Inktober 2020- Part 2

For the 3rd year in a row, I paricipated in a drawing challenge called Inktober. Inktober is a month long art challenge created by artist Jake Parker that is focused on improving skills and developing positive drawing habits. Every day for the month of October anyone participating in the Inktober challenge creates an ink drawing and posts it online.

I must admit that I got a little behind and didn’t finish the challenge until November 10. I was enjoying the challenge but didn’t want to rush it as life’s nuances crept in to prevent a timely completion! So while others were posting their last drawings, I was still plugging away.

But here, finally, is the second half of the month’s (or so) worth of drawings and the prompts that sparked them. Enjoy!

Day 16- Rocket. Made to look like a 1940’s ad for Rocket Popsicles. I had seen a show on Netflix about old toy ads. The language was simple and direct. Very innocent, too! I know they had their share of problems back then, but it did seem like such a simple life!

Day 17- Storm. The storm we are in as demonstrated by Bugs Bunnies’ Tasmanian Devil.

Day 18-Trap. A watercolor sketch of pitcher plants. Those carnivorous plants that bugs get trapped in. The con men of the plant world!

Day 19- Dizzy. A dizzy mixed media piece created during a long Zoom webinar. Thank God for mute and video off buttons!

Day 20- Coral. Imagine how confusing it would be to swim around a coral reef if you where a new fish on the block. That’s what I attempted to depict. This only took 20-30 minutes to create and is one of my favorite drawings in the sketchbook!

Day 21- Sleep. A precious picture of my daughter and husband taking a nap together after a long drive to visit friends many years ago.

Day 22- Chef. Jay Far from Bangkok who won a Michlin Star for her amazing Thailand Street Food. I learned about her through a Netflix show we’ve been watching over this pandemic called “Somebody Feed Phil”. It’s basically about a funny guy named Phil who travels around the world eating fantastic food. What a great job to have!

Day 23- Rip. A ripped paper collage of Rip Van Winkle. I admit, this took way too long to create but was so much fun. (By the way, I just now realized that I had written the wrong title on the piece! Am I the last to notice this?!)

Day 24- Dig. A gravedigger a la Day of the Dead motif. Such fun to create! Yes, I’m a little off on my days, too!

Day 25- Buddy. Inspired by a photo of my son and daughter walking into a grocery store together. They are truly buddies. It is so wonderful to witness! Again, yes, I’m off a day!

Day 26- Hide. I created this with a combination of gel printing, pen and ink, and colored pencil. It was another one of those that evolved as I worked on it. But I’m happy with the underwater feel that was created.

Day 27 and 28- Music and Float. I was feeling very happy and hopeful when I created this. The story I made up is that it is of Hattie Reynolds and her Floating Gospel Band singing “Oh Happy Day.”

Day 29- Shoes. Shoes are a metaphor for friends. You got your sporty ones, your casual flip flops (acquaintances?), your dressy ones, your ones that pinch your feet and you probably should get rid of… these shoes just happen to be some of my favorites. They’re my good, reliable friends!

Day 30- Ominous. A watercolor sketch of a cornfield with lots of black shadows. Whenever you see a cornfield in a movie you know it’s not going to be good!

Day 31- Crawl. For the last page in my sketchbook I chose to combine the words “Crawling to Day 31” with an image of a vine crawiling up a branch.

So there it is. The last half of my 2020 Inktober Challenge. Even though it took me longer than expected, I really enjoyed trying out different styles and mediums. It was fun to come up with creative ideas for the prompts as well.

Check out my Instagram page for a video tour of my completed Inktober sketchbook. I even designed the front and back covers as well.

Also, I have just created a shop on my website that features gift items (cards, stickers, magnets, and a 2020 ornament) of some of my past Inktober drawings- and I plan to add a few more from this year’s challenge as well. Click here to visit my shop.

Thanks for joining me on this Inktober journey. I appreciate all of you who have commented and cheered me on as I posted them on my social media sites. Your encouragement kept me going!

Inktober 2020- Part 1

For the 3rd year in a row, I am participating in a drawing challenge called Inktober. Inktober is a month long art challenge created by artist Jake Parker that is focused on improving skills and developing positive drawing habits. Every day for the month of October anyone participating in the Inktober challenge creates an ink drawing and posts it online.

Here is the first half of the month’s worth of drawings and the prompts that sparked them. Enjoy!

Day 1- Fish. I depicted a fish from deep in the bowels of the ocean where light barely reaches. This one has jewels that reflect the light to draw smaller fish to it. A cunning little fella!

Day 2- Wisp. I was thinking about this word and wondering what it meant to me as I was walking my dog- and then walked right into a spider web! (I’m not proud to say that I squealed!) But there was my answer, a wispy spider web- barely discernible yet mighty. In it a spider is able to catch insects and make them immobile. The stuff of nightmares!

Day 3- Bulky. When I Googled this word all the images were of bodybuilders. Not what I was expecting! (I was thinking more along the lines of bulky sweaters and bulging sacks of Santa’s toys.) But I began to sketch them and learned a lot about muscles and where they can be located if you work hard enough! But I also learned that I prefer bodybuilders with a little clothing on them. So my drawing morphed into a circus performer named Sven, The Mighty Strongman from the little known Macdowell’s Traveling Circus out of Kalamazoo, MI!

Day 4- Radio. Good Morning Vietnam! My favorite movie of the late, great Robin Williams. This movie was funny, heartwarming, and frightening- and Robin was the glue that held it together. I admit, my likeness of him isn’t great- but I hope I captured his animated energy.

Day 5- Blade. Blade Runner 2020. Grass doesn’t stand a chance!

Day 6- Rodent. The Nutcracker battling The Mouse King. My tribute to the Nutcracker which we’ll sadly have to miss this year due to Covid. This is one of those pieces that started in one place and ended up in a completely different one!

Day 7- Fancy. There’s nothing fancier than an Indian wedding. A gorgeous Indian couple in their finery.

Day 8- Tooth. Tooth=Smile=Happy=”Shiney Happy People'“ by REM. This was was just fun to do!!

Day 9- Throw. A throw down between kids and puppies. Who will win??!

Day 10- Hope. I was going more for the feeling of hope here. All I know is that we need lots of hope right now so I decided to fill the page with it and put it in big lettering. Feel free to take some and pass it on!

Day 11- Disgusting. A disgusting stew of ears, worms, insects, and chicken feet!

Day 12- Slippery. The leaves can be slick when you’re out on your bike. But the fall colors make it worth the risk!

Day 13- Dune. Out exploring on the grassy dunes.

Day 14- Armor. Once again taking liberty with the prompt. Thinking about the shell of the turtle as it’s armor. Decided to do a gouache drawing inspired by aboriginal art. So fun!!

Day 15- Outpost.There’s a row of these put out by the rangers at Glacier Ridge Metro Park. If you come by at the right time you’ll hear a chorus of birds and see them flying in and out of them.

So there you have it. The first half of Inktober. I’m having a lot of fun with it while allowing myself to be creative both with the subjects and the styles.

I admit I don’t always create these every day and I always seem to be a few days behind. But I create them whenever I can and post them on Instagram when I do. Follow me at @artatdawn to see them as they happen!

Which one is your favorite and why?

I look forward to bringing you more drawings at the end of the month!