There is no doubt that social media adversely affected what I did in my sketchbooks. I always had an Instagram eye over my shoulder viewing what I did and so it became neater, more self-conscious and no longer a sketchbook for exploring. Looking back at my old sketchbooks made me realise what fun they could be! So, now they are stuffed again with images glued in, colour notes and rubbish exploratory drawings and occasionally they make it to Instagram.
I love your sculptural drawings, they are so spare and beautiful.
That sounds like much more fun! Did you see Nishant Jain’s post ‘Prison Break’ about the feeling of always performing for social media (I can’t figure out how to make the link work yet, still very new to Substack, but his Substack is called The Sneaky Art Post)
I love this piece! It resonates so much with how I feel about workbooks and journals. So many started and abandoned for some ridiculous reason! As for the TN to take everywhere with you - yep me too! Nice to have found you on Substack where I also feel I can reveal a little more than I would do on Insta.
I’m so glad that you’ve rewritten your rules. “Whereas Substack feels like a place where people are exploring; exploring what they are thinking about, where their interests lead them now.” Yes, very much so. It feels like there is room to stretch and grow - and it’s interesting! As are your sketchbooks 🙂
You have found the perfect place for your drawings. I like how you've used them to illustrate the internal workings of your mind and the exposition on the flow of creating art. I agree this is a better forum for really delving into and appreciating others' work. I really enjoyed Instagram at first, but everything is fleeting and I soon felt dissatisfied.
Instagram seems like it’s a terrible waste when everything flies past so quickly on people’s screens. So much more pleasant to take the time over other people’s work here, isn’t it
Thank you sharing this. A beautiful recognition of the value and quiet joy of drawing, for its own sake, for our own sakes. Here’s to idle doodling and purposeful, attentive drawing. ☺️
Super inspiring, Helen. I love idea of not anything from your sketchbook. I'd love to try it for a month and see what kind of work I make in my no-share month. Instagram can cause us to romanticize a sketchbook and put pressure on us to perform or make work to please other people. It makes drawing difficult when it should be joyful.
Thank you for sharing and inspiring. I just comped you a month so you can come draw with me in our next sessions. 💖 The next one is on the 15th and all the session recordings are now unlocked for you: https://www.introvertdrawingclub.com/t/replays
It's hard not to share sketchbooks because people love looking at them so much! I have a big collection of books of other people's sketchbooks - sometimes they are as daunting as they are inspiring.
And thank yo so much for the comp! I have been wanting to go deeper into your Substack for ages, but because I am in a completely different time zone (New Zealand) I couldn't really make any of the live sessions. Now I can find our what I am missing! It's so great, thanks again!
Ooh, I love this! Thank you for articulating what was a subconscious suspicion - now I can see exactly what’s going on in my own head and make amends forthwith! I made myself my own ‘traveller’s journal’ sort of thing a few years ago: recycled leather cut to size (Moleskine cahier, i.e. not stupid narrow) and punched holes for elastics. BUT I very much got bogged down in exactly *which* notebooks to include (diary too 🤔) and it’s too big to comfortably fit in a handbag...but it’s nice to look at 🫠 I’m sure you could find a similar thing in your preferred size somewhere like Etsy, and there are Yootoob tutorials too. I reckon this is one of my rules: “don’t start anything in a sketchbook until you’ve spent weeks researching and making a traveller’s journal cover which you’ll then never use because it’s too big”.
I have tried a home made wider Travellers style cover before too, but I found it seemed to ‘big’ also. Interesting to see you say that you avoid using one too. Also I am just a sucker for their branding...
There is so much I relate. I have a pile of sketchbooks just like yours too! And I agree with the traveller's notebooks being too narrow(but I love them anyways)
Have yo ever tried a Paper Republic one? They are very similar to the Travelers Notebooks, but wider, like a normal size. Although the Travelers are too narrow, somehow I still want them...
No never tried it, I will look it up, thank you! I love paper products and things. I've been using Art Creation sketchbooks a lot in the studio lately.
I love your rules and I am going to modify them for me with respect to writing. Also, you are absolutely correct about the phone being a creatively killer. Great post and thank you for trusting us with your art.
