The vegetation is finally turning green here, which means it's jorts season! And update crayon tin season! I limit the number of crayons I take with me because premixed colors get muddy very quickly if you use too many of them. There's a lot of abstraction involved (3 or 4 different shades of green in a scene will get condensed into 1 or 2, for example).
Color selection is a new "problem" for me because I'm used to mixing colors from primaries. I used to exclusively mix accurate colors for paintings, but my experiments with limited palettes have helped push me out of my comfort zone. The crayons have sent me further in that direction because I really have to think about what I want to communicate with color (vibes, if you will).
I am a certified serial killer. During the last two months, I killed a handful of plants and drove others to the precipice of death. I regret my actions immensely and will be issuing a Notes app apology in short order.
There's some shame associated with all these killings. Some of these plants were ones I've had for years — it was active negligence that did them in, not incompetence. My personal life hasn't been going great, and to say nothing of the clown show that is the US right now! I knew the plants weren't doing well, but it was easier to ignore them in light of everything else.
I finally did clean up all the carnage and put the survivors into rehab. In the end, the downsizing came as a relief. I'm busier than I was 4 years ago, and it's drier here than it was in my previous location. Even in the best of circumstances, I figure high-maintenance tropical plants aren't the move anymore.
I selectively bought some replacements that I wouldn't need to babysit as much. And the surviving plants appear to be salvageable, since 1. they haven't died yet and 2. they have new growth, which I would like to think is good.
Drawings of houseplants in pen and watercolor crayon. The crayon was used dry before being brushed with water, so there are dry, textured areas left on the page. Only the plants have been lined with ink so they stand out from their pots.
The first page has drawings of a Philodendron Brasil in a terracotta pot and two Haworthias in ceramic turtle pots. The philodendron is a bright green trailing plant with heart-shaped leaves. The leaves have lime green markings on them. The haworthias are small succulents with fleshy leaves that form rosettes. One is darker green, while the other lime green.
The second page has two drawings of the same Peperomia Metallica plant, one drawn in crayon and one drawn in brown ink. Written underneath the ink drawing: "Nice shape for drawing, but not for maintenance!" This plant has long magenta stems with dark olive-colored leaves.
My new sketchbook, which uses the cover of Shivers by William Schoell. The cover features a painting of a gargoyle on a roof done in a warm grey palette. A green mist winds around the gargoyle and down to the bottom of the cover. The title is printed in large gold foiled lettering behind the gargoyle.
I love making book covers out of things that otherwise would have ended up in the trash, so I couldn't pass on one of these handmade book-sketchbooks from Arsenik Press. I don't have the time or energy to bind a new sketchbook right now, so I was happy to buy this one because it's still handmade and (importantly) it looks cool.
I love the ridiculousness of 80s book covers: the typography, the painting style, the corny catchphrases, the whole thing. The jacket synopsis is as follows:
Deep beneath the city streets lurks a creature hideous beyond description, powerful beyond imagining, a creature so dangerous that it can destroy its victims by the virulence of its thoughts.
The emanations of its computer-like brain invade every sanctuary, searching for those it would destroy. It is remorseless, cunning and inhuman. The pitiful human weaklings it has chosen as prey shudder with terror and disgust, but there is no escape from the ultimate torture that is far worse than death, unless...
The first spread of the new book. I've drawn some of my supplies on the first page. The book also came with an informational insert, which I taped to the endpaper.
Transcript of insert
Cover Shivers
William Schoell 1985
Cover artist Uncredited
Paper Fabriano 1264 Watercolor 140lb
I stole the idea to draw/paint an overview of my current favorite supplies on the first page from Apple Pine. I always struggle with what to put on the first page of a sketchbook, so I like this exercise. There's no pressure to make a masterpiece, and it helps give the sketchbook... context? I guess? My previous big sketchbook was a little more clinical because I was still relearning how to use one, but I'm hoping future books will be a bit more diary-esque.
My current supply rotation includes some stuff that I haven't found the time to talk about yet, so I'll merge that into this post while it's relevant.
The pen I commissioned from Rubato. It's a clear demonstrator with plants embedded in the resin and a green grip section.
I've been enamored with Rubato Pens for a while now and finally took the plunge on commissioning a pen a few weeks ago. And now it is here!
Rubato is operated by one woman, Emi, who makes fountain pens, nib holders, and other trinkets. Her pens are made of resin with decorative inclusions that give them a distinctive look (plants, glitter, charms). They're beautiful little art pieces in of themselves, but I was primarily drawn to their functionality. They take dip nibs!
I've been trying to come up with something with the appropriate amount of gravitas to say for my first post of the year. This has been unsuccessful, so now I'm just going to say something and move on.
This year, the main goal is to stop thinking about shit so much and instead make like Shia LeBeouf and just do it. This is particularly pertinent to my art — I made some progress in overcoming my aversion to "wasting" sketchbook paper last year, but I've noticed I'm still not immune to the pressure to find the perfect scene or reference to draw. This eats up a lot of time that could be spent doing literally anything else.
At some point in the future, I might be mentally stable enough to do something more measurable like daily drawings. As it is, I'm a completionist, and having any concrete evidence of days that I've failed to do [x] thing only makes me more likely not to continue doing [x] thing because I've already gone and fucked up my record anyway. For now, I'll just do what I can when I can (and make an active effort to find the time).
On the topic of finding the time, I've started pulling out my sketchbook and drawing something around me whenever I feel the impulse to check my phone. Most of the time, that "something" is a mundane man-made object, so I can't waste time looking for something photogenic. Also, sometimes it sucks. It's fine!
Spontaneous travel sketches done in green pen (Platinum Preppy 03 inked with Diamine Evergreen). Left: A sketch of traffic done while waiting in traffic. Right: A sketch of a table at a mall coffee shop.
Sometimes I wonder if I'm feeding into the online sketchbook consumption problem by posting pages, even bad ones, here, but this is a shitty unserious blog that I don't really expect anyone to look at. If it stops being that, I'm dead and have been replaced by a body double. Happy new year!
