How to Keep a Sketchbook Journal

by Claudia Nice

Keep a sketchbook journal and explore your world, preserve your thoughts and celebrate life! More than a diary of written words, a sketchbook journal allows you to indulge your imagination and exercise your artistic creativity. It is a personal, private place where you have unlimited freedom to express yourself, experiment, discover, dream and document your world. The possibilities are endless. In How to Keep a Sketchbook Journal , Claudia Nice shows you samples from her own journals and provides you with advice and encouragement for keeping your own. She reviews types of journals, from theme and garden journals to travel journals and fantasy sketchbooks, as well as the basic techniques for using pencils, pens, brushes, inks and watercolors to capture your thoughts and impressions. Exactly what goes in your journal is up to you. Sketch quickly to capture a thought or image before it vanishes. Draw or paint with care, to render an idea or vision as realistically as possible. Write about what you see. The choice is yours--and the memories you'll preserve will last a lifetime.

Genres: Art, Drawing, Nonfiction, Journaling, Journal, Writing, Nature

128 pages, Hardcover

First published May 7, 2001

About the author

Claudia Nice, a native of the Pacific Northwest, attended the University of Kansas, but gained her realistic pen, ink, and watercolor techniques from sketching nature.

She spent over 15 years traveling across North America for Koh-I-Noor/Rapidograph and more recently Grumbacher as an art consultant, conducting seminars, work shops, and demonstrations at various schools, clubs, shops, and trade shows. Her relaxed, informative method of instruction is geared to put the beginner at ease, and encourage the seasoned artist to new heights.

Claudia has authored over a dozen successful books, including "Creating Textures in Pen & Ink With Watercolor." This fully illustrated text book was not only a Northlight "Book of the Month," but a best seller for F & W Publications. Her art work has won numerous awards and is often found in leading art instruction magazines.

Reviews

[Jessica Welch · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't think there was much on the specific topic of keeping a sketch journal besides defining what the different types were and showing examples from her own journals. The color studies and how-to sections you can find in dozens of other artbooks.

[Lloyd Downey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've got a couple of books already by Claudia Nice and really love her work. She seems to specialise in ink drawings with watercolour washes but uses a vast range of techniques. This particular book is devoted to keeping a journal. It's thorough, focused and helpful. Lots of examples of her own work and suggestions for keeping a journal ...and the different kinds of sketchbook journals that one may want to keep, for example; a theme around a subject of special interest (like horses), a discovery journal, a travel journal. a reference journal, an in-depth study journal (like details of architectural features), a sketchbook of the imagination, etc. She also suggests writing in the journal to record useful facts...and her own writing is incredible. (At least i assume that it is her own writing and not some special font).
I guess her style would not appeal to everybody but I certainly like it and she is very generous in sharing her insights and ideas and techniques.
And she ranges across graphite pencil sketches, pen and ink, coloured pencil, watercolour, and various combinations of these. There is no coverage of oil painting...though I guess this does not lend itself to a sketchbook.
Lots of great examples there from her own work and I guess that this is one way that she can publish her own work rather than having it just sitting in journals in a drawer somewhere.
Must confess that I really liked it and it was very easy to read. So five stars from me.

[Kat's Bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with all of her books, it's a beautiful book to look at. Also, as with all of her books, there is plenty of content that is recycled from her other material. This is a good one to pull out of the library and flip through for ideas. The chapter on how she sets up her own journal has some useful hints and ideas. It wasn't enough for me to want to get my own copy for my reference shelf, especially since I already own several of her books.

[Marjorie Elwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gorgeous book is one that you don't want to hasten through, but rather savor. There is a lot of training around the basic art concepts (perspective, breaking objects down to their constituent shapes, values, edges), as well as examples of different types of journals - from travel to trees to dogs/cats.

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an inspirational book. It is an excellent step by step guide on how to create an illustrated journal, and the illustrations are included are numerous and absolutely beautiful.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Beautiful book, lots of information. I would recommend it to all artists wishing to start journaling and to anyone who loves the natural world.

[Myra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very pretty book, but more of a "look at all my pretty examples" than a "how to" book. Not much time spent on setting up a kit and the actual logistics behind this type of practice.

[Christiane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully inspiring

[Andria · Rating 3 out of 5]

The examples and explanations of the different types of sketchbooks were done well. Many of the sketches looked like something that I could attempt and be happy with my results. However, the print of the book was extremely distracting, most of it was done in an almost cursive like scrawl. I am sure that the intent was to make it look like her personal sketchbook but it made me have to concentrate too hard on the writing and it detracted from the sketches.

[Reuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Begins with some useful, basic tips for getting started, but the real pleasure of this book is seeing the author's many and varied types of journals and samples of her sketches in each. The author is from the Pacific Northwest, so many of the nature sketches are of things one regularly sees in this region; it's helpful to have examples of some ways to sketch them.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very inspirational. I want to go out right now and draw and sketch and create a journal of travel memories, favorite memories, fairy with real flowers, and do watercolor and pen and ink and draw, draw, draw.....very inspired to create!!!

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magnificent. Makes you want to start on your own right away.

[Palma · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for beginners and intermediates which I found easy to follow.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

The info is great and well presented- nicely paced (pun half-intended) but the handwritten font bothers me.

[Phyllis]

library has