Going Batty Over Ink

10/27/15 ink (sketched from photo)

It’s Halloween – know what that means? That we have to go back to the store because we’ve already eaten all the Snickers bars? Yes! I mean, no! It means it’s the last day of Inktober!

In general, I’m not a huge fan of the types of sketching/art journaling challenges that require making sketches based on subject matter or themes. But I do like the kinds that are based on quantity, such as NaNoDrawMo (at least 50 sketches during the month of November), which I participated in last year and the year before, too.

I also enjoy a challenge based on regular daily practice, such as Inktober. As a first-time participant, I didn’t think Inktober would be too challenging for me, since I sketch daily anyway and use ink in almost every sketch. Giving myself the additional challenge of using ink only upped the ante a bit. I did break my own rule by adding colored pencils a couple of times, but that was before I smacked myself upside the head during a proverbial V-8 moment when I realized I could be using all the many, many pens and colored inks I own! Then Inktober really got fun.

10/28/15 ink

I’ve probably learned more from this challenge than most I’ve participated in. The occasion prompted me to express appreciation for my favorite art tool, the fountain pen, and how it has helped me be more expressive with drawing. Inktober also gave me an opportunity to try my hand at hatching again (the bat, the bananas and the frogs I posted in my Pilot Waverly review) – something I’ve been wanting to get back to ever since my ink-drawing class at Gage last spring.

If I want to emphasize ink over other media while in the field, it means carrying around more pens and ink-filled waterbrushes than I usually do, but I actually sketch faster when I don’t have to take out and mix watercolors. Inktober reinforced the thought I’ve had for quite a while that when I use a variety of media that are expeditious on the fly, sketching is easier and faster – probably the single-most important factor for travel sketching.  

10/11/15 inks

I have Inktober to thank for all of that.

How about you? If you participated in Inktober, how did you like it?

You can see all 31 of my daily Inktober sketches in my Flickr album and in my Instagram feed.