a hand-crafted workbook
CREATED BY AMBER WEBSTER
a hand-crafted workbook CREATED BY AMBER WEBSTER
table of contents. Introduction What is mark making? Getting Started Get Inspired Tools Examples Applying Marks Creating Marks Creating a Style Idea Development Experimentation Sketchbook
introduction. This is Make a Mark, a workbook designed to teach you how to draw using your own unique mark making. Everyone can make a mark and this book is intended to teach you how to take those marks and apply them in a new ways. This is an abstract experience to move away from perfection. This workbook is intended to get you to put pen to paper and make something out of nothing. Nobody’s a natural and we all have to start somewhere, so why not start here. Make a mark will take you through quick step by step exercises that will push you to draw more on your own, it’s all about what you make of it.
what is mark making? Expressive qualities add so much to the look of artwork. Mark making describes the different lines, dots, marks, patterns, and textures we create in an artwork. It can be loose and gestural or controlled and neat. It can apply to any material used on any surface: paint on canvas, ink or pencil on paper, a scratched mark on plaster, a digital paint tool on a screen, etc,. Artists use gesture to express their feeling and emotions in response to something seen or something felt. The impressionists used mark making – in the form of separate brush marks or dabs of paint – to add life, movement and light to their paintings of the things they saw around them. Later artists working in an expressionist style also created representational artworks using mark making. Cy Twombly developed gestural mark making into a form of personal handwriting. In his series of paintings based on the seasons, he uses this ‘handwriting’ of marks to express what the different seasons mean to him. Artists also use expressive mark making to create purely abstract artworks which do not necessarily
YAYOI KUSAMA, INFINITY NETS
refer to anything in the real world but are intuitive or respond to a defined set of rules. Action painters such as Pollock (who dripped and splashed paint onto his canvas) and Niki de Saint Phalle, who in her shooting pictures found a novel way of mark making, by firing a gun through bags of paint which then exploded onto a canvas creating explosive marks, splashes and drips. An important influence on this kind of improvised mark making was the surrealist doctrine of automatism – which meant accessing ideas and imagery from the subconscious or unconscious mind. Well known for her repeated dot patterns, Yayoi Kusama is another artist who systematically mark-makes. She creates paintings, sculptures and installations that immerse the viewer in her obsessive vision of endless dots. For her interactive Obliteration Room an entirely monochrome living room is ‘obliterated’ with multi-coloured stickers, transformed from a blank canvas into an explosion of colour, with thousands of spots stuck on every available surface.
mark your heart out.
getting started. This book will walk you through the process of creating and applying marks. Each exercise starts with do’s and dont’s, they are meant for you to take into consideration while creating your drawings. Next you will readd throught the instructions and start drawing. Each exercise is a progress based on the last, combine all that you have learned as you work your way through and show how everything influences your work on the sketchbook pages in the back. The book comes with complimentary pens but you are encouraged to bring in your own tools and materials to make this experience uniquely your own. Have fun and get to marking!
get inspired. I start every project with a quick surf around the internet to my favorite design sites, such as designspiration and behance, or I flip through design and illustration books to find inspirational imagery. It helps me to pull images and make simple mood boards.Through this process I have been able to build an array of artists that always evoke great art out of me, from Pollock to Kandinsky. Even if you have an idea you would like to explore, it is valuable to expand your horizons by considering some of the ideas that other artists have investigated. So remember the importance of getting inspired before you start creating.
mood board noun An arrangement of images, materials, pieces of text, etc., intended to evoke or project a particular style or concept.
things you’ll need. All you need to mark a mark is a tool, and paper is helpful as well. Since I draw with pen most of the time I try to buy durable and very absorbent paper. It keeps the ink from leaking through and smearing too easily. So it all depends on the tool you choose to use. You’ll notice the book comes with included pens for you to test out, it has been printed on 70 Ib sketch book paper. I also encourage you to test out different paper types when you are finished with the book. Use the tools provided to work your way through the three exercises in the book.
