Drawing with others in the great outdoors: Artists’ tips and inspiration
Take a sketchbook for a walk
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if drawing outside had one of those good for the soul type names like the rather trendy shinrin-yoku or “forest bathing”. Yes there’s the term en plein air (translation “in the open air”) which despite sounding somewhat romantic in French seems to fall a little short of soulful when translated into English. Perhaps I’m splitting hairs here because quite frankly if you’ve made it out of the door with paper and pencil, with the intention of sketching, I think you’re winning. Regardless of a name the act of drawing outside is such a freeing experience it’s got to be up there with the best of outdoor activities.
Drawing in the open air, whether in the garden, up a mountain or standing on a street corner (admittedly I’ve not done much of that, I tend to favour quieter, countryside spots) just seems to get you out of yourself and fully engaged in an activity that becomes multi sensory. Sun on skin, fresh air in lungs, earth under foot and all the sights and sounds of an environment that you can’t control, except for the lines on your page. Even then a gust of wind or shower of rain might have other ideas, but hey ho, that in itself will add an unexpected mark to your page. And there it is, the illusive mark of whimsy that you will end up remembering over all the others.
I love all the precious time spent painting in my studio, however it’s the sketches I’ve made outside that I remember with the greatest fondness. The day I drew the Old Town on a bright Autumn morning when the sun lit the sky with yellow. The day the snow came down and I drew on the field till I couldn’t feel my fingers and the colours smudged on the page. The day I stood perched on a hillside with the wind whipping hair around my face so I could only snatch a glimpse of the view below. All these memories are tucked in the pages of my sketchbooks. They are a drawn diary of places visited and time well spent.
Get others involved
As long as I can remember, drawing outside has been a shared activity. As a child playing in friends’ back gardens with sticks of chalk and limitless imaginations. At school we walked through the arboretum with our sketchbooks, pausing on a wooden bridge to look far down a lake. That was the day I was taught to measure distance with a pencil while squinting my eyes. At art college we were marched out into the local graveyard (perhaps not my first choice) with pots of ink, cups of water and fallen sticks. We came back with armfuls of atmospheric scribbly drawings. On all of these occasions I experienced something new. A new way to make a mark, look at a view or interpret a creative challenge. Each experience involved other people and it’s the other people’s responses to the task at hand that made the experience richer.
Art is often a solitary task. Hours in the studio grappling with a tricky painting or off researching a current line of visual inquiry. This is part and parcel of being an artist and I have to admit I rather like it. However, I believe, it’s hugely important to plan time with others for a shared creative experience. If you’re stuck in your art or just need a spark to get going, drawing with others is a very good way to begin. It’s exactly the same as asking your friends to meet for coffee because you want to have a chat. Having a meeting of minds where art is concerned always seems to get the creative juices flowing.
Going for a sketch in the park or off to a National Trust property is a marvellous way to get going. Often it means you’re faced with a whole bunch of subject matter you don’t normally draw. This can be a wee bit daunting and you simply decide you have to get on with it. Make a mark, see where it goes, pause to look at what your fiend is doing, what have they chosen to look at, what are they drawing with and why? I’m always asking myself a ton of questions while I’m drawing something and so will they. Having a jolly good chitchat about it might help you see something new.
Choosing what to draw
Draw whatever you want, big things, small things, long things, short things, groups of things, things all by themselves, you name it you can draw it. That said sometimes too much choice can make it difficult to decide. I go through phases of what I like to draw while out and about so I often set out with a specific intention in mind. This doesn’t always guarantee that’s what I’ll come home with but it helps to focus the mind. Sometimes I’ll have a particular type of view in mind, other times it might be a set of materials I want to try out. More often than not it’s whatever happens to be in front of me when my family decide it’s time for a rest on a weekend walk.
“Mama why are you drawing that house pink?”
“Because I’ve only got three colours with me and I thought it might be fun.”
“Oh, I’d have done it blue… can I draw hearts on your page?”
“Sure you can.”
And there you have it, the mark of whimsy I’m going to remember above all the others.
Materials matter
A simple set of materials which are easy to carry is generally the best for drawing outside. If you’re going to be sitting down then a pencil case with a variety of pencils, pens or pastels in a range of colours and textures works well. The chances are you’ll be sitting for a while and can spread yourself around while having time to pick and choose your materials. If you know you’ll be standing and sketching I’d recommend keeping your sketchbook small, make sure you have a pocket handy and only take out three drawing materials max. Your arm will probably get tired holding your book up and you’ll want to be efficient with changing your pencils around in your hand. Inevitably I look like I’m playing pickup sticks when I’m out and about drawing. I end up with the pencils and pens stuffed every which way between any and all available fingers; makes for a fun drawing session as it’s like playing with a puzzle at the same time.
At the moment my favourite sketching materials are colour pencils, graphite pencils and highlighter pens. I’m enjoying the quality of the different line types and shading options when mixed together. They’re also very light weight, not so messy and the colours are lots of fun. For some reason I’m carrying them round in a ziplock sandwich bag. I’ve got lovely little pencil cases for such occasions but they all seem to have particular combinations of materials in them that I know I’ll want to come back to. This is a habit of mine - finding clutches of materials, used for a particular holiday’s sketching which have been saved together as a reminder of what was used. Making notes would probably be simpler but then I wouldn’t come across these material mementos.
Summer school
Tucked behind the walls of a sumptuous garden, nestled along a leafy sun dappled street, a group of artists met for a morning of alfresco drawing. I was invited to host a drawing workshop for three Harrogate based artists at the beginning of August. The purpose of the workshop was to share tools and techniques that help hone observation skills. Looking is such a vital part of drawing, yet sometimes our eyes need a gentle reminder of how to see the things that really light us up. All artists have a unique way of looking at the world around them and expressing what they see. Teasing out layers in the landscape and finding pleasing shapes within organic forms are ways I enjoy looking at fields and flowers. I’m looking to find the hook, the special something about these subjects that’s going to draw me in and demand attention. If we can learn to really see the compelling aspects of what we’re looking at I believe our art making results will be stronger.
During the workshop, using a selection of found objects, we worked on a series of looking activities. We were working on warming our eyes up, making sure we were really looking at the objects in front of us and not making lazy observations. The human eye can easily become lazy. We’re good at thinking we know exactly what familiar things look like because we see them all the time. It’s part and parcel of our animal instincts, making a quick assessment as to whether something is friend or foe. The wonderful thing about taking time out for a drawing workshop is that you have a chance to slowdown and really start to look.
Fancy having a go too?
If you like the sound of waking up your own observation skills there’s a wonderful opportunity for you to join in too. Head over to my YouTube channel where i’ve got two easy to follow instructional videos.
“Welcome to Ali Mackie’s BRIGHT Ideas. In this short video watch and learn how I set about making a 15 minute sketch of a pot plant with drawing materials purchased from a high street stationary store. Using A4 paper, colour pencils, highlighter pens and colourful biros a cheerful drawing can easily be made. Grab some stationary, a sheet of paper and draw along with me. ”
