Sketchbooking

Working in a sketchbook can be an important part of an artist’s life, beyond just “sketching” out ideas. For me it is vital for stress relief and well being… and I have a lot of fun! I hope this class will help you loosen up and discover new ways to use your sketchbook. We will remind ourselves that a sketchbook should be a personal journal, and not something that has to be a masterpiece from beginning to end. By combining collage, words, and drawing, we’ll start a sketchbook that will hopefully free you to not overthink future sketchbooks.

June 12, 2026:

The new forums for this re-run session are now open! Participation is completely optional but can be the best way to stay connected with the lessons and each other. We’ve gotten feedback over the years that ours are some of the nicest forums around, so please join in if you can!

Our main group is at Facebook, but there is a small group for those not on Facebook who can interact via Padlet. (Please just choose one forum to post in to avoid double postings.) Here are the links… for FB, ask to join and we will get you in asap!

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2061780761351774

Padlet:
https://padlet.com/Carla_Sonheim/my-dazzling-padlet-d5jsc4e28fouqnot

Thank you so much again for your signup! and we’ll send you an email on Tuesday, June 16th to get you going on Lessons 1 & 2!

xoxo
Carla

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From the original class:

Hello!

Welcome to “Sketchbooking!” with Lewis Rossignol!

In this class we’ll explore composition, shading, and different levels of completeness as not every sketch has to be fully fleshed out. We’ll bring our other passions into our sketchbooks, and explore different types of reference. But most of all we’ll have a good time pushing ourselves out of our comfort zones. Through these six lessons we will start a new sketchbook that you will be able to finish afterwards using new ideas, thoughts, and techniques.

Go ahead and ask to join the FB group! For Padlet, you do not need an account to participate, but if you would like your name to appear above your posts, go ahead and sign up for a free account.

Thank you again for your signup!

Carla

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Class Itinerary

Lesson 1
We’ll  start by looking through some books and see all kinds of ways that different artists use their sketchbooks, and then do an exercise that will take the pressure and anxiety out of drawing in a brand new sketchbook.

Lesson 2
This lesson is all about composition and finding multiple solutions to the same problem. We will focus on minimalism and empty space.

Lesson 3
In this lesson we will experiment with multiple methods of shading, as well as continuing to think about composition.

Lesson 4
Bring your favorite scientific or organic interests into the realm of your sketchbook!

Lesson 5
We’re going to start our final project in this lesson: a grid drawing. I’ll demonstrate how I start these types of drawings.

Lesson 6
This final lesson will be a demonstration of how to complete a grid drawing, focusing on mini compositions that create one larger composition.

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Supplies

The supplies are listed (with links) in the tab above (found just under the video screen).