Cath Sheard Art

Tag: art journaling

  • Long weekend means play time

    A long weekend means extra play time. My best friend and I went to Star Wars: the Mandalorian and Grogu, and loved it! Alan and I went to a 70s themed 50th birthday party. I made scones, pikelets, and sultana biscuits so there are snacks for Alan while he’s out at the farm. I did all the usual housework … and still had plenty of art time.

    I’ve been trying to nail down a triad colour scheme for a series of work I’m creeping up on slowly. I think I’ve settled on Hansa yellow, Southern Ocean blue and Medium magenta. The struggle has been that I love Deep Violet with a little yellow for a warm rust red, but the Deep Violet doesn’t give me the other mixes I want.

    Today I realised I can use my preferred triad for the mix of clear brights and muted tones I want, and add Deep Violet when I need it. The colour scheme is a guide, not a prison cell.

    Colour mixes from Hansa yellow, Southern Ocean blue and Medium magenta
    This is what happens when I add Deep Violet to my preferred triad.

  • Practice decision making

    Art is about colour, line and form, but it’s also about decision making and trusting your instinct. Perhaps it’s not even so much about trusting your instinct as your unique creative voice.

    One of the ways you can understand your creative voice is through practice. Practice mark making, choosing colours, deciding which piece of collage paper goes where. That’s the magic of a sketchbook. It’s not finished art; it’s playtime. A sketchbook lowers the stakes, freeing you to play and experiment.

    Playing doesn’t waste time or materials; it’s the work of being an artist. Finished pieces that feel authentic, whatever finished means to you, are the result of time spent playing. Some artists worry they’re wasting paint, or only use cheap materials when they’re playing. The trouble with that is you practice with cheap materials, then when you swap to your “good” ones, you don’t have an in-depth understanding of them – the variations in handling, texture, colour and tone that matter so much. Buy the good things, use the good things!

    The pieces shown below are exercises inspired by a Jane Davies class, and are about practicing my decision making as an artist.

  • Noticing, and muscle memory

    Noticing, and muscle memory

    I wrote here about one of the Sketchbook Revival 2026 lessons that grabbed my attention – visual prompts with Jane Davies. I quickly filled 3 sketchbooks with prompts… just two pieces of collage per page to respond to. I’ve been working through the first sketchbook over the last couple of weeks, and completed it today.

    I love this exercise because it builds muscle memory, training my hand to easily make the shapes that are uniquely mine as an artist. It stretches me as an artist, thinking how to respond to the start in a way that’s true to me. Looking through the completed sketchbook is a tour through my visual language, a reminder of the colors, shapes and lines that call to me in my work.

    The start
    The completed page

  • Sketchbook Revival ‘26 – shifting greens

    Watercolour artist Susan Chiang taught a class called ‘Shifting greens: one base green, two herbs’. This was another class where I was doubtful because I’m generally an abstract or semi-abstract artist. Susan described her pieces as ‘playful and loose’ but they looked very precise to me!

    I used ultramarine turquoise mixed with cadmium yellow pale for one, and mixed with raw sienna for the other.

    I’m particularly pleased with the parsley, and think the sage would have been improved by adjusting the design. I’m tempted to keep playing with this idea, because I’d love to improve my realism skills.

  • Sketchbook Revival ‘26 – ‘Text’ book

    Janine Vangool’s class featured an entire sketchbook of text and typography. This appealed on a number of levels – we used to publish a newspaper, I’ve got a reasonable stash of alphabet stencils & stamps, and I’ve often used lettering in my journals.

    I’ve made a few pages and love them. It’s no surprise my pages focus on the state of the world. I’m going to start a fresh sketchbook and devote it to typography.