It all started with a drawing of my shoe! It’s a classic art education lesson because most everyone has a shoe on their foot for inspiration and observation. This lesson had a twist as we were asked to use a different drawing tool every 30 seconds. I appreciated the loose and spontaneous results. It’s a good practice that I should do more often as you learn about medium that work well together that you don’t typically connect.

Why did I spend two weeks doing two lessons a day in a sketchbook? The short answer is that everyone can benefit from practicing their craft whether you are an athlete, a writer, a chef, etc. And, for an artist, a sketchbook is a safe place not to feel the need to be perfect (or sellable.)

This experience was organized by artist Karen Abend and is called Sketchbook Revival. This was the fourth year and you can sign up for the email to be notified of next year’s experience! You’ll learn a lot and anyone can do it! Here are a few of my highlights —

This lesson by Jeanne Oliver was about observing the world around me in new and different ways. These are cracks in the asphalt! This was a good branching out for me as I’d never combined these types of paints and drawing tools together before. And I was satisfied with the color palette.

Artist Sarah Matthews taught a stamping lesson. I made my own stamps out of styrofoam meat trays. I’ve done that before, but interestingly the instruction was to layer our stamping. That little twist made a world of difference. Proof that sometimes a bit of a technique tweak can go a long way..

I’m not sure I’ve ever created an owl before. Tamara Laporte had a fun whimsical style to teach. Interestingly this received a fair bit of positive attention on social media when it was shared. Maybe you’ll see more owls in the future!

A lesson in urban watercolor sketching allowed me to dig out an old photograph from a trip to Haiti. Watercolor painting is a favorite and I’ve always admired artists that use little travel sets to paint on location. With Shari Sketcher’s tips I will now go into that type of situation with more confidence. Do you see differences in the house between the photograph and the painting? That’s artistic license!

I’ve taken workshops from Este MacLeod before and love her playful style. I look forward to trying this technique again. It combined stamping with found objects and painting with acrylics and watercolors. Doesn’t it make you think of a stained glass rose window in a cathedral?

I was trained to paint technically. So, I”m always looking for ways to loosen up! That’s what the class by Susan Chiang was about. These pretty pears aren’t quite as ‘loose’ as I’d like but it’s a step in the right direction!

I really appreciated the variety of lessons and teaching styles offered in this online art retreat. It made me think of freshmen year of art school when you are exposed to so much in a short amount of time — with the goal of more practice and eventually hearing your own voice in your work. Therefore, I will keep practicing and see where this two dimensional, non-sewing endeavors take me next!

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