Inktober 2017
Inktober 2017 Day 31: "Halloween Witchsona"
As many illustrators and artists around the globe may know, the month of October in the artist community can be a hard and difficult journey yet the best learning experience of our practice. But before I get started with my own experience, let me share some key facts that you may not know. A Mister Jake Parker began The Inktober Initiative in 2009 when he wanted to challenge himself to improve his inking skills and to make a better habit of drawing daily. Inktober pertains to creating a piece in ink for 31 days straight. Since he began that challenge and shared his experience on social media the initiative has taken off. Thousands of artists around the globe now participate in the month long "challenge" and share their creations online using the #inktober or other variants of the like. This challenge has thus begun to get many in the artist community to participate and reap the 'benefits', that which may include: increase of followers, abundance of likes on posts, retweets, comments, and tags. It is a great way to build your following and communicate with other artists that one may have otherwise not been able to find.
So let's get on with my own experience. This was the first year that I decided I wanted to participate in Inktober, having only ever heard of it the year before. I planned for the challenge for at least two weeks before, some go far beyond that and plan a year in advance. The preparations I took into action during those two weeks were to gather my supplies and attempt to make a plan of what I would like to draw each day, I having already decided that I did not want to completely follow the prompt list that Jake Parker provides each year. The preparation for supplies was fairly easy though, I having only to find the stash of ink bottles that I hadn't used in almost four years. Then I went about figuring out what size paper I would like to do each piece on. I eventually decided that I would like to do them on postcard sized pieces of paper, that way that it would be compact enough to carry around with me to class and work on and also to keep each of my pieces fairly simple and not try to overdo it. Though inktober pieces do not have to be final pieces of work, in fact they can be sketches in a sketchbook if one wishes it, but I had already decided to challenge myself further and do a semi-final piece each day for 31 days.
When October 1st finally came I was well prepared and started off with somewhat of a bang. I started out the first week strong in my pieces and my composition, trying to pertain the concepts of each to work that I already do while also trying to challenge myself and take this opportunity to try new things in my work. In fact, I challenged myself to draw male figures at least three times during this 31 day challenge and was quite proud of the results, my usual work always pertaining to female figures. Another challenge I put forth to myself during this month was to draw hands, something that has always intimidated by. At first my pieces were mainly done in ink and inkwash of gray scale, but as the month went on I found myself missing color and so I pulled out the trust colored ink bottles and began to experiment with color, mixing together inks and getting my desired shades. I even went so far as to go out and purchase a gold ink to try, having seen other artists on instagram using it and wanting to give it a good go. For two pieces, and these were also two pieces that I did on full sized pieces of paper (9x12), I inked out what I had drawn in pencil and then went in with watercolor. Though I know that the point of inktober is to improve inking skills I see no wrong in adding watercolor or any other media at the end so long as ink has been used and the purpose of the challenge has been met. Quite frankly these were also the pieces that got the most likes and comments on my Instagram and Twitter. It was fun and I definitely enjoyed the process, taking notice that my figures were growing more fluid and my work was noticeably improving from work I had done previously. Towards the end of the last two weeks though my work was not the best, I was getting burnt out on drawing so much and finding it difficult to find the time to do pieces while also having to juggle being a college student. I did manage it though! 31 pieces in total were added to my collection at the end of the month, pieces I am happy with and proud of, pieces that I can look back on and know that there are no excuses to not draw everyday.
By the end of it I had created a piece I especially love; "Blessing". This piece I can proudly say is my favorite by far out of every illustrated piece I have done thus far. I have a knack for detail and clutter in my work, something that many may not like but that I have found works well for me due to the fact that I am a person who lives with clutter in her life. So for many of my pieces I attempted to stay open yet found myself going back to old habits of filling the page with clutter and trying to make the concept as in depth and well structured as possible. Overall I feel as though I have definitely learned from this experience and that my work will continue to improve as I continue to draw daily in a sketchbook.
Side Note: At the beginning of the month I had about 130-150 followers on Instagram and by the end of the month I was at almost 200 followers.