Comfortable Shoes Studio

Make Art with Anything

I've ranted and raved about commercialism in art journaling before. (been under a rock or just discovering me now? Click here.) And I keep ranting about it. I've been gathering videos for technique today over the last few days. (It gives me a nice 20 minute or so break from reading heavy stuff.) It's becoming increasingly difficult to find videos with good solid art technique, if I stick to videos related to art journaling. I'm not usually too shy about looking at stuff that is art andnot art journaling related. But as I viewed video after video, it really hit me.

It's hard to find a video about art journaling that isn't a blatant ad for a product or process or linked to classes. All of it is trying to get us to part with our money. I'm wary of technique videos that read like a who's who of products. Tim Holtz this. Glimmer Mist that. Hellmuth's paints. Grunge Board. Glossy Accents. Spray inks. The videos don't teach us a technique but to be reliant on these products. They don't teach us how to make these product (though there are some old vids that do) they teach us to buy more.

Here's the deal, the secret, all you need to art journal is a pen and a journal. Call me a minimalist but my every day art journal carry (EDAJC) has been the following for the last 2 weeks: A Field Notes notebook, a BanditApple Carnet PeeWee, in a leather cover I made myself and a shitty ballpoint pen*. If I were to extend out my EDAJC I'd add a tin of watercolors in limited colors, a waterbrush, a camera**, a pencil and eraser.

I'm not making "great" art but I am making meaningful art. The art I'm making is helping me to remember the look of the sky as I waited when I picked up my partner. Or the jerking of the train as it rounded corners. Or calmed me after a busy class. This, to me, is what making and creating a journal is all about. It's not about the products I'm buying andusing. It's about the memories I'm creating. It's about my life.

It's real.

Weekly Round Up: Videos

This week's videos are late because I had an Art Adventure on a super warm winter day! Cappuccino, breakfast sandwiches, walking around the city of Salem, and of course sketching. (Also planning for a new secret project or two destined to hit awesomeness this coming summer.)

So here you go this week's videos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekly Round Up of Videos

I usually post these on Saturday but with it being New Year's eve and me doing nothing... I forgot. So any who, here you go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drawing People is Good

On Sunday my friend Jane and I got together with my friend Jasmine for a little drawing session. A little back story here. Jasmine and I are coworkers and she facebooked that she wanted to wear 40’s era “city lady” clothing all the time. I commented she should turn it into an art project with photographs, taken out of time and place. Then I suggested she model for my friends and I in her clothing as a way to raise funds. We had to cancel once and I thought that the drawing session wasn’t going to happen.

This Sunday it happened. She showed up after getting lost and got dressed into her fab black dress. (I should have taken pictures of it.) We did some short poses of the her in the clothing and then she switched outfits and we did some longer poses.

It was a great way to help her raise some funds, granted I hope that if we do this again we get a full house and she’s able to really add a lot more to her collection of fantastic 40’s era clothing.

Take a look at my quick watercolors, I did a quick 10 minute pencil sketch and then added some watercolors to block out the shading. Sometimes adding a time restraint can be freeing.

Also, I'm counting this as my drawing-a-day post for sunday and today.

thoughts on drawing-a-day

I’ve been thinking about how I’m going to continue with the drawing-a-day project. I’m devoted to it, but there are some days when I am simply not going to be able to do a drawing. I get stuck in traffic, or have a ton of errands; you know regular life stuff that gets in the way of good times. I’m thinking of how I can continue with the drawing-a-day but with a  few built in excuses.

I made it through week 1, but barely. I made it 10 days and then my allergy meds kicked my butt (got to love spring) and then last night I cooked dinner and fell asleep.

I think that on those days I can’t do the drawing-a-day I won’t stress over it. You know, life gets in the way. Until I’m doing art every day for a living I have to be aware that I can’t do it all. Even if I want to.

Today I'm making more books with fresh "new" recycled covers for my artifre shop, I've got  a sale going on, check it out

Drawing-a-Day: Gold Fish

"Gold Fish" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a couple of fountain pens filled with Noodler's Black. The blue is is J. Herbin Bleu Nuit.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

 

 

Drawing-a-Day: Waiting for now

I'm removing this image until I get confirmation that my info is correct. I shoudl know by this evening . I intend the piece to be satirical and thus want to be sure that my info is correct and not misinformational.Sorry for the inconvienence.

"the Big Bad GSA" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a couple of fountain pens filled with Noodler's Black, Nikita and Eternal Brown.

Drawing-a-Day: Smoking Kills

"Smoking Kills" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a couple of fountain pens filled with Noodler's Black, Nikita and Eternal Brown.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

 

A little story about this image. I don't smoke. Every piece of trash that is tossed onto my street blows into my yard. I have found parliment, kool and various other cigarette packages in my yard, along with a plethora of butts. I dutifully clean this shit up on my days off from work. I hate smoking. My grandfather died of lung cancer which was directly linked to his 3 pack a day smoking habit. I look at my having to clean up cigarette butts as some sort of evil eff you from the universe.

I also have to clean up styrofoam Dunkin Donuts cups, paper bags from McDonalds and Dunks, assorted lids from take away places. My neighbor's recycling tends to blow out of their recycling bins as they aren't secured. This all ends up in my yard in some weird wind vortex of recycling hell.

Drawing-a-Day: Money and Power (Dov Charney Edition)

"Money & Power" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a couple of fountain pens filled with Noodler's Black.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

Drawing-a-Day: Little Hammer

"Little Hammer" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a couple of fountain pens, one with J.Herbin Bleu Nuit and another with Noodler's Black.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

 

Drawing-a-Day: Demolition!

"Demolition!" measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a Pilot Parallel filled with a mix os Noodler's Black,Luxury Blue and Nikita ink for the darklines and color was added with watercolors and a brush.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

 

 

Drawing-a-Day: I Need that Color!

This is the 4-1-11 drawing titled "I Need that Color!" It measures A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches. I did a quick sketch with pencil and then used a Lamy Safari with a B nib filled with Noodler's Black ink for the paint tubes and added the shading with a TWSBI M Nib and Private Reserve Electric DC Blue ink.

Cost is $25 USD, shipping to CONUS included.

 

Drawing-a-Day: Introduction

I’ve been toying with the idea of doing a drawing/ painting-a-day blog for a while now. I’m still debating doing it for a year. Traci Bunkers (click her name for a great blog link) tweeted that I should try it for 30 days. And well, duh! I’ve been reading her blog with her 30 day experiments for awhile now and think that she’s right 30 days is a good start for my commitment phobia to gravitate.

So for the next 30 days you’ll find a post of a drawing done the night before. I think I’ll working my Graf It pad and my Rhodia Dot Pad, both are A5 or 5.75x7.5 inches in size, acid free and archival. I’ll be working in pen and ink, perhaps with spot watercolor. There will be a paypal button so you can purchase the original work, pricing on these will be $25 shipped via USPS to CONUS in a clear archival baggie with a certificate of authenticity. Should it go well I might extend the project.

Drawing-a-day posts will go up on here at noon EST and will feature work from the day before.