The Sketchbook Project

The effort of the past 15 weeks has been dedicated to working on a series of sketches for a wonderful endeavor called The Sketchbook Project. SBP works to connect thousands of willing sketchers, writers, doodlers, and you-name-its together by proposing the very simple task of completing a sketchbook and sending it into their archive located in Brooklyn. Months later, the books take a tour of North America and some international locales.

                                   

Last summer I participated as a viewer while the SBP came through Toronto. They have a quirky set up, emulating a library, where one gets themselves a card, chooses from a catalogue of genres, and is presented with three books at a turn. Rinse & repeat. I found myself thumbing pages completely inspired by the idea of connectivity and collectivity. Here was a tangible and physical connection between people and ideas - one not online, and aggregated by a keyword search.

I found it interesting however that because you don't get to choose your book by artist (only by genre), there is a random component to your experience. This draws an appealing parallel to the way we search for things online sometimes thinking of an idea only, we press 'enter' and see what comes up.

                               

                                        

I chose the genre of Dwelling for my book. I did not think it a brave departure! That being said, I found myself making more free decisions about my subject matter as a sketch implies a loose idea for me. 

Pencil is a medium that allows precision and control. I can make the exact mark that I intended to make without having to think about how it will hit the page as it oxidizes. When I am painting, I am so concerned with controlling the paint, that I often end up with an image I find is too tight. Where as with pencil, the opposite seems to happen and I think more about loosening the drawing up, as the medium is too controlled, too abbreviated.

The Sketchbook Project 2013 is coming to Toronto June 7-9 at the Gladstone Hotel. Full tour dates can be seen here. More information about the Art Library of Brooklyn or the SBP listed here.

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www.sachamlynek.ca

Tinkering

Sometimes it's just fun to try something a little different!  For a long time now I've been working monochromatically.  I think this is more so a reflection of my ability levels at this point rather than a distaste for using colour in my work.  Anyways,  knowing where my skills start and stop, I thought it would be just fun to do a little experimenting with digital colouring.  One day I will try and do this using only traditional means, but for right now it's a start. Here's what I came up with...

Big Shoes To Fill - 2013 - Digitally Coloured

Big Shoes To Fill - 2012 - Original

Published Work

I have taken some time away from my paint brush and replaced it with pencils. I was asked to contribute a piece for the G Adventures company culture book called "The Word According to G".

The assignment was to make a sketch to accompany a story of triumph and perseverance as told by Hellen Ndutah. As I came to understand her story - one based in Kenya, and involving leading safari tours in a male dominated landscape - images of animals, Acacia trees, and Masai tribesmen swam around my head. I struggled with the fact that straight away, my imagination went to the most cliche images of East Africa when I knew I could better communicate her story with out yielding to any.

I have no experience in illustration, and must admit I felt conflicted about making work that was true to my sensibility and pursuit versus what might work better for the over all idea of the book. In the end I was able to find that Hellen's face was what told her story the best. When I was studying her features, I noticed how much energy lay in her eyes and mouth and I liked investigating these tensions and the interplay between them. Most of all, the intention was to communicate her sense of pride.

The book will be on order soon at gadventures.com

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Finished Underpainting

I have finished the underpainting. It took much longer than I had hoped, but I am quite satisfied with it, as it stands. Working on the objects, the glass, the carton, you become so close to them. They begin to propel the message of the painting, in their detail and stature. Adding the shades and shadows in the background I found a whole new consideration. Pushing soft shadows up against the well postured carton feels to me like a dilemma, or something enigmatic. Either way, there is an energy there that I am drawn to.

John Muir author and naturalist, wrote the book Yosemite in 1912. Through a collection of travel writing called The Tao of Travel by Paul Theroux, I stumbled upon Muir's thoughts about light as it hit a canyon, "...it seemed not clothed in light, but wholly composed of it...".

I believe there are hundreds of moments like this each day. Light can take the place of the object and becomes what it is that we are looking at, instead of that which it illuminates.  

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New Work - Painting

To kick off the start of my next painting, I invested in a new projector. I have replaced what was considered a challenge, with a tool that lets me make more considerate decisions about composition and balance. I cannot tell you what a difference it has made!

I am working on the underpainting and getting to know the image. I am really enjoying painting the milk carton as I find the hard lines of the logo and the soft edges of the cardboard fun to play with.

The Dwelling show at the EAGM has come to a close. I am excited to get my work back and have a look at Tin, as I mailed it out to Saskatchewan almost in the same breath as it was finished. Here is a photograph of the show from opening night. More can be seen here.

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Ready For Proofing

The momentum is flowing here in the studio and I've made it all the way to this point with my plate in a mater of a couple days.  For something of this size and detail, I think it's pretty good pace for me!




From this point I'm ready to do a first proof of the plate and then make the necessasary adjustments to values from there.  At this stage I think things are looking pretty good and should only need bumping of tones to get them where I want for the finished print.

Tomorrow I'll start work on another plate which is about 6 times larger than this one~

I'm Back!

I'm Back!

Thanks to a serious onslaught of freelance work, the move into a new home, and a baby.... it's been a good long minute since getting the opportunity to make anything! ;  let alone post about it :)

Anyways,  I'm back in attack for the next 3 months as I prepare for an upcoming exhibition late September.

As of 2 days ago, I've begun the process of preparing the first of a body of print-work I'm expecting to complete for the show.

While the show may or may not be exclusively mezzotint work, I'm staying true to working in this technique to start, and we'll see if thing diverge from there.  This small 4x6 plate is the beginning of what i'm hoping will be a series of  6-10  small prints in the same vein.

I'll be starting in on 4 larger 30cm x40cm plates next week that will follow the same tangent as this print completed earlier this year.



Enjoy!