“Anything is Sketchable” is the title of my interview with Bethan Burton from Journalling with Nature. It went live last Monday. https://www.journalingwithnature.com/podcasts/episode-78-alissa-duke

I was honoured, excited and nervous to be invited as Bethan has interviewed some amazing individuals. In the end, it turned out to be a lovely hour’s chat

Since then, I have had a number of new nature journallers following this weekly art blog and my daily Instagram account.  Welcome to you! I thought I would write this week on the title of the podcast “Anything is Sketchable”.

For those new here I will introduce myself. I live in Melbourne and work full-time as a librarian. I sketch in my Moleskine watercolour journal everyday, and only use watercolour pencils and an ink pen. I just love to draw! I wrote a previous blog post on Why drawing makes me happy.  https://alissaduke.com/2015/07/why-drawing-makes-me-happy.html

I am an:
• urban sketcher
• a travel sketcher
• a nature sketcher – now I may want to call myself a nature journaller as this is a broader concept
• a sketching journaller

These are all in one sketchbook.

I was thinking as I was writing this blog and I was able to bring together and put down in words some thoughts about my sketching practice that I already knew. I can see this as I look through the list above and see my thoughts distilled and clarified.

My various approaches to sketching and drawings are tools that I choose to use depending on how I feel, the occasion and time available. My approach to sketching is a state of mind –”anything is sketchable” and there is never “nothing to sketch.”

Here are some of my approaches.

Sketching on location

This comes from my urban sketching and travel sketching background and is also used on other pages. Urban sketchers https://urbansketchers.org/who-we-are/   have a manifesto which includes sketching on location, capturing what we see from direct observation. Our drawings tell the story of our surroundings, the places we live, and where we travel.

As a travel sketcher, my key is to choose my subject quickly as I may not have much time to sketch. I sketch what attracts me and what I am curious about. It may not be the most obvious part of a scene I see in front of me.  The idea is to start getting some marks down on the page. If I get a longer time than expected, I keep adding colour and detail and spread across the pages. If I have to leave, it is still a record of me being there and that story.

I have written an earlier blog post on Why I sketch What I sketch

It is about seeing and grabbing opportunities and capturing the moment on the page. A queue is sketching time, in the waiting room, or just filling in time.  I can see that I transfer this to nature sketching as I usually sketch when out on a walk or walking to and from work through parks. Sketching the same trees and birds has allowed me to become familiar with stances and colours. I usually don’t add more to the page at home.

The subject can be unexpected. It is not planned and not always pretty.   You may never sketch that object or scene again but for that sketching time, it is fascinating as you watch how bits interconnect. By observing you see more and see textures and patterns you may not have noticed before. For me, this is the same for nature sketching any other type of sketching.

Unfinished look

It took me many years to realise that the unfinished look is my style and to be completely comfortable with this. It allows me to not complete a sketch – the edges are disappearing I can have details on one part of the page, but not another.  It is a state of mind. I usually do not add further to the sketch at home. Sometimes I add water to the page or extra colour – the joy of watercolour pencil! I also write on my pages, always the date, place, who I am with, and why. Context is important. I leave space on the page and add this at home. The sketch is always the feature.

Everyday sketching

I sketch and draw objects, from my everyday life. This includes food and drinks, events, objects I purchase.

Details

The joy of watercolour pencils is they are portable and suit my quick sketching, The other key importance to me is that they also can be used to add fine detail to a page with a sharpened lead. I usually do detailed drawings over a few evenings, adding layers and detail Objects have a story to tell a story –  whether a childhood toy, nature object or dinner I am eating. And I love books !

Sometimes I like to combine a quick sketch and details close up. The best of both worlds! I like to use this combination.

In the end, it is your journal. The page is yours alone, to look back later and bring back memories of time and place. My approach is one of many sketching styles, and watercolour pencils are just one tool you can use in your art kit.

Happy sketching and let me know if you have any questions.

This is much longer than my usual blog posts !

Hello to new subscribers to my weekly art blog. I thought I would let you know what to expect to see on my blog each week.

I am a watercolour pencil artist, urban sketcher, nature journaller. I enjoy quick sketches and studied drawings.

Some weeks I feature a project I am working on or an event I have been to. I usually provide a bit of background and context and work-in-progress photographs.

I also try to regularly write about my watercolour pencils and how I use them, giving practical examples. I have been drawing daily with watercolour pencils for over ten years and am still learning and getting excited by what am able to accomplish with them. I hope to inspire people to use these and just have fun putting pencil to paper.

And then there are weeks like this, where I show what I have been sketching and drawing during the week. This can be an eclectic mix depending on what I have been doing. I am still working from home full time so my daily sketches do not feature as many ‘out and about’ sketching as they would have a few years ago.

This week I attended an outdoor event: a tour of the gardens at Bishopscourt, the residence of the Melbourne Anglican Archbishop. The house is the oldest in East Melbourne (1853) and the gardens have their history too.

I am very rusty at drawing groups of people as I have not been in this situation for so long now.

I sketched at the hairdressers. The top half is me in the mirror The feet are the person on the other side of the mirror. Iti s like one of those books from childhood.

I had the opportunity to draw some food.

