An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers

It's hard not to be fascinated by this collection of sketchbooks put together by Danny Gregory. I wonder how he was able to persuade all the artists (some of them very famous) to participate in his project. But I've always been curious about how artists got their inspiration. For a long while I just assumed that artists had some peculiar artistic "sense" that the rest of us didn't have but it's this sort of a collection that pulls back the curtain a little bit and gives one a glimpse into the sheer hard work and constant practice that lies behind a lot of the art we see in galleries and framed on walls. I was especially interested in the text. Clearly, each artist had been given a list of headings they were supposed to cover: what sort show more of sketchbooks did they use, did they mind other people looking at their sketchbooks, what sort of media (pencils, pens , watercolours etc.,) did they use. But one thing really shone through ....and that was how valuable these sketchbooks were to the individual artists. These were the things they would be picking up if there was a fire. Some really worked on their pages to turn it into finished art. For others it was just to capture a moment and they were not fussed about it appearing rough and unfinished. Some were actually having their sketchbooks published ....and, I guess, everyone in this book had put up some of their work up for publication. I noticed that a lot of the artists used time spent on a train or time spent waiting at bus stops etc to capture some of the people or scenes around them. In many cases the keeping of a sketchbook had been forced upon them at art school but I was surprised that so many tried to put something in their book every day or at least very regularly. And yes, some of them could draw really beautifully but some were pretty crude drawings .....and I got the impression that not everyone in the book was able to sketch recognisable portraits. I enjoyed it. And I'm keeping the book (not donating it to charity) and give it 4 stars. show less

A really nice compilation of selections from a very diverse range of sketchbooks and illustrated journals, paired with interviews of each artist. It appears that all were asked the same questions, which brings out interesting recurring themes. I found the layout a bit challenging -- I wanted thumbing through it to be more like looking at, well, an illustrated journal, but instead there is so much information and condensed imagery packed onto each page that my eye has a tendency to just glance off it -- yet for the patient reader, this is still a marvelous and very inspirational assemblage of creative work. I was excited to see names like Chris Ware and R. Crumb here, but enjoyed looking at the journals of more obscure artists just as much.

I've had this book sitting on a table next to my recliner for a few years now and finally picked it up to read (my wife, the artist, got it for herself). I am fascinated with the thought processes of any artist, whether visual, musical, literary, architect, ... This is a specific snapshot, well... collection of snapshots, of some thoughts and processes. Fifty artists (including the author), fifty samplings from their sketchbooks, their preferences for ink, pencil, types of pens,... and types sketchbooks - Moleskine seems to be popular, but some prefer off the shelf whatevers, some make their own. What they think about, why they sketch, what they do with their sketches, and other words of their choices. I was both surprised and not at show more some of the commonalities.

A few Takeaways I flagged:

Mattias Adolphsson: "I find that drawing in my sketchbook is easier for me than using other media."

Butch Belair: "I usually draw in my car. Very few people know I am doing it... Having people watch while I do it would be a bit of a buzzkill. Don't tread on my Zen, man."

Bill Brown: "My sketchbooks are filled with words and pictures I haven't started second-guessing yet."

Robert ("R.") Crumb: "My advice: Draw from life as much as you can stand to. That's where you really learn things, And learn to express your real, personal feelings. And don't worry about creating masterpieces or only drawing the pretty things. Look for the commonplace, the unnoticed details of everyday reality. To draw fro life is to learn from life. But you know, you need to be compelled by some inner need to fill the blank page, It's gotta come from within."

Barry Gott: "I don't care if the drawings are logical or done well, which is helpful since theri neither."

Gay Kraeger: "I love the way I see the world since I stated drawing. I like seeing how everything relates to everything else."

Brody Neuenschwander: "When I draw, I am thinking about how some kind of intensity of meaning can be brought to a genre that has no receptive field in our society [calligraphy]."

A nice collection. I'm not a fan of much of the art I saw, but that doesn't stop me from admiring the artists, and their processes. show less

I absolutely love this book and recommend it to every artist or creative spirit. It is very inspiring and has many different types of artists, designers, and illustrators. They share what inspires them, what they like to draw, what sketchbooks and artist tools they enjoy using, and what art means to them. I am so happy I read this book, and it is definitely on my 'to buy' list of books! I highly recommend it, which I'm sure you've figured out already!

I guess I shouldn't have bought this book. I don't know what I was thinking. I was in some mood that passed. Probably looking for a peek behind the curtain of artists.

I only looked at the pictures and that isn't really what its purpose is. If I wanted to do just that I could have gotten one of many books of art.

I appreciate that the artists gave us a glimpse of themselves and their sketches. I'm sorry that I lost interest. I passed the book on to the swap shop.

I liked Melanie Ford Wilson's contribution.

[a:Danny Gregory|18678|Danny Gregory|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg] has been recommended to me many times, especially by Amy of the Creative Mom podcast, a very creative and high quality podcast. I bought the book she uses as her bible (it sounds like), [b:The Creative License|40168|The Creative License Giving Yourself Permission to be the Artist You Truly Are|Danny Gregory|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169417768s/40168.jpg|39853] after I had reserved [b:An Illustrated Life|4214|Life of Pi|Yann Martel|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CJ3996V3L._SL75_.jpg|1392700] at the library. Of course I received them all the same week. I think that this book will be similar to the one I loved by the show more [a:Jennifer New|1265|Jane Austen|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1176491679p2/1265.jpg], [b:Drawing From Life: The Journal as Art|493955|Drawing From Life The Journal as Art|Jennifer New|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175212818s/493955.jpg|482120], but I will let you know after I have given it a thorough going over!

Later:
I looked through it very carefully and it does turn out to be the same idea as the [a:Jennifer New|1265|Jane Austen|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1176491679p2/1265.jpg] book, [b:Drawing From Life: The Journal as Art|493955|Drawing From Life The Journal as Art|Jennifer New|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175212818s/493955.jpg|482120]. I didn't read all the text and will probably only read some of it, but some of the journals [a:Danny Gregory|18678|Danny Gregory|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg] chose are really not my style. I have a hard time appreciating art that is, in my view, ugly. I found some of the journal entries to be filled with sketches, drawings and paintings that I had an almost impossible time appreciating. The ones that really got to me seemed to be grotesque combinations of humans and animals.

Even later:
I looked through the book again and read more of the entries. I have to admit that there are a lot of sketches and drawings which are not revolting. I found the words of the some of the artists intriguing as well. show less

I ♥ this book, its exactly what I've been seeking for a long while. Its full of gorgeous images and inspiring details of drawing journals.