Today I’d like to get your feedback!
I’m always thinking about how I can write and structure this blog so that you enjoy reading it. So I’d like to ask you what you want me to write about, or what you generally would like to see more of, or any questions you might have (art-related or not).
I’ve been a bit stuck with my own ideas for a bit – I’ve retired a lot of outdated blog post ideas recently and I’m very slow with adding new topics back in. Client work and course creation have left me in a bit of a slow burnout situation. Sketching has been going ok, and I have filmed some of it, but without big motivation to put something coherent together as a video. I feel I need some help putting my head back together.
So I’d love to hear your input!
Let me know what you would be interested in to read or watch. I’ll not make a list of possible topics (the one I had looked overwhelming, although it merely listed topics I’ve already written about at some point), I’m just very curious to hear what you’d like to see.
I’d love to hear your input. Please add your comments below – and thanks so much in advance!
Hello Julia,
I’d like to see how you deal with shine and sparkle – e.g., how to render sunshine on a water surface or on a dewdrop, or snow. So that it’s not only light, but also this sparkle element, you know.
Noted, thanks for the feedback Linda!
Perhaps ‘live’ on the spot plein air sketches and paintings with demo explanations. Also a continuous fairy tale ordeal of your work and surrounding areas of where you live. Your surroundings and architecture are so beautiful to the US eyes. I do enjoy what you do now, and wouldn’t of thought to ask you do more or different.
I listened to a podcast you did and you do do ‘live’ out in nature; on your classes then. Loved the podcast.
Roksanna, these are all great ideas that I love! I guess I’ll have to figure out how to film plein air sketching. 🙂
Hi Julia
I saw a landscape painting you did when you were doing a project that covered “fairy tale places in nature”. I apologize for not quite getting the exact title of this project. It was a remarkable view in a forest, cropped in on bottom section of purple tree trunks with light coming through the view. Anyway, I would like to know more about how you paint landscape, would like a course.
Thanks for all your information and lovely approach to nature sketching!
Karin
I think that was the winter landscape with the trees and the flare effect from the sun? I wonder how differently I would paint that today. I will definitely collect scenes like that for a landscape class!
Some interesting color mixes you can suggest, lights and shadow colors.
The butterfly sampler had some wonderful color mixes.
These are great ideas, thanks for the feedback Maria! 🙂
Sinceramente a mí me gusta el blog tal y como lo has diseñado, en cada entrada encuentro un detalle del que no me había fijado o una idea para diseñar mi página diferentes colores,… me parece muy interesante. No creo que ningún boceto anterior este obsoleto, a mí me gusta mucho mirar los bocetos del principio del blog. Lo más difícil que yo encuentro para mí que soy principiante es simplificar en el aire libre. A veces me enmaraño con 1000 detalles y pierdo el conjunto que creo que es lo interesante. No sé si eso le puede dar alguna idea. De todas formas todo lo que pongas seguro que es precioso y nos aporta muchos conocimientos. Un saludo Julia.
Dear Marta, muchas gracias! I will try to show more of my sketching process outside.
I am leaving soon for a trip to NYC, Italy and Boston and I would like to know more about sketching quickly. I love love LOVE your nature journals, but with not much time how can I apply that to sketches of places and experiences? I’m fascinated by urban sketching but I’m just terrible at drawing human figures and buildings! I’m not sure I even need to. I certainly understand being “stuck”, and thanks for all you do for us via web.
Tracie
Hi Tracie, do you know Liz Steel’s blog? She has a sketching blog that focuses on urban sketching and architecture, and she is a very quick drawer. I have a feeling you’ll find very helpful tips over on her blog, she shares a lot of great ideas. Just search for her name and the blog should come up.
I will try and incorporate more urban scenes and travel sketching here, because it’s something I love too.
Enjoy your trip!
Lately I have been into colored pencil drawings. I have been sketching birds, then putting down a light watercolor wash, then colored pencil for the details. Your art is so beautiful you could do some scenes on paper and frame them for your walls.
