playbook 1: reflective report 2

line
i enjoyed exploring line quality but looking back this was probably not my favourite session of the ones we did. to be fair, playbook sessions aren't my favourites. there's something about making work at the same time as everyone that makes me feel really apprehensive. i feel a lot of pressure to make work that is good and that often makes me make work that isn't good.

but it's okay because i also feel like i've been learning a lot about myself, what i'm good at and what i'm not so good at. i just need to be more chill about it and i think that will come with time.

for my take away sketchbook pages i did what i usually do. some simple fine liner reference drawings from my found imagery archive. i really like the ones of the boys, i think they have a lot of character and i love how simple they are. i don't love a lot of the other drawings i did for this task because to me they feel tense and restrained - makes sense considering i felt that way.


mark-making
the mark making session i really didn't like. which is weird because i really enjoy mark-making! again, i felt a lot of pressure about it and ended up making something that i hated. my final drawing of the plinth sculpture is definitely a drawing to forget. i find it boring, and flat and safe. and mark making is all about exploring and playing and having fun.

however
i really enjoyed doing my playbook pages & i feel like they made up for the terrible playbook session! i did some character work, some observational drawing and some drawings of scenes from one of my favourite movies, A Place Beyond The Pines. (would draw ryan gosling again any day)

those were actually my favourites from the mark-making ones. i like the colours and the textures of the pencils and the markers which seems to be something i'm constantly drawn to.

shape
this playbook session was okay. after my second collage of the peach i felt that i was getting into the swing of things and really thinking about simplification and shape and composition. that session really pushed my thinking and my perception of communication. i like to embellish, i like to decorate and i like to make things look pretty, which often makes me add information to drawings that doesn't really need to be there. the way that that session was shaped really made me question the way that i illustrate and although it sparked a lot of insecurities, i feel that it was really beneficial in shifting my thinking. sometimes less is better and that's okay. it made me think about ideas first, and aesthetics second when i sometimes do the opposite.

the take away task was so. much. fun! i got to paint again, and mix colours and think about shape and simplification is ways that were actually enjoyable and not stressing me out! the paintings i made are a perfect reflection of the work i want to be making. they made me consider gouache as a medium i could start using more often. there's an elegance and softness to these paintings that i really love and that feel reflective of me. matt called them 'beautiful and breezy' & i think i agree.

texture
this was 100% my favourite playbook session! doesn't surprise me though because i love collage and i love textures! i was so so happy with my self portrait! this way of working feels really natural to me. making textures, using coloured paper, drawing myself! it was so much fun, i really really loved it.