June: Confidence and Drawing on Location
If you had said to me a few years ago that I would love to draw outside, and spend much of my time on holiday in Cornwall drawing in public, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. I definitely used to feel very exposed and ‘in view’ when I was out and about with my sketchbook, and there were a number of times where I took my drawing things but didn’t take them out of the bag because of ‘the fear’. A few things helped me to feel a bit more confident and prepared to whip out my sketchbook and start putting marks onto the page when I was outside, so I thought I would share them here.
Firstly, when I’m talking about drawing on location - I’m thinking really broadly, I mean anywhere that isn’t your home and is a public space like a park, the beach, a cafe etc. As I’m thinking through what I want to write, I'm doing a tick list in my head of what I would do to make sure that I am the most comfortable and ready I can be. During my MA, we spent three months drawing outside at all times, and in all weathers. During this time, I learnt how important layers are and how handy having a plastic bag repurposed as a seat and ready to sit on can be (My lovely friend Frances first gave me this tip and I will be forever grateful). I did find that when the weather got really cold, I upgraded my plastic bag to a freezer bag, whose insulation I was very thankful for in the frost!
For our holiday to Cornwall, I packed an old picnic blanket that has a waterproof bottom and folds up really small - and layers for sitting outside. I also packed ALL of my paints and ALL of my paint markers. I think I had envisioned selecting them carefully the morning before going out, or taking a couple of tubes on location with me… But in reality I didn’t touch them. I have a very old watercolour pallet that is flat on both sides and every now and again I let blobs of gouache and watercolour dry onto it - the palate and a water brush was all I used in terms of paint.
I have always leaned towards watercolour markers and coloured pencils as a bit of a ‘safe zone’ when I’m drawing so starting out location drawing with them was really helpful. Then I just started adding materials that I discovered and enjoyed using into the mix. Over time, I learnt that I didn’t need to take out every pen and pencil that I owned and started to narrow down to my favourite colours that I had been using and colours that I thought I might need for the place I was drawing. I found that only taking one pencil case has really helped with decision making and being more prepared to start drawing - and I think I do feel more confident when I am a bit more prepared. Having just one pencil case with the materials I was using and my sketchbook also made it really easy to keep in my bag or just quickly grab before we left the house when we were on holiday.
When I first started drawing outside, I remember spending lots of time wondering what I should draw, or feeling like there wasn’t much to draw and then inevitably talking myself out of drawing at all. When I was doing the Observation and Experiment module on my MA, I learnt very quickly that just drawing whatever is in front of you at that moment can be really valuable. When we were sat in the Verdant Brewery in Falmouth, I found that just starting to draw the barrels in the warehouse was really interesting and led to a drawing that I liked, even though it wasn’t what I had planned to draw or what I thought I might be drawing that afternoon. Some of the most interesting and exciting drawings that I see other people making are of things that you see happening everyday or are of objects that you see every day. Sometimes, if a whole scene feels a bit overwhelming, I make little thumbnails and focus on tiny parts of a place, or just pick out one thing to focus on, like people.
I think the most important thing I’ve learnt about feeling more confident when I am out drawing is that the drawing you are doing does not have to be the best thing you have ever made. It feels really liberating to think that you don’t have to share any of the drawing that you do if you don’t want too, and your sketchbook can be a place that is just for you. Also knowing that the more you keep drawing, the more comfortable you will feel drawing when you are out and about - the first drawings you do on location don’t have to take very long at all, they could just be marks on the page, they could be big they could be small, they are still valid. When I was on holiday, people did come and ask to look at my sketchbook. I feel fine about this now, but there was a time when that made me feel a bit nervous. I found having a few stock responses really helped. Saying something like “I’m practising drawing people” or “I’m just thinking about which colours to use” really helped to take the pressure off the drawing itself and actually opened up some really interesting conversations. Of course, you have no obligation to talk to anyone and you can always say that you would rather not share your drawings.
If you fancy drawing outside or in a public place, there are some Patreon groups and Instagram communities that might be a great place to start looking and feeling inspired by. Emma Carslile, Sarah Dyer and Frances Ives all have Patreon groups that I support with lots of information and tips about drawing on location. I particularly love seeing the materials that they use and always end up on Jacksons Art Supplies website midway through a pencil swatch video! There’s also the #walktosee hashtag on Instagram that Helen Stephens started where people tag all of the drawings that they do when they are out and about, as well as the #3materialsdrawingchallenge hosted by my MA coursemates Naomi Tipping, Charlotte Durance and Kathryn Boyt, which might be a great place to start if choosing materials to use is a bit of a block or if you want to practise using fewer things.
I’d love to know if you have any tips or anything that you do that helps you to feel a bit more confident when you are out and about drawing! If you’re new to all of this and would like to give location drawing a go, I challenge you to pop something to draw on (a notebook or a sketchbook) and something to draw with (a pen or a pencil) into your bag ready to go for the next time you go out.
If you’ve read this far, thank you - see you at the end of July!
Lucy