My Review of Sketchbook Skool

When Alexa mentioned on her blog that she was going to sign up for an online class called "Sketchbook Skool," I followed her link to check it out. I read through the description and thought about it for a day or two…talked to Doug about it…just couldn’t stop thinking about it…and finally took the leap and signed myself up.

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The term “sketchbook” encompasses so many different forms. I had always admired the sketchbooks that Carrie’s great-grandmother had created – full of the most beautiful pencil sketches I’ve ever seen and accompanied by thoughtful journaling. Seriously, her sketches look like photographs and they are the epitome of family heirlooms.

I’ve kept my own form of sketchbooks over the years {above photo} – filled with rough drawings of ideas I had in my head for projects to make for my mom or friends or family members {photo below}. I knew this class wasn’t going to teach me the basics of drawing, but I had a feeling there would be plenty of creative goodness to absorb. And I was right!

Over the course of six-weeks we learned from six different artist teachers. I loved getting the email on Friday mornings with a link to the new videos for the week. It was so much fun to have a tour of each artist’s own unique sketchbooks – each of them so different and so wonderful – and it was also really cool to watch videos of them actually sketching in their books.

I remember thinking early on that the class was not at all what I thought it would be, but what I ended up receiving from the class was far beyond anything I could have imagined or expected. Little bits of information here and there, and the experience of watching seasoned artists creating really fed my own creative spirit.

Before this class, I had never sat and drawn something just by looking at it – my previous drawings were more like doodling. This class taught me to really look at an object or scene – I mean, really study it – and then put it on paper. I learned about drawing the hard-outline first, paying attention to negative space and light, looking for shadows, and embracing the uniqueness that makes my artwork mine.

My apprehension slowly turned to confidence and I can see how this could take on a life of its own with daily practice. I think the thing that surprised me the most was the meditative aspect of sketching. Putting pencil to paper puts me in a place where there is no time or worry. In fact, time seriously flies when I am sketching.

I’m not sure how often I will blog about my sketching – time will tell, I suppose. But it would have been silly to post a review of Sketchbook Skool without sharing the work I created during its course.

You can read more about the class by clicking here, and the faculty members by clicking here. My favorite teacher was Jane LaFazio and you can see her work here. I love her artwork and her style and the fact that she does yoga poses in public. Awesome!

Do you keep a sketchbook of your own?
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