biteshelter

New Years sort of snuck up on me, so I don't have much to post right now. I might do some reflecting and goal-choosing later. There are some creative goals already on my mind, though, so I figured I would post about those.

The first is making a sketchbook that's more interesting to look at. I coincidentally finished my sixth sketchbook on the 28th, so it's a good time for looking back on old sketchbooks. What stood out to me the most was that my later sketchbooks actually feel sort of boring. I like to look through old sketchbooks when I feel stuck, so that's a pretty disappointing realization.

I think the reason is that I got faster at studying, so I did more studies, which made for more repetitive pages. By comparison, the older sketchbooks have a much higher density of interesting drawings. I don't want to stop doing studies in my sketchbook, though. Sketchbooks are the perfect place to do studies and it's still helpful to look back on, but I'd like to feel a little more motivated when I pick up an old sketchbook. Based on that, my goal for the next sketchbook is to find some way to make it more inspiring to look back on without giving up on studies.

So far my ideas are:

• Adding doodles/decorations around studies
• Alternating between studies and non-studies (i.e. studies every other page or something)
  • I've seen some artists work like this because they work on paper that markers or paint bleed through, so studies and planning go on the back of colored pieces
• Pausing during studies to apply what's currently being studied (e.g. making a center piece for a page with repetitive studies)
• Becoming more appreciative of studies as a part of art as a craft
  • Basically, finding inspiration in the skill and effort instead of the aesthetics

The second goal: With all the creative stuff I've been trying out this year, I've been thinking about medium-independent check-ins. Part of the reason I never started a regular post schedule for writing about my creative projects is that I don't stick with a medium for long and rarely finish anything. This year, it didn't feel like I had much to show for my time spent on projects. I do want to start finishing more projects, but not feeling like everything has to be perfect before sharing it would also be nice. I could blog about things like latest inspirations and lessons learned. So, I think I'll consider discussion prompt check-ins here and work check-ins somewhere like justcreate.