Me sketching in Spain last year

Well, did I make the 100 sketches in a week? I’m afraid not. Yesterday was day 7 of the challenge and I didn’t have a sketch left in me. My grand total was 87, and although I was just 13 away from the 100 target, yesterday I just needed a rest. I feel good about my decision, and as a result I feel considerably more refreshed today. I also chose not to post my sketches on the Facebook page for this oneweek100people challenge, as I realised early on that I am just happy to be out sketching, and that I didn’t need to compete with zillions of others who were racing to reach the 100 mark.  

My enjoyment has come from the fact I got to sketch daily. I can see that I loosened up as the days went by, which goes to prove that old adage ‘that practice makes perfect”. Though I certainly wasn’t aiming for perfection – as that is like trying to pluck a mythical beast from the air – but I did gain I sense of accomplishment. Not with the number of sketches I produced, but with the way I chose to sketch. I extended my arm, moving it from the elbow, rather than flexing my wrist, enabling a more relaxed sweeping movement and a more fluid line as a result. This is an especially good way to sketch people quickly, whether using graphite or pen, and I feel that I achieved that on a few days this past week.

But it is time to turn my thoughts to producing my book, now that the MS is ready, and that will occupy my days for a while. And as much as I am looking forward to completing the book, I am also looking forward to visiting galleries, reading books and writing about these and other interests on this site. Oh, and doing the odd sketch of course.

Thanks for calling in this past week.