Colored pencils are awesome, I use them in a similar way!
Julia thank you so much!!!! Your content is fantastic, I’m a beginner and I’d like to think budding watercolor painter. I’ve gotten a lot out of your setting up a palette class, I haven’t finished it yet. I appreciate understanding that leaning to sketch will help my painting. I’d really like to learn how to Plein air paint. I set up a super fantastic travel set up but no where to go so I’m gonna paint my back yard, little by little over the summer. So “how to” Plein air would be great.
I see, I’ll have to find a way to film my plein air painting. 🙂 Thanks for the feedback Debbie! And I think starting in your yard is a great start, often it’s those everyday scenes that can be very interesting.
Look at these 2 colored pencil artists: Ami Howard (UK) and Leontine Van vliet (Holland).
THank you for the recommendations!
Hi Julia,
First time commenting here, I love what you do!
I would love to see more advanced illustration techniques to create more polished drawings/paintings of animals and plants as opposed to « just » sketches. I also would really like learning how to better and quickly catch the impression of a place while painting plein air.
Thank you Aline for the feedback, very helpful!
Hi Julia, I LOVED your sketching butterfly class and filled a whole sketchbook. Like Aline, I am now trying to do a finished piece using more advanced illustration techniques but not finding much information. Maybe a class with one very detailed step-by-step butterfly or a blog showing adding the detail to one of the butterflies in the sketching butterfly class, would be wonderful.
Lynn, thank you!! Wow, an entire sketchbook full of butterflies, how gorgeous! That is a great idea, I will put it on my list. When I start painting more detailed butterflies again I will make a step-by-step or video.
Thanks Julia, I look forward to seeing the step by step when it’s ready. Until then, I will keep working on more butterfly sketches and start to add flowers for them to sit on. Looks like your class ‘Drawing ideas for Summer’ would be the perfect next one for me!
I guess I’ll return to them in June/July, right now it’s still a bit early for most butterflies over here. And definitely, the summer class has lots of field flowers. 🙂
Julia, I have problems in general, on all fronts. Your videos always cover information that is useful and educational for me; consequently, I can’t whittle my suggestions down to specifics. I’ve been painting and drawing most of my life, but about 9 or 10 years ago I completely burned out and dropped everything. Now, at 70, my skills and hand-eye coordination don’t return easily, but I’m making progress and regaining confidence. You always reinforce principles and important information, and I am astonished at how much I’d forgotten over the years. Your videos play a significant role in bringing it back – thank you!
Bea
Hi Bea, thank you very much for your nice feedback, I’m so happy to hear my videos help you!
Julia,
I always look forward to and appreciate all your blogs and videos. I am especially taken by the way you compose your journal pages. I love how you combine landscapes with close-up details and field notes. I’m not sure that the eye you have for page layout can be taught. It seems that starting with a good work ethic–that is just doing it over and over–helps.
The problems I have with working outside are: things change more quickly than I can capture and it’s hard to find good places to set up and work. I would love to watch you as you are working onsite in a challenging setting. I know that you have given us lots of tips about creating a travel kit, but I still don’t know how you actually work outside. Do you sketch while standing? Do you sit, and on what? How do you overcome the bugs and the sun & wind, etc?
Thanks so much!
Linda B.
Hi Linda, I believe these kind of composition skills can absolutely be learned, it definitely helps to practice a lot. But you can also figure out a lot by studying composition principles and also how other artists structure their pages.
Thank you so much for your detailed feedback, it really seems I will have to find a way to film more when I’m sketching outside. The problems with changing light and sun and bugs are very real, I can confirm that.
I struggle with shadows
Water and reflections on water would be much appreciated
Thank you Kristen, great ideas!
First, thank you for everything. I’m doing your new class and wrestling with some of important details you teach. Much needed. I particularly loved your sky watercolours. Winter sky and mountains are dominant here. I would love to learn more about simple sky paintings. I would love to do one each day in my journal.
