ARTIST: John Fishman, United States ARTIST STATEMENT: I have admired the design of guitars since I began playing them as a teenager, and built a few of my own in high school and college. They are truly practical art, meant to be admired and used. In my mind, Fender Telecasters, such as this 1962 “Fiesta […]
January 3rd, 2019
Artist: Michael Ryan, United States Artist Statement: For this illustration, I wanted to create a serene and magical evening snowfall scene. The gentle polar bear happily gazes up in wonderment at the snowflakes. I began this illustration by creating a light sketch with a mechanical pencil. I then inked the outline of the polar bear […]
August 28th, 2017
GAMMA SERIES Heavyweight: 150 gsm Shade: Ivory Surface: Medium Grain Finish Media: Dry media, light wash, ink Gallery: http://www.stillmanandbirn.com/gallery/gamma
May 1st, 2017
ARTIST: Alfonso Garcia Garcia, Spain The baroque Salvador Church is the second largest church of Seville after its Cathedral. It was built on the site of the city’s main mosque and some of its Moorish elements are still to be found in the church’s design.
MEDIA: Watercolor and ink SURFACE: Gamma Series – Heavyweight – […]
February 27th, 2017
ARTIST: André Mangabeira, Brazil ARTIST STATEMENT: Quite often I like to play with dark colors more focused on mood and atmosphere. I am passionate about my sketchbooks which provide me opportunity to explore new approaches in my daily creative process. Every time I want to draw people in my sketches or paintings, I have this […]
January 7th, 2017
Artist: Mark Fraley, United States Artist Statement: I had a series of recent sketchbook entries that I was not a big fan of. They were overworked, unfocused, not in line with what I set out to do. I decided to make a Hokusai-inspired wave to create a two page spread that would essentially “reverse the […]
January 4th, 2017
Artist: Cristina Urdiales, Spain Artist Statement: I sketched this piece during a summer holiday trip to Strasbourg in August, 2016. This clock is inside the cathedral. [Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, Alsace, France]. There are lots of people around and it only gets illuminated for five minutes now and then, so I had to work very […]
June 3rd, 2016
Artist: Moh’d Bilbeisi, United States Artist Statement: This watercolor was done as a quick sketch on the pages of my S&B journal. Paint was allowed to run and I changed its value to give it a form. The most important part was the pitched roof and the glass façade, again, they were allowed to run […]
December 1st, 2015
Artist: France Belleville-Van Stone Artist Statement: Because I rarely do a “pre-sketch” in pencil, I often end up with second or third attempts on one page. There is something healthy about keeping the failed drawings close at hand, to be reminded of where they went wrong. The construction lines cannot be erased as they were […]
October 16th, 2015
BEAUTIFUL WOMAN Artist: Jorge Santiago, Jr., United States Artist Statement: I enjoy drawing people more than anything, and when I saw this woman at the store I wished I had my sketchbook on me. I drew this after coming home, the image still strong in my mind. I remembered the woman’s outfit, the hair, the […]
May 21st, 2015
Artist: Allison Sohn, United States In a typically masculine-oriented summer blockbuster,” Mad Max: Fury Road” stands out for its unapologetic feminist streak. The film has compelling female characters, especially Imperator (“Commander”) Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron. Imperator Furiosa is the focus of this illustration along with other female characters in the film. This is […]
April 6th, 2015
Artist: Patrick Ng, Singapore Artist Statement: I sketched this drawing on location on the corner of Swanston & Flinders St. in the gorgeous city of Melbourne when we visited in December. I usually sketch direct with my Hero fountain pen (with fude nib), loaded with Noodler’s Bulletproof Black ink. So I stood there under the […]
January 30th, 2015
Artist: Cristina Urdiales, Spain Artist Statement: I visited Bali in December, 2014. The island has some very distinctive dances, but the best known one is Kecak, a ritual depicting a battle between good and evil. Despite its religious origins, Kecak is so popular that it has been adapted for tourists. Kecak includes chanting and exotic […]
December 20th, 2014
REPORT FROM A WINNER Canadian artist Owen Swain was one of the winners of our recent Holiday Giveaway. Owen posted about receiving his prize this week along with a drawing about it. The drawing is part of Owen’s daily drawing challenge which he celebrates during the Advent season. Here’s Owen’s report:
“I can hardly believe […]
September 16th, 2014
SCI-FI TEMPTRESS Illustrator Trev Stair has a great has a collection of interesting portraits in his sketchbooks .This one is of the character Rachael, the femme fatale character in the 1982 film “Blade Runner”.
Trev’s report: “I’ve always been a fan of Ridley Scott’s “Blade Runner”, so it was really fun to draw Sean Young’s […]
August 27th, 2014
Judith Alsop Miles posted this rainy day drawing at the beginning of August, soon after her return to the U.K. after living in southern France. It’s interesting to note how the artist captures the cloudy atmosphere of the day with water-soluble colored pencils, left dry. “Today was the first day of #DrawingAugust [tag] on Twitter. […]
August 6th, 2014
Wil Freeborn is an artist and Urban Sketchers correspondent living in Scotland. This is a report Wil sent us about an urban art installation celebrating the Commonwealth Games which ended last week in Glasgow: “I studied Environmental Art at Glasgow Art School but later pursued a career in design. I’ve been moving into illustration and […]
December 20th, 2013
Canadian graphic designer Chinh Nguyen was one of the winners of our Landscape Sketchbook Giveaway in October. Chinh chose an ivory-toned Gamma Series and this is Chinh’s report about her prize.
“I love painting poppies because of their vibrant colours and textures. Working from my snapshot, I began by doing a quick line drawing with […]
December 19th, 2013
Melbourne artist Jodi Wiley sent us this holiday drawing we’d like to share. “I sketched this festive Poinsettia from life over a morning coffee in a local cafe. I completed it in my Stillman & Birn Gamma Series journal on a page I pre-washed with Winsor & Newton watercolour. I used a PITT artist pen […]
November 21st, 2013
Marie Roberts is a Professor of Art at Fairleigh Dickenson University, where she teaches painting and drawing. She is also Artist in Residence at Coney Island USA, an arts organization dedicated to the cultural and economic revitalization of the Coney Island neighborhood Brooklyn. Marie sent us several wonderful drawings of the historic carousel located there. […]