Sketching and the Gift of Reflection

This set of sketches is from the beginning of April. I was about to succumb to cabin fever, then I caught spring fever and found myself outside despite the still barren colors and chill in the air.

In the very first sketch I was excited to document the first signs of green grass and skunk cabbage in the marsh. That led me to a celebratory spread for Earth Day.

In that frame of mind even my composter became a worthy subject for an entry. The composter is such a cool thing. I love how your simple kitchen and garden left overs can create such rich soil and contribute their refurbishment back into this years garden.

On the next page I created a memorial for my Dad, who died unexpectedly when I was only 10 years old. The gray day brought up a lot of old memories and a fresh feeling of mourning his loss. That's a good thing for me. I tend to be a very future oriented person. I don't spend much time at all looking back, remembering or being nostalgic. Slowing down, sketching and recording the date reminded me of what day it actually was. So in this instance the practice of sketching and journaling gifted me with the time, space and place to reflect.

Here's just a few quick sketches of  meals. Well, actually in the first I was eating i the car and the view was a lot easier to sketch than my take out!

On the bottom there's a wonderful spring salad. Eating seasonal food is always a great way to to tune into the cycles of nature, and I always enjoy a good spring salad!

Notice how scribbly and quickly the salad is sketched in and how I reserved the color for the salad and kept the other things in gray scale. That's a great tip for helping you emphasize a portion of a sketch.  Add color to the most important element only, to keep the focus there and to help tell your story.

Sketching to Capture the Mood and Moment

I know I'm behind in my posts!  But spring is a busy time as the weather turns nicer I find myself sketching outside more and more. The daily changes in nature keep me sketching fast and furious to keep up with Mother Nature!

 I wanted to share this particular sketch because it's a perfect example of how a daily practice of sketching can capture and preserve so many things that are very important in your life, and important to you as a person.

Even though my kids are grown, holidays are still busy and sometimes stressful days for me. This sketch captures the peaceful, quiet moments early on Easter morning when my husband and I had a few precious moments to enjoy some special seasonal foods and reflect on the meaning and joy of the day before all the hustle and bustle began.

I tried to record for myself the colors, the mood, the feeling, the atmosphere and memories that Easter conjures up for me. While it may not be as powerful for you, when I see this sketch is holds a symbolic treasure trove of thoughts, ideas and feelings for me.

This kind of personal, recording of inner experiences is one of the great benefits and pleasures of keeping a sketchbook.