I created my everyday sketchbook using A4 cartridge paper, folded into A5 signatures, and bound them together using coptic stitching (I doubled up on red and peach thread, to match the overall colour of my room). The cover is stronger cardboard from the back of a paper pad.
I began by exploring my room as a location of consistency. I wake up and fall asleep there. Objects surround me that I see everyday; some I actively use, like my iPod, and some remain static, always there. However, after taking some photographs and doing a few little sketches, I did not feel inspired by my room. It is a comfort and definitely a huge part of my everyday, but does not reflect my experiences of everyday in the past six months.
I looked to my little A6 sketchbook that I carry in my bag for a new direction. The main time I have for drawing in my on-the-go sketchbook is in my car; waiting for work, in carparks, before meeting people… (see examples of pages below: quick observational drawings from my car in grey fine liners). It struck me that my car is very reflective of everyday; the location itself is comforting and consistent, but it moves, the surroundings change and unexpected moments will creep up on you (sometimes you see them coming; other times they appear out of nowhere).
Taking this as inspiration, I started experimenting with the location of my car; the interior and potential surroundings.
The slight distortions created by overlapping images of the car intrigued me; it seemed an accurate way of portraying ‘fleeting glances’ or blinking. Do we ever see EXACTLY what is in front of us? Isn’t everyone’s view of the world unique and influenced by what they know and believe?
During my experiments, this was a breakthrough moment! I absolutely loved the effect of the continuous line drawings against the blurry, unfocused watercolour backdrops. It also seemed an appropriate metaphor; to show that everyday never stops, everything merges together and gets tangled up somehow.
The constrast of the optimistic, colourful scenery and the black and white mundane car interior works well in this image. I was also experimenting with bringing something in the setting into focus (in this case, the tree on the left) as sometimes we have a clear idea of what is coming our way.
Some of the personal content of this sketchbook is fairly hidden, coded and only I would know what certain things are elluding to. This page was definitey more open, based on a tough few months. I did also like the harsh contrast of the continuous line drawings, and the grainy quality after photocopying theme. I felt this matched the mood well.
Tracing paper trees – an experiment I wasn’t so keen on!
As my reflections state below, I felt that these experiments were a little too rehearsed. My vision was to return to the more spontaneous marks that appeared and worked well (a more accurate depiction of everyday – unexpected moments that leave their mark).
As I scribbled in the corner of this image – I was pleased with the effect of folding the page and squishing the paint onto each side, creating an impression of the surroundings. I wanted to explore this technique further, with other colours and shapes.
From all colour experiments above, I chose to focus on four combinations and see what I could create on a double page spreads in my sketchbook. I also wanted to try out some white gel pen in the background to define certain shapes.
TRIAL 1
TRIAL 2
TRIAL 3
TRIAL 4
Some final page reflections. I do not think my sketchbook had a definite end; I certainly had a clear idea for an image/illustration that could represent ‘everyday’ – to me and metaphorically. My visual journey became more focused on material experiments and colour combinations, but the message throughout was about change and consistency and the relationship between these two concepts.
Jade's OCA Learning Log 