I LOVE drawing blind…
honestly I do, I have so much fun doing this and I love the randomness of these type of exercises.
I started doing this as a warm up since I watch a course titled “Learning how to draw: A mindset, method and exercises”. by Yuko Shimizu, I owe a lot to this course as it started me on a journey which I throw out all my pride as an artist and started again!
I realized while I went to art college / did GCSE art I missed so much in my foundations, I was taught like a hearing student and expected to give the same results. So I spent all my time just keeping up and not really “taking” it in. So I started at the beginning and Yuko Shumizu classes were the “early” relearning stage for me. It was also a turning point in my mindset as an illustrator.
I’ve never looked at Yuko’s at her sketch book work, so I used this exercise as a quick chance to look at Yuko’s sketchbooks and it didn’t disappoint!
I’ve discovered she released a book titled “Yuko Sketchbook” which was a collaboration with the society of illustrators. Which seems now out of print, I would have liked to have a look at this fully.
I understood the purpose of the exercise and to semi-blind contour, but I was really looking forward to the randomness of fully bling contour in this most of all in this exercise.
(Above) Blind contour – based on some of my illustrations from my earlier exercises.
(Above) – Course Sketchbook
Mini portraits of my family from memory and the “tree”, I had my eyes closed and listening to music, I think the music influenced the flow of my line!
(left) personal sketchbook.
This was a page is random I was playing with ink and watering down (experimenting). I used this image to create my next blind contour drawing. (below) after this I went over in ink to create some line weight seeing if this created a more “final” abstract piece.
I started the semi blind contour, based on these photos I took last year
Above (Flowers and areas of Sheffield)
(Above) course sketchbook
Using Charcoal, I felt this would allow me to be “free”, I like the results of my flowers.
(Above) – Personal sketchbook
Another page I’m in love with, I’ve been wanting to create work like this for a long time. Just loose and almost effortless kind of sketching, something until I felt I “failed” in and now realized I may have put too way much effect into gaining this time of sketch, it wasn’t what I was doing but the way I was doing it.
Above – Personal sketchbook
I wondered how semi blind contour sketching will work with colour, so I picked up for my water colour pen (real brush ones) I know would be very dry on the paper so I couldn’t over work in in this method.
I went back to the flowers as I wanted to add more colour.
I do tend to maybe find comfort in colour so I wrote “My world is colour” maybe my artist voice is colour ?
And…
This is where things turn personal
How personal do I want my sketchbook to be?
I thought long and hard about adding this part, however I felt it is important to the sketchbook unit and hopefully my growth you will see from me.
Left – personal sketchbook
I wrote again “my voice is colour”
I just intended maybe nice font and doodles, but this became a series of statements which followed by me finding my path.
The yellow path has subconsciously followed me in my illustrations since my “key steps in illustration 1” sketchbooks.
I think maybe this is symbol my own desire to find my path, my own voice both as an illustrator/artist and as a person.
Maybe even in this doodle things was seeming like a chapters within my sketchbook and this “story” needed an ending.
I thought back to the time I felt I had lost my “voice”, when did I start to feeling I was drowning in the sea of sounds?
So I found I was talking to myself as a child and I just wrote everything that came to mind.
“To the child that lost her voice… Take my hand, it’s time to find it!”
“It wasn’t one moment that she lost her voice, it was many moments!”
“Each moments she remembers, each moment left a scar that never healed”
If I could say anything to her it would be…
“I’m so sorry I let them take your voice.”
I needed this moment to start the path that will lead to others hearing my voice!
Back to more semi blind contour
After the emotional self reflection moment in my sketchbook I felt very inspired and needed to draw…
The portraits.
With the help of Pinterest, I created some semi blind contours using portraits)
Below is the board for reference.
Rapid, limited line, semi blind contour all happened in these portrait studies,
The most important thing from this exercise is learning how to free both my art skills and soul!
This was a little emotional and empowering.
I like the results, mostly the Sheffield station image.
Maybe could have tried more different mediums – can I semi blind contour with paints like watercolour, acrylic and gouache !
Emclemmie OCA Sketchbooks 