Fine
Brush
included tools: Chisle
Mark-making on paper depends partly on the brushes and tools that you use. There’s quite a range you can choose from. Every artist has their favorite, mine is pen. I have included three pen types for you to try out. Fine point pens provide more precision. You can create small details depending on the size or you can finer lines to create contrast in your drawings. Brush tip works like a paintbrush to create fine, medium or bold strokes. This can add a spontaneous quality to your drawings to add interest. Chisel nibs are wedge-shaped, which means they have both a broader edge and a very narrow edge. Depending on how you hold the pen, you will be able to create a broader or narrower stroke.
examples.
the do’s and don’ts. 1. don’t repeat exactly. When working on this first exercise I encourage you to play around with scale, quantity,line thickness, etc. Give the drawing your own touch of character.
2. do break away from the lines. Expand from the outlines, or create your own. Again, add to the drawing with your own creative styles.
3. do play around. Mix tools, this will add to the style and uniqueness of your drawing in the first exercise.
Exercise 1:
applying marks. This first exercise is to give you a general sense of how I create my drawings. This is just one of the tools I use when creating unique, abstract drawings. STEP 1: Start with an outline. Mine usually consists of an array of shapes.
STEP 2: Pick tools, I try to grab two or more pens and maybe a pop of color.
STEP 3: Create marking styles. I find it helps to stay organized with this step. By keeping my marking styles separate I am able to start fresh in a new box. I can also look back at previous styles for inspiration
STEP 4: Start drawing.
For the first exercise I am giving you all the parts you’ll need to create a drawing. On the next spread you will take the given marking styles and apply them to the outline. Use the do’s and dont’s to influence your drawing.
make your own marks. Now that you have worked your way through the first exercise, I encourage you to start coming up with your own marking styles. Quantity matters, make as many new marks as you can come up with, just look around the room and get inspired.
the do’s and don’ts. 1. don’t repeat. Get your quantity on. the more you do it the better you’ll get. So start with fresh marks for this next exercise.
2. do mix it up. Remember to think about scale and quantity. When I create my styles I tend to make patterns in which everything is pretty even. But when you rearrange and scale you create something more visually interesting.
3. do focus on interaction. During this exercise think about interaction between the lines and your marking styles. I like to think of the lines as obstructions on the page that I need to work around.
Exercise 2:
creating marks. Now that you understand how the process works, you will start to create free-willed drawings. Forget about the marking styles you have already created. Like I said it’s about quantity. So make completely new marking styles for this next exercise. I have created drawings that were influenced by lines. They become obstructions on that page that you work around to create a work. For this exercise create some marking styles that can interact with the lines on the page to create something new.
make more marks. You know what to do.
the do’s and don’ts. 1. don’t stop making. When you are finished here you are encouraged to keep making as much as you can. Mark your heart out.
2. do expand what you’ve learned. Take what you have learned here and expand it into your other art. This process can help you create more and expand on your style in your sketchbook.
3. do start fresh. The more you make the better you will be. I always encourage starting fresh after a certain amount of time on a work. If you make yourself work faster, you can increase the amount of ideas you are putting out there.
Exercise 3:
creating a style. Now it’s all up to you. For this exercise I encourage you to start working on your own method of mark making using what you’ve learned in this book. I have not given you any preexisting parts to work with, just the space. You will be responsible for creating your own marks that create a new drawing. Use what you have learned to your advantage, but also start applying your own ideas and styles to this drawing.
find a great idea. After you create mood boards for inspiration, you need to start developing ideas, have a brain dump session. This will help you create a numerous amount of ideas that could inspire some great work. So sit down and develop as many ideas as you can think of and start drawing from there.
Work at a fast pace while developing ideas. Jot down what ever pops in your head, any of your ideas could be the start of a great work.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
benefits of experimentation. One of the aspects of painting that distinguishes an artist is their particular style of mark-making. For most artists this is one element of their work that develops over a period of working with different materials, and a range of tools. As a designer and illustrator I tend to split my time evenly between computer and paper. I find that since I cannot spend so much time on paper that it benefits to work at a quick pace to create a larger amount of art. I will occasionally slow down though, when it come to larger projects. So while trying to work “smarter not harder� I have realized that if I loosen up a bit and take risks my work is much better. I encourage you to try new things with the skills that you have obtained. Create things out of your usual range.
Make a list of tools and materials you have never used. It helps to write them in relation to other materials they agree with.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
This next page is for experimentation. Grab tools from your list and make something you’ve never made before.
This has been Make a Mark. A creative guide to teach you how to draw. I now encourage you to take the skills you have learned and apply them to your process of making. Start an art journal and remember quantity counts so get to making! Extra pages are included for you to continue working.
sketchbook.