I attended a Zoom life drawing session one night. The theme was the cult movie Blade Runner, with the models dressed and posing as main characters.

I have also been working on my “You Can’t Draw in Books” project for a potential event. This involves drawing in books that are about to be discarded, illustrating the words on the page. I give it a new life. More news on this project later.

I hope you enjoy the blog.

Yesterday I participated in a real person event. So much of my interaction with people has been online since March 2020. Life is opening up in Melbourne, however, I am still working from home and cautious on my event attendance.

I was so pleased and proud of myself that I registered and attended “Coast Walk & Draw” run by Port Phillip EcoCentre. It included a coastal path walk and talk and a nature sketching session by my sketching friend Amy who hosts Melbourne Nature Journal Club.

It was a big event for me also as it involved one hour of travel and two forms of public transport each way to a place I have never been to. This is way outside my comfort zone. Now that I have done it once, I am feeling a lot better about the whole concept. It was just what I needed.

There were 20 people on the walk of all ages and the weather was absolutely beautiful.

The session was run by The Port Phillip EcoCentre which have “been transforming the way Melbourne understands wildlife, waterways and climate change since 1999”. The guides Ben, Reiko, and Justine shared their amazing and deep knowledge of the area, which is a Marine Sanctuary. They showed us natural objects that had been found in the waters. Ben is a passionate Vertebrate-Palaeontologist (YouTube, Instagram, blog ) and showed us whale and shark bones found on scuba diving expeditions in the area. They are from 5-6 million years in the past!. They also pointed out the marine life in the sea as we walked along the coastal wall. I saw my first ‘wild’ starfish. (It should be called a sea star, but that will take me ages to get used to) This was an 11 armed starfish. Amazing.

and the sketching !!!

After the walk, we sat in the shade and Amy provided a wonderful introduction to those who had never done nature sketching and removed any fears or questions people had about nature sketching. What is it? how to do it? Amy provided a great take-home handout that had all the hints and tips and prompts written down.

We had 40 minutes to sketch. I had been wanting sketch during the entire walk, and then when I had the chance to, I did not know where to begin. Someone had mentioned Salt Bush growing in the area. As we were by the sea I decided to sketch that. I sketched one branch up close and in colour (Earth Green Faber Castell) and then the outline of some others in the background to show that it is part of a bush.

I had lots of questions that I wrote on the page and am still looking up all the answers.

I added the ocean in the background as we sat talking after, just to give some context.

I also tried a bit of sketching the group and presenters I am so out of practice.

A big day. A good day.

And finally, Amy mentioned that you don’t have to go somewhere exotic to sketch nature, it is all around us. Look up at the clouds. I agree, anything is sketchable.

Saturday was perfect, with weather at 26 degrees in Melbourne. Although it was a weekend, school holidays had just finished and I hoped the crowds would not be there. It all worked out wonderfully. If there were busy areas, I just moved on.

Each time I visit the zoo I am drawing in an old ledger. It is larger than my daily sketchbook but not too heavy.

I sketched with my usual watercolour pencils. The ledger paper isn’t made for watercolour. I do not add the water at the time as I just don’t have the time. The priority of my visit is capturing gestures. Maybe next time I will add water to the page on the spot. Adding water to the pencil on the page or off the pencil works best on smaller areas. I would have to think about what parts of the sketch I would add it to.

African Wild Dogs. Their enclosure is often the first place I stop and I rarely see them. So when they were near the viewing section I made the most of it. There were two (of the four) and they moved around this area a lot. They have such an interesting body structure – really long legs. Often one sketch is the result of many walk bys by the Wild Dogs. The face on close-up is an example. Each time he stopped at looked in my direction I tried to add more detail. In the end, they moved to an area and we could not see them. Time to move on.

In the same section are the lions – there are two and they are usually sitting upon the platforms. They stay still and move their head a bit. This time I had a few sketches in progress where their faces were at a different angle. I could then add to a different sketch as they changed the direction they were looking.

Sumatran Tiger

Not all sketches can be completed to the degree I had hoped. This Sumantran Tiger was lying down under a tree and did not move. Most of his body was in the shade and it was in the distance. You get the idea.

Eastern Black and White Colobus. There were two. This is a medium-sized primate. These African natives are known for their shiny black coats and long flowing white mane that drapes over their back and tail. Oh So glamourous looking!

Northern white cheeked gibbon

There were two, in middle distance swinging around the ropes. Then they disappeared from view, only to appear on the glass window in front of us. You could see the details of his paws. amazing.

I took my pencil wrap with me with its 26 or so watercolour pencil colours. However, there were probably just two colours I used all day: Black and Burnt Ochre.

Oh and Violet for the Pygmy Hippopotamus. They are actually a greenish brown/black. I just chose violet. Pygmy hippos share the same general form as hippopotamus but is only half as tall as the hippopotamus. Adult pygmy hippos stand about 75–100 cm (2.46–3.28 ft) high at the shoulder, are 150–175 cm (4.92–5.74 ft) in length and weigh 180–275 kg (397–606 lb).

I am hoping to use my Zoo Member often. Yesterday I was there from 9.00 -2.30. Probably too much sunshine and standing ( I don’t use a chair). It is so easy to keep going as there is always something more around the corner.