Inktober- Week 3

It’s now week 3 of my Inktober Challenge where I am using the official prompt list and creating a drawing every day this October based on it. (See week’s 1 and 2 as well.)

Working on these drawings this month has been a rollercoaster. My brain has been working overtime to come up with ideas for the prompts. I’ve really tried to make this challenge a creative exercise by using various art materials and styles. I’m also trying to think “outside the box” with the words.

Some days are better than others. Sometimes I feel like I’ve reached the summit and am riding the coaster down in a joyous ride. Other times I feel like I’m slogging around twists and turns, wondering where I’m going.

But all in all, it has been a fun ride and I’m happy to share my progress with all of you.

Day 15- Legend. St. Patrick, who drove the snakes out of Ireland. In my drawing he seems to be saying to himself, “Why am I doing this?!”

Day 16- Wild. A fun assemblage of wild flowers. Wild in every sense of the word!

Day 17- Ornament. A watercolor rendering of the beautiful ornamental interior of the Basilica at The University of Notre Dame. It’s my husband’s alma mater and we try to get there for a game or two every year.

Day 18- Misfit. A marker drawing of a little girl trying to fit into her mother’s shoes.

Day 19- Sling. This was my first time drawing a kangaroo and I learned what a funny animal it is with short arms, long feet, and a pouch that almost reaches the ground with a 40 IB Kid in it!

Day 20- Tread. A peaceful walk along the beach with my extended family over New Years last year.

Day 21- Treasure. Every day is a treasure. This was sunrise over Brand St. as I was running my son’s missing lunch to him one morning last week. Driving the car while taking the picture reference wasn’t easy (or safe), but it was just the inspiration I needed!

I’m a few days behind in my prompts, but I’m hoping to catch up to finish this challenge by Halloween. You can follow my daily progress on Facebook and Instagram.

Tune in towards the end of next week when I will publish my last post in this series. I’m also hoping to create a video of my entire sketchbook where I’ll have a few more tidbits to share about each drawing.

Back to the drawing board! See you next week!!

Inktober- Week 2

I’ve made it to week 2 of my Inktober challenge! (See last week’s blog post for an explanation.) This week I stretched my brain to come up with the ideas. A few ideas came easily, but most had to be pried loose from the recesses of my mind. Often I wasn’t really sure what I was doing until I was well into it!

So here are this week’s worth of drawings and the prompts that sparked them. Enjoy!

Day 8- Frail. There’s nothing more frail than the emotions of a toddler. They can go from happy to sad and back again in a blink of an eye. I’m so happy my own kids are out of this stage!!

Day 9- Swing. Tarzan swinging from limb to limb while Jane (and pet monkey) gaze up adoringly. In this I experimented with using the TV Guide as a backdrop.

Day 11- Pattern. Above the highway as seen from a chain link fence. This was inspired by a photo I took while I was on a morning run going over I-270 in Columbus.

Day 11- Snow. This is made to depict a totem pole in the Alaskan woods with snow beginning to fall. With this day’s prompt I was thinking of all the remote places in the world where it snows.

Day 12- Dragon. This is a quick ink drawing of my version of a Chinese Dragon. I tried to keep it fun and loose.

Day 13- Ash. A burnt out tree with new life forming beneath it. I was thinking of what happens when there are forest fires and the new life that grows out of the ashes.

Day 14- Overgrown. This was from a morning walk with my dog. I peered into a creek bed and there was a hawk just sitting there, blending into his surroundings.

It hasn’t always been easy to find the time to do these drawings and often I feel guilty for not getting my “real work” done as I’m doing them. But I’ve found that they’ve put an entirely different patina on my life right now.

They’ve made me stretch my mind and artistic skills in ways that I could never have imagined. Plus, I am so happy when I am doing them!

I would love to hear your opinions- your favorites and not-so-favorites as well!

In the meantime, I’ll be creating more. I’m a few days behind and hoping to catch up as time, and my creative mind, allows.

MOVING FORWARD

IF YOU DON’T GO AFTER YOU WANT, YOU’LL NEVER HAVE IT.

“If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.”

— Nora Roberts

This quote was my lifeline when I first began my artist journey in 2012. I had so many fears. What if I can’t draw anymore? What if no one likes my work? What if I fail?

But underlying that was an overwhelming ache to create and BE an artist, not just dabble in it as I had for the many years that I had put it aside to raise my kids.

Soon after I took the leap, I found this quote and it seemed to reach out and grab me:

If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never find it.

I can’t imagine going through life not being able to pursue my artistic voice. I had to go after it.

If you don’t ask, the answer is always no.

I couldn’t do it alone. I had to seek help from other professionals and artists to learn what I needed to know to succeed. I can’t tell you how scary that was. (and still is!) What if they rejected me?

The more I reached out, the more I found a welcoming, supportive community, with more yes’s than no’s.

If you don’t step forward, you’ll always be in the same place.

Creating my art business took many leaps of faith. Constant leaps of faith. I had to make countless decisions and branch out in ways I never imagined.

If I don’t step forward, nothing happens. But what is the fun in that?

Does this quote speak to you as well? What has been holding you back?