sketchbooks, the essential tool

i've got a couple projects going on, and one of them is going to go on for a lot longer.  the 'cleaning the cellar in the shop' project i should be able to finish up in another 10 or 12 hours of effort, but the 'digitizing the sketchbooks project' will likely go on for another couple years.  so far i have scanned and saved the highlights to this album from three fairly recent ones. 

 you can scroll through the slideshow at this link.

this is maybe a third of it ...

i've been sketching sporadically since 1980 when i bought betty edwards' book 'drawing on the right side of the brain' to learn how to communicate with my clients.  while cleaning the cellar last sunday, i found a fresh box of sketchbooks, likely packed when we moved to dorset from arlington in 1996 containing some drawings from 1988.  the one above is sam's, and he would have been 5 and a half in january 88, the date of one of will's first drawings i found below in the same sketchbook.  will would have been 3 and a half then.  fun ...

i wish i could draw like that now .. i have written on this subject before, and i think it's an important one.  the hand often is a link to the subconscious.  we sometimes don't know what we will draw until we start, and every sketch is not a winner.  some are though, and it is hard to come up with them if you sit down with the intent to 'come up with something new'.  set that pen or pencil free .. see where it goes ..

click the photos to enlarge them ..

this series of sketches and photos below are just a few highlights from the slideshow

'trout desk'

'duck bed'

sometimes new ideas come from existing pieces.  the sideboard and mirror combo are from 1987.  the sketches below from a proposal for a client are from 1988.  

'take an object. do something to it.  do something else to it.' .... jasper johns

 i leave you with a couple more from sam from 1988 ..

yeah, real fun ...

Pretty Slick

'the lesson' 5/08 Pretty slick this modern technology ... On the urging of my wife, who was out for a girl's night out with some out of town friends, around 9:00 Saturday night I started a book. Sunday morning I finished it and placed the order. Today at 1:00, 76 hours later, my book and it's free friend arrived. Nicely bound and professionally done, and, I might add, what you'd probably consider a reasonable price for the effort. A friend/client of mine started the site a few years ago. It was called my publisher, but as of 2023, that company no longer exists . If you've got a high speed connection, (you'll need it for uploading) you can download the software (11mb) and have at it. It's surprisingly straightforward and there's a how to video if you need it. They've got a 2 for 1 deal on your first book and I've received other promotional incentives since I ordered. VERY professional. The formats are somewhat limited, but hey! I'm no book designer and I'm happy to have the creative box to keep me from wandering off into a project I would never finish if I had, like, total creative control. Anyway, if you've ever dreamed of seeing your stuff in print but couldn't bribe the right person to get it there, try this .... it's pretty slick. I have seen other books done on a Mac site and I hear they're also good and about the same price, but this one sticks to that favorite maxim of mine: KISS, 'keep it simple stupid' .... Click the pictures to enlarge them. Below are some compressed versions of a couple of the scanned drawings I uploaded ... (Actually, if you do decide to try this, email me, (dan@dorsetcustomfurniture.com) and I'll send you a link, and, if you use it, I get $20. off my next book..... thanks ...) 'the dining room' 'farmhouse window' 'corner store' 'magic carpet' the actual book .... looks real ! ... it is ! another page products and pricing ... big coffee table books, regular books, paperbacks,calendars ... check it out ....