Why 10 Min Sketches Are Better Than 3 Hour Plein Air Paintings
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- Опубликовано: 9 мар 2024
- We’re talking about practice! And how sketching can actually be way better for your art than long plein air painting sessions. If you're new here my name is Danny Sabra. I am a self taught artist. I do a lot of #oilpainting, #pleinairpainting, #gouache and #watercolor painting, urban sketching, #penandink drawing and many other things! I upload tips on #paintingforbeginners and other subjects related to art and creativity. I like to do #landscapepainting, plein air, alla prima, as well as portraits of people and animal portraits. I believe every person has a creative voice that matters. and my goal is to empower everyone to share their creativity with the world! Subscribe for more #studiovlogs, plein air #paintwithme videos, #speedpaint and #urbansketching adventures!
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Chelsea Lang: / @chelsealang
Paint Coach: / @paintcoach
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I can't tell you how many times I've given up after an hour of driving around looking for the perfect subject to paint en plein air. This would of been a better use of my time - thanks for the advice!
You and me both! I think it’s helping me see more compositionally and when I do go out for the longer painting sessions I think this sketching will have benefitted me.
Nice reminder to look for the beauty close by and to practice capturing it.
Thank you. It’s as much a reminder to myself as anyone else. I often feel like I need a grand scene to make it “worth it” but I’m trying to fight against that impulse.
Very inspiring! I spend much too much time searching for the perfect subject and sometimes just give up altogether. Thank you for explaining your process and the reasons for it!
Thanks Carol! I fall into the same pitfalls all the time. It’s easy because we want to make “good” art, but I think for me, releasing that specific expectation allows me to make better art because I focus more on fundamentals. It’s like switching your thinking from fear of failure (“what if this scene isn’t any good?”) to optimistic curiosity (“how could this scene be made good?”) it’s very freeing.
Found my new favorite channel! You are so gifted with identifying the artist struggle and blocks and the way through them. Thank you SO MUCH
You are so kind! Thank you so much! Welcome to the journey! 🙏❤️
Just happened upon your video. Kudos: You managed to offer so much relevant info in such a short time and while painting. All very realistic and helpful!
Thanks Celine! Glad you found it helpful!
Thank you so much. I lost my inspiration to draw and paint over the past few years and I’ve been looking to get it back. You’ve pointed me in the right direction.
That’s awesome Mark! I know that feeling well. I committed to trying to do some art every day this year to combat that and the more I do the more I’m enjoying it. I hope you find the same for yourself.
"Is that a computer?" LOL 😆
Haha right? It says something about the world that if someone is standing holding something in their hands we assume it’s a computer rather than something analog.
You mention that some people view 10 min sketches as a waste of time since the sketches will not likely be used for anything and that this view comes from a position of arrogance. But you also mention that plein air painting sessions can be between 1.5-2 hours which is time that can be spent elsewhere…essentially calling it a waste of time. Both views come from arrogance to me. 10 min sketches are fun if you find it fun and plein air is fun if you find it fun. Plein air is a great way for my friends and I to bond on a day off. It really just boils down to how you enjoy spending time. But I wouldn’t make a video denouncing plein air completely lol
Oh I’m not denouncing it at all. That’s why I said the short sketches and the longer painting sessions are both beneficial. I think they both have pros and cons attached. I love plein air painting and if anything the 10 min sketches have been invigorating me to do more plein air. At the same time it can feel like there’s a lot of friction and expectation with long plein air sessions, including a lot of gear, finding the “perfect” scene to paint and the sense that a plein air painting should take 3 hours which not everyone has easily at their disposal. This is where a 10 min sketch can help you get out of that blocking mindset and still get out there. Like I said it’s easier to iterate on several 10 min sketches than it is on 3 hour paintings. But if you have the time ability and energy to iterate on 3 hour paintings, even better!
I’m a new watercolor plein air painter. While my layers dry, I work on small sketches in a sketchbook. So I can experience the best of both worlds I feel. I can do 1-2 longer paintings and a few small sketches all in a day
That’s a really great system! I love that
Thank you for this! The idea of learning more through quantity before focusing on quality was such an eye-opening understanding for me in my development as an artist. I first came across it in the book Art & Fear. One of the vignettes is about a ceramics class where the professor grades 1/2 class on quantity thrown and the other 1/2 on only working on 1 piece the whole semester. By far, the highest quality work was found in the quantity side of the room. Fascinating!
That’s such a great point and Art and Fear is one of my favorite books! Although I forgot about that story about the pottery class it’s such a great example! I think fundamentally as is the case with many of my videos this is a much needed reminder for myself as much as it is for anyone else, because I so often get caught up in trying to make my art “better” and lose sight of the process that will actually get me there
Nice explanation of how to go about being practical. We’re not all in art school. We don’t all have the time to “just paint.”