Great post Helen and so relatable! Especially your points about sharing our work on platforms like Instagram. Although I loved IG earlier on, I began to feel hyper aware about everything I posted and whether it would be "picture perfect" or align with an algorithm. I love sketchbooks and have been delving into the whole subject in more depth lately.
Bravo to you for marching back into your sketchbooks! And I agree, Substack feels like a wonderful place to share our working process. Love this platform! Good luck with your future sketchbook explorations! xx
I suffer from too many of those. I now have two sketchbooks - one where I have all my stupid rules, and consequently haven't been able to finish for the past 3 years and one where I have given myself permission to just doodle whatever, even WITHOUT A PLAN. It's hard and sometimes, when I managed to draw something nice in that sketchbook I want to immediately make that sketchbook a 'good' sketchbook as well, and inevitably stop drawing in it. IT IS EXHAUSTING. WHY ARE WE LIKE THIS
I'm not sure why - but we just like to make good things! So we try and make our sketchbook into a Good sketchbook. I think musicians and writers have it a bit easier. A musician knows he is just practicing when they are practicing, and a writer knows no-one wants to read their shitty first draft.
I totally agree with you and what a perfect example of practise without personal censorship . It’s taken me too many years of collecting pretty sketchbooks that would not be filled .. Now I can finally make a mess or masterpiece and just ease into the lovely process . Not posting my results certainly helps . Sketchbooks thankfully don’t require curation . Love your writing and your posts!
There is no doubt that social media adversely affected what I did in my sketchbooks. I always had an Instagram eye over my shoulder viewing what I did and so it became neater, more self-conscious and no longer a sketchbook for exploring. Looking back at my old sketchbooks made me realise what fun they could be! So, now they are stuffed again with images glued in, colour notes and rubbish exploratory drawings and occasionally they make it to Instagram.
I love your sculptural drawings, they are so spare and beautiful.
That sounds like much more fun! Did you see Nishant Jain’s post ‘Prison Break’ about the feeling of always performing for social media (I can’t figure out how to make the link work yet, still very new to Substack, but his Substack is called The Sneaky Art Post)
No, I didn't, but will now look it up! Thank you very much.
I love this piece! It resonates so much with how I feel about workbooks and journals. So many started and abandoned for some ridiculous reason! As for the TN to take everywhere with you - yep me too! Nice to have found you on Substack where I also feel I can reveal a little more than I would do on Insta.
Welcome to substack!
I’m so glad that you’ve rewritten your rules. “Whereas Substack feels like a place where people are exploring; exploring what they are thinking about, where their interests lead them now.” Yes, very much so. It feels like there is room to stretch and grow - and it’s interesting! As are your sketchbooks 🙂
Thanks Michela!
You have found the perfect place for your drawings. I like how you've used them to illustrate the internal workings of your mind and the exposition on the flow of creating art. I agree this is a better forum for really delving into and appreciating others' work. I really enjoyed Instagram at first, but everything is fleeting and I soon felt dissatisfied.
Instagram seems like it’s a terrible waste when everything flies past so quickly on people’s screens. So much more pleasant to take the time over other people’s work here, isn’t it
Absolutely!
Thank you sharing this. A beautiful recognition of the value and quiet joy of drawing, for its own sake, for our own sakes. Here’s to idle doodling and purposeful, attentive drawing. ☺️
Nice to meet another drawer ( that can’t be the right word? Is there a good word for a drawing person?)
A draughtsman? Draughtsperson? A drawling?
A draughtsperson sounds like they get their drawings ‘right’. Definitely not me!
“Your phone has obliterated boredom and strangled inspiration” - This quote is going into my notebook!
boredom is under appreciated as a resource for getting us to do things
Super inspiring, Helen. I love idea of not anything from your sketchbook. I'd love to try it for a month and see what kind of work I make in my no-share month. Instagram can cause us to romanticize a sketchbook and put pressure on us to perform or make work to please other people. It makes drawing difficult when it should be joyful.
Thank you for sharing and inspiring. I just comped you a month so you can come draw with me in our next sessions. 💖 The next one is on the 15th and all the session recordings are now unlocked for you: https://www.introvertdrawingclub.com/t/replays
Enjoy!
