SKETCHBOOK

Curator's Word

Sketchbooks are not often considered as art. They are regarded as practices, unfinished works, scribbles and scraps. Perhaps they are in many cases. Yet when those roughly created works are put together in sequence, bound into a book, there are artistic qualities that can be found.
Initially, for this exhibition, I tried to classify the types of sketchbooks, such as in experimental, referential, informational, and artistic sketchbooks. But then I noticed that there is such a fine line between these categories. Because sketchbook is a completely free space, it can be just about any kind; there is no way to define one sketchbook precisely as “referential” and another as “artistic.” They can overlap in any way. Ultimately, though, I gave up on classifying them when I came to the “sketchbook as art” category. As I looked through multiple sketchbook drawings to find the ones that apply, I arrived at the question of “how can I decide whether one is a sketchbook as art and another is not?” They all appeared as arts of various individuals to me. So I decided to call them all “art.”
Given that we are looking at sketchbooks as “art in and of itself,” as artist Hal Mayforth said, I thought I’d still find a way to group these artworks somehow. So I sorted them according to five different themes: Exploration, Observation, Imagination, Creation, and Reflection. They may have overlapping categories again, but we can find an overall tendency or a theme better through content, rather than through purpose. It was very interesting to see in what particular area an artist tend to delve in more in his/her sketchbook. Some draw what catches their eye and fill up their books with their surroundings. Others would explore a particular topic over and over, or literally travel and explore the world and record their experience. Some artists use the sketchbook as their journal and for self-reflection, while others sketch out their ideas that will later develop into a piece of furniture, building, or artwork. Still others draw from imagination, for the mere fun of it.
One common thread that connects these very different sketchbooks is freedom. Artists repeatedly refer to freedom in their interviews, saying that sketchbook is a space of “intimacy and unguarded freedom” or is accessible “anytime, anywhere.” One can feel free on a blank page of a sketchbook because there is no such pressure as creating an “art” or making it presentable to viewers. One may keep it as private or as public as she/he wants. The artist can more easily disregard the judgment when drawing in her sketchbook. That freedom from being judged gives them more space to experiment and enjoy, and consequently leads them to finding their own style and artistic talents.

Sources

Books:

An Illustrated Life by Danny Gregory
Drawing From Life: The Journal As Art by Jennifer New
Sketchbook: Conceptual Drawings from the World's Most Influential Designers by Timothy O'Donnell

Websites:

http://tommykane.blogspot.com/2007/09/butch-belair.html
http://www.drawger.com/cusack/?cat_id=68;
http://guild-drawings.blogspot.com/
http://www.skineart.com/
www.mattiasa.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/powerpaola/2135343911/in/set-72157603530430203/
www.dannygregory.com
www.penelopeillustration.com
www.kurtdhollomon.com
www.mayforth.com
www.stevenholl.com
http://susanrudat.blogspot.com/
http://www.skineart.com/art/author/cummins1975/
www.4ojos.com
http://www.sbinderdesigns.com
www.butchbeliar.com
www.drawger.com/cusack
www.plainjanestudio.com

Gallery 5: Sketchbooks of Reflection

Penelope Dullaghan
Dullaghan used to be a design and art director for an ad agency. Now she is a full time illustrator.
www.penelopeillustration.com

Danny Gregory
Gregory lives in Greenwich Village, NYC currently and has published several books on illustration on journaling.
www.dannygregory.com

First drawing done after the park reopened

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Paola Gaviria
Gaviria grew up in Ecuador and Colombia and is currently living in Sydney.
www.flickr.com/photos/powerpaola

My life as a "Sudaca" by TropicalGothic♥powerpaola.

drawing around by TropicalGothic♥powerpaola.

Gallery 4: Sketchbooks of Creation

Kurt Hollomon
Hollomon is an iluustrator and a teacher of drawing and illustration at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland.
www.kurtdhollomon.com

Hal Mayforth
Mayforth is a freelance editorial illustrator and lives in Vermont.
www.mayforth.com

Steven Holl
Holl is an architect who uses his sketchbook and watercolor to illustrate his ideas.
www.stevenholl.com

Gallery 3: Sketchbooks of Imagination

Mattias Adolfsson
Adolfsson has had various careers such as a freelance illustrator, children's book author, animator, and video game designer. Now he lives in one of Sweden's oldest towns.
www.mattiasa.blogspot.com