image daily to Instagram, so they are examples of sketching every day, and hopefully inspire some sketchers.

2019 month by month – my projects and commercial activities. (paying for my pencils)

I have written about them below, with a link to the blog post about the event, if I wrote one.

Watercolour pencil sketching classes. I shared my joy of sketching and my passion for watercolour pencils by running classes locally in and out of Melbourne, I held four at Dromkeen homestead, just outside of Melbourne.

alissaduke.com/2019/02/sketching-at-dromkeen-2.html tp://alissaduke.com/2019/06/high-tea-sketching-at-dromkeen.html ://alissaduke.com/2019/11/nature-sketching-class.html

• Nature sketching,
• Travel sketching
• High tea

I held fourteen Travel sketching with watercolour pencil classes, including one in conjunction with Erin Hill travel sketching http://alissaduke.com/2019/02/saturdays-travel-sketching-classes.html

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March

Dromkeen Children’s LitFest Riddells Creek, just outside of Melbourne. Saturday 30 March. I was honoured once again to be invited to sketch at Dromkeen LitFest 2019: Stories connect us to the past, the present & the future’. It was a day of celebrating Australian Children’s Literature http://alissaduke.com/2019/03/dromkeen-litfest-2019.html

April

Commission I drew a family home that is being sold. As part of the same commission, I completed a second drawing of six objects and scenes from around the house that have special memories to the owners. I love the combination of the two.

May

Melbourne Rare Book Week launch & posters – I designed five posters for the Melbourne Library SErvice events for Melbourne Rare Book Week in July. Marketing due in early in the year for the July event. http://alissaduke.com/2019/05/melbourne-rare-book-week-launch.html

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Clunes Booktown Festival I applied for and was appointed a Social Media Reporter for the day – a BIG event for me. It was perfect for me as could combine my love of books and sketching, http://alissaduke.com/2019/05/clunes-booktown-festival.html and a

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My Clunes Booktown Festival Associated Creative Project was drawing in a book ,http://alissaduke.com/2019/05/clunes-booktown-festival-creative-project.html It was happily purchased by the organisers.

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July

Melbourne Rare Book Week http://alissaduke.com/2019/07 . Once again, I was Sketcher on location at many of the fascinating events at Melbourne Rare Book Week. This is a major event in my year and I am so pleased to be involved with the people and organisations that make it.

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Commissions – St Peters Eastern Hill Church. Drawings for an event invitation and cards. Below are the sketches as works in progress.

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Commission – bookstack – this is as it was as a work in progress. The final version had personalised book titles.

October

Nature Sketching Sketchbooks Exhibition at East Melbourne Library http://alissaduke.com/2019/10/nature-sketching-exhibition.html

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commission – an A4 drawing for a raffle prize. Below is a work in progress.

I held a Travel Sketching with Watercolour Pencil class as part of the Melbourne East Arts Festival, based in the local Holy Trinity church. We were fortunate to have nice, but cool weather to go for our walk.

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Commission – womble . Lisa from London had seen my previous sketch of a Womble on the Wimbledon page in an old London A-Z Street Index. Fortunately, I had just purchased another discarded old London A-Z and could draw a new one for them, choosing Uncle Bulgaria as their favourite womble.

December

Dromkeen Christmas High Tea Sketching with Watercolour pencils http://alissaduke.com/2019/12/christmas-high-tea-sketching-at-dromkeen.html . A grand event of sketching and eating a Christmas High Tea. A visually overwhelming display and lots to draw and eat.

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East Melbourne Library Community BBQ market stall http://alissaduke.com/2019/12/east-melbourne-library-community-bbq.html I was invited to have a stall to sell y greeting cards at the local Library end of year Community BBQ. A great social day, meeting old friends and new.

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Commission – house – from photo

commission – sheep – from photo

Blarney Biblio Art prize exhibition http://alissaduke.com/2019/11/blarney-biblio-art-prize-entry.html available for purchase through Blarney Books & Art This is an annual event that I enter and it was fun to make a long weekend and be there for the Opening night.

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Thank you for your support and see you next year

The past year was full of wonderful and interesting events, places to sketch and people – sketching with new friends and old.

I am looking forward to 2020. Here are some of the plans:

• more watercolour pencil sketching classes- my own and in association with other organisations
• a project that involves drawing in discarded books,
• Melbourne Rare Book Week,

Please join me on my continuing art journey in 2020. Let me know if you have any questions about watercolour pencils or any of my projects.