It's hard not to share sketchbooks because people love looking at them so much! I have a big collection of books of other people's sketchbooks - sometimes they are as daunting as they are inspiring.
And thank yo so much for the comp! I have been wanting to go deeper into your Substack for ages, but because I am in a completely different time zone (New Zealand) I couldn't really make any of the live sessions. Now I can find our what I am missing! It's so great, thanks again!
Lynda Barry is one of my heroes. Lovely post.
She uses such rigorous process so lightly, so joyfully
Golly, this could be me... my ill disciplined sketchbooks (they just won’t behave or stay organised in proper categories 🙄) stifles my creativity.
How did I not know that I have also made these rules for myself!!!!
Thank you so much for showing me!!!!! 😁🙌😁* grabs sketchbook to scribble in!!!!
Ooh, I love this! Thank you for articulating what was a subconscious suspicion - now I can see exactly what’s going on in my own head and make amends forthwith! I made myself my own ‘traveller’s journal’ sort of thing a few years ago: recycled leather cut to size (Moleskine cahier, i.e. not stupid narrow) and punched holes for elastics. BUT I very much got bogged down in exactly *which* notebooks to include (diary too 🤔) and it’s too big to comfortably fit in a handbag...but it’s nice to look at 🫠 I’m sure you could find a similar thing in your preferred size somewhere like Etsy, and there are Yootoob tutorials too. I reckon this is one of my rules: “don’t start anything in a sketchbook until you’ve spent weeks researching and making a traveller’s journal cover which you’ll then never use because it’s too big”.
I have tried a home made wider Travellers style cover before too, but I found it seemed to ‘big’ also. Interesting to see you say that you avoid using one too. Also I am just a sucker for their branding...
There is so much I relate. I have a pile of sketchbooks just like yours too! And I agree with the traveller's notebooks being too narrow(but I love them anyways)
Have yo ever tried a Paper Republic one? They are very similar to the Travelers Notebooks, but wider, like a normal size. Although the Travelers are too narrow, somehow I still want them...
No never tried it, I will look it up, thank you! I love paper products and things. I've been using Art Creation sketchbooks a lot in the studio lately.
I love your rules and I am going to modify them for me with respect to writing. Also, you are absolutely correct about the phone being a creatively killer. Great post and thank you for trusting us with your art.
Great post Helen and so relatable! Especially your points about sharing our work on platforms like Instagram. Although I loved IG earlier on, I began to feel hyper aware about everything I posted and whether it would be "picture perfect" or align with an algorithm. I love sketchbooks and have been delving into the whole subject in more depth lately.
Bravo to you for marching back into your sketchbooks! And I agree, Substack feels like a wonderful place to share our working process. Love this platform! Good luck with your future sketchbook explorations! xx
Thank you Debbie!
I suffer from too many of those. I now have two sketchbooks - one where I have all my stupid rules, and consequently haven't been able to finish for the past 3 years and one where I have given myself permission to just doodle whatever, even WITHOUT A PLAN. It's hard and sometimes, when I managed to draw something nice in that sketchbook I want to immediately make that sketchbook a 'good' sketchbook as well, and inevitably stop drawing in it. IT IS EXHAUSTING. WHY ARE WE LIKE THIS
I'm not sure why - but we just like to make good things! So we try and make our sketchbook into a Good sketchbook. I think musicians and writers have it a bit easier. A musician knows he is just practicing when they are practicing, and a writer knows no-one wants to read their shitty first draft.
I totally agree with you and what a perfect example of practise without personal censorship . It’s taken me too many years of collecting pretty sketchbooks that would not be filled .. Now I can finally make a mess or masterpiece and just ease into the lovely process . Not posting my results certainly helps . Sketchbooks thankfully don’t require curation . Love your writing and your posts!
Pretty sketchbooks are very dangerous! Glad you enjoyed this
I totally share your feelings about Instagram vs. Substack, and about the rules we make for ourselves that are counterproductive.
Yes, its a bit of a constant battle going on in brain with all the counter-productivity it creates. And gosh, yes, Substack seems so much better