For the record, I am not affiliated in any way with this course. I’m merely an online art course junkie pointing out a free opportunity for artists.
It’s time to sign up for Sketchbook Revival again! Sketchbook Revival is a free online course led in the spring by Karen Abend. She brings together a community of teachers and rolls out new lessons daily for the duration of the workshop to improve your sketchbook practice. The lessons are generally short in nature, inspire creative practice, get your creativity flowing, and share tips and techniques from experts.
Course Outline
The workshop begins March 18th and runs through April 1st. The artists leading the sessions will share their passions for creating with everything from ink and graphite, to watercolor and acrylics, and collage and mixed media. You’ll also get ideas of how sketchbooks can be tools for observing your world, stretching your imagination, playing with color, emotional healing and wellbeing, and so much more.
The Journal or Sketchbook
This will be my fourth year enrolled in Sketchbook Revival. It begins with a session on how to make your own journal or sketchbook. There is absolutely no rule that you must use a handmade journal. You can 100% do the classwork in an existing journal, but make sure the paper is strong enough to handle wet media. Check out my list of art journal supply recommendations if you aren’t sure.
Lessons
Two lessons will be released with an email reminder daily. Students share their coursework in a supportive Facebook group. If you like to wait and come back later to view the lessons — that’s not a good idea with this course. Not long after it ends, the lessons are put behind lock and key. Then, for a reasonable price, you can access them forever. Karen published this year’s coursework will remain accessible through April 18, 2021.
Make an effort to skim the videos daily while they are still free and see which ones you want to invest time in. They won’t all be your cup of tea, but that’s the beauty of a variety course. Just do the ones you want.
Instructors
The list of contributing artists for 2021 is impressive. To see the full list, jump over to the Sketchbook Revival site. Traci Bautista, Tamara LaPorte, Shari Blaukopf, Karen Stamper, Jeanne Oliver, and Carla Sonheim are wonderful teachers and there are 22 more that I’m looking forward to discovering.
Registration
Even if you only watch one or two videos, this seems like a no brainer. Just hop over to the official Sketchbook Revival site to sign up. Hope to see you in class!