Exactly! Most of us have lives and responsibilities that take up most of our time and energy but that doesn’t mean art can’t be an important part of it
Thanks for your presentation. I think you are right about doing smaller and shorter sketches in the field to catch the essence of the scene. I too have struggled with arduous painting in plein air and will try this. 🎨🎨🎨
Thank you Mary. It’s really been helping me a lot. Instead of feeling drained and overwhelmed because I don’t have enough time or energy to go out for a full painting or finding a scene, simplifying the process has been very invigorating and energizing and if anything I think it is recharging me to go out for some longer sessions soon
I am getting a lot out of your videos. Thank you so much!
Thank you so much.
Yes I understand. I like to do both: quick color studies or sketches with a pencil and full-blown plein air sessions. It depends on what I want and what situation I find myself in.
When I take a break during the day or come across something interesting, I reach for my sketchbook. But when I'm on vacation or have a day off, I find a good spot and start painting.
I always take a snapshot of the location with my phone so I can finish the piece later at home if the lighting situation has changed or I got distracted.
Since I live in Germany, people's reactions in public are a little different. I was painting on a river bank last summer and there was a walking path full of people next to my spot.
Most of them just looked over at me or ignored me completely.
I was once in Italy on the island of Sicily, which has some very interesting sights, ancient Greek temples, lava fields from the Etna volcano and endless fields full of lemon trees and olive bushes. While painting a sunflower field, a farmer and his wife showed up. I think they were nervous about me stealing their goods.
So we had a little conversation with lots of gestures, since I don't speak a word of Italian and they don't speak any German either. Later that day I had a beautiful but unfinished picture and a bouquet of sunflowers, freshly picked lemons and a bottle of wine in my car.
In Latvia I was painting a seascape on a deserted part of the beach when a dog ran over me and pursued me back to my campsite. That wasn't funny at all.
Wow Marco! I’d love to come paint in those places sometime! I’ve definitely had passers by compliment me many times but I think because I was in a residential area and didn’t have an obvious sign of an artist (an easel etc) she didn’t know what I was doing and was curious.
I can drive about 20 minutes and be in rural farmland but even so I’m more hesitant to paint out there because it is private land and I don’t want to upset anyone. Maybe someday I can paint in Europe. That would be the dream!
This is of great value. I am new to plein air and struggling with how much time to give to each piece. It certainly is not like working in my studio.
Thank you Dan! I find it a challenge too and it’s totally different in the studio. I mostly paint outside so adjusting to the tempo of studio painting is a challenge for me. I think both short and long painting sessions have immense value for us.
Thanks for the informative video ❤
You’re welcome! Thanks Mark!
Love this, Danny :)
Thank you Sarb 🙏
quick turarounds are really important, compositional/tonal sketches are to painting, what rapid prototyping is to programming, well explained, thx!
That’s a really good point! Thanks beedee! 🙏
Congratulations.👏
Thanks Ricardo 🙏
Every single painting you paint is an exercise. And some times you paint a winner, most times not, and that's ok because you learn something from the exercise. And that's the most important thing. Relax. Get out there, and dive in. Plein air is a tool to make you more perceptive.
Well said Dan. I think every piece we make whether successful or not carries lessons into the next piece we make.
Thanks!
Thank you so much Evie! ❤️🙏
What are the gouache colors you are using? Thanks.
I’m just using permanent white and ivory black by Winsor and Newton. The other colors in my palette are cadmium red, yellow ochre and ultramarine blue but I experiment with tons of different colors all the time. Right now just black and white has been fun to help me focus on tonal values. I’ve also been experimenting with burnt Sienna and white.
Do you find acrylics are better than gouache?
Hi Sunanith! Not necessarily. They both have strengths for certain things you might try to achieve. I like how acrylic dries permanently but I like how gouache reactivates. It depends on what the goal is. This sketch was done with gouache.
Did they ask if your sketchbook was a computer?!?
Yes. Yes they did. Haha. To be fair I also had a camera pointing at it so I could see her noticing technology involved. But it probably also speaks to how when people are staring at something in their hand it’s usually a screen of some sort rather than something analog. That’s a life goal for me if the analog time surpasses the screen time! 🤞
Is that a computer?😮
To be fair I think she saw my camera and was confused lol
🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻✌🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
🙏
Carrying all the paint gear is a drag. I prefer sketching and taking photos.
It sure can be! I’m trying to pair down my gear and only take the essentials.