Barbara
Thank you Barbara, great to hear you are working through the class. I used to do these small sky and weather sketches on the first page of my journal, I found this was great practice. Thanks for the ideas, all noted!
Sorry to hear about slow burnout and such. My best take is you are on the way to betterment by throwing your list away. When you feel like spending time come up then what you authentically have been observing / wanting to do then and only then. This lets you pivot and adapt to what is really going on and keeps you open to new exploration themes.
Just know that I have always loved reading your newsletter, speak looking at your wonderful illustrations. You are tops. Thank you! ❤️
Thank you so much Renate, that is actually something to think about for me. It definitely feels better without lists, but I’m always concerned I need some structure and planning for this blog (and for the rest of my job anyway). So it’s a real challenge. But your comment has started a thinking process for me. Thank you for your thoughts, and for your support!
I love and appreciate all you have shared. I enjoy your emails and talent. I would enjoy some urban drawings and watercolor and colored pencils. Thank you again
Great ideas, thank you Nancy for the feedback! 🙂
Hi Julis,
I love your blogpost, videos, sketchbooks and all artwork – thank you for sharing it with us! I really appreciate your work!
First I’m joining to those who’d like to see plein air sketching/nature journalling and painting videos or blogposts, descriptions.
And than my own request or wish is that I’m interested in and would like to learn from you about how do you prepare, collect informations, select from the species, places, areas when you make an illustration/art series about a species area/field/national park/protected area etc.
Thank you Julia!
Thank you Katinka for your kind words, I really appreciate it. I will try to film more outside this summer, since that seems to be what everyone wants to see. 🙂
As for your other question about collecting information before I create illustrations, I will answer that in a separate post soon!
Thank you Julia, waiting for both very much! And waiting for everything that you share with us. ☺
Katinka
Julia you’ve created so many terrific videos that I’ve had to try hard to find something you haven’t already taught us on Youtube and Skillshare. Like others, I’d also enjoy watching you sketch on-site, during your walks or when you visit gardens, etc. I’d like to see you sketch birds from life, or any moving animal like squirrels or animals in a zoo. Thanks for all the great content you share. I’m still working my way through your thorough Sketching Fundamentals class and learning so much!
Thank you so much Jill! I have accepted the challenge and will film more field sketching whenever possible, or other nature activites. I’m not sure when I will start going to zoos again, I’m not yet comfortable in crowds of people. But hopefully there will be other opportunities for sketching wildlife!
Great that you’re getting so much out of the class. 🙂
I think I’ll watch anything you make really, but maybe some more behind the scenes stuff. What you’re currently working on (if allowed), how you fit in a quick session or even if you’re just working on one part of a project?
I know how hard it is to film en plein air (I just did Plein Airpril) so good luck! But I agree, it would be nice to see your process outside too and more of your surroundings. I also enjoy watching you draw and paint birds.
Thank you Kim for the feedback, that is so nice of you to say! I’ve already started filming outside, it is definitely challenging. But also fun, so I hope I can show more of my surroundings soon! And I like the idea of showing more behind the scenes and project-oriented videos.
I have enjoyed all of your blog posts and videos and continue to learn so much from them.
I second everyone who mentioned water and water reflections!
Also, seasonal palette setup (as in, do you change out any colors in a minimal watercolor field kit to correspond with the seasons? More greens and a pink in the spring, perhaps, and more earth tones in the fall?). Apologies if this is addressed in the palette setup course, which I do plan to take at some point!
Thank you so much Aimee for your feedback!
Water is on my list – now all I have to find is a nice water location to paint (I already have an idea). I think I shared a few tips about painting water here in there in my classes, but I agree it can’t hurt to bring it together in a post.
And if you had asked me last year, I would have told you I rarely change the colors even in my small palette, but now indeed I have and I’m happy to share more about that soon! I will have to add that to the palette course, too.
I’d like help on drawing water. Everything from waves breaking to droplets on an object.