Unexpected Education

 

dip pen

Usually before beginning InkTober each year, I come up with one or more learning goals for the month. I seem to try to improve my hatching nearly every year. Sometimes I unintentionally learn to appreciate a medium like the Bic ballpoint. And an especially memorable year was 2016, when I made it my goal to sketch from imagination – and Weather Bunny was born.

This year I went easy on myself because I already have the ongoing project of drawing my hand every day, and I wanted the challenge to stay fun, not be a burden. So instead of making a goal to learn something specific, I decided to simply use October as an opportunity to draw my hand using inks and pens that are new to me or that I haven’t used in a long time.

It turns out that I am already learning something significant that I hadn’t planned. Making broad strokes with Boku-Undo sumi ink or a brush pen takes only minutes to execute, but I have to spend a lot of time thinking before I ever hit the paper with the brush. It’s the exact opposite of a pencil or fine point pen, which takes much longer to execute, but I can do my thinking along the way instead of ahead. Using all different kinds of media on the same subject is teaching my brain to think in different ways.

Brush pen

I’m also having unexpected fun with this multi-colored Plum & Punch notebook. (I was asked where I got it; it was a gift, so I don’t know where it was purchased, but it’s a Hallmark product. I suspect it came out a while ago and may not be available any longer.) I didn’t test any inks on the paper ahead of time, so each day is a potential surprise. The coated paper stock is not intended for wet media; it makes juicy washes bead up. I am delighted by the effects this combo produces! If you read Roz Stendahl’s blog, you know that she believes there’s no such thing as the “best” or “ideal” paper. She often deliberately uses papers that are “inappropriate” for paint because she enjoys the effects and even the challenges of working with such papers. This month is a great time to experiment, find out what unfamiliar papers and inks can do, and especially have fun. Maybe even learn.

sumi ink

sumi ink

sumi ink

sumi ink

brush pen