Ongoing + Weekly Assignments
This ongoing assignment is to be done simultaneously with the weekly assignments.
However, if your schedule doesn’t fit well with this, and you want to do the ongoing assignment at a separate time than the weekly assignments, our suggestion is to do the ongoing assignment for 3 weeks straight.
The continuity is important so any time that you can draw daily for 3 weeks is great.
Prompt
Draw daily for a minimum of ten minutes in your sketchbook. Pick up a pencil and physically put it on your sketchbook, don’t think too hard about what you do.
Even if you are scribbling the crappiest marks in the world for ten minutes that still counts!
This prompt is not about creating great artwork, it’s about logging the pencil mileage and creating a habit that will accumulate over time. For ideas on sketchbook prompts, see the videos below.
Recommended media
Pencil, colored pencil, Caran d’Ache Neocolor I Crayon, any type of pen, markers. (any drawing medium that won’t smudge is ideal for sketchbook work)
Sketchbooks can be any size you like. We advise getting a sketchbook that isn’t “too nice” so you are more likely to make a mess and not get too precious with your sketches.
Inspiration
Leonardo’s sketchbooks, Prof Lieu’s ugly, messy sketchbooks
How do you start a page in your sketchbook when you don’t know what to draw, or feel unmotivated? (or both!) See a drawing demo which provides several prompts for how to get your creative juices flowing.
Contrary to the sketchbooks you see on Instagram, real artist sketchbooks are a mess, full of scraps of ideas, crummy looking doodles and drawings, and are rarely finished.
Discussion led by Art Prof Clara Lieu, and Teaching Artists Alex Rowe and Deepti Menon.
Timed Drawing Videos
Use our timed drawing exercises videos, which play 2 min. poses of animals for 1 hour.
Draw along as each 2 min. pose plays with a timer you can see throughout the video. See our full list of timed drawing videos here.
Sketchbook Tours
- Lauryn Welch, painting
- Cat Huang, illustration
- Jules Sharpe, illustration & comics
- Annelise Yee, jewelry
- Natalie Linn, illustration
- Monika Hedman, fine arts
- Julie Benbassat, plein air & illustration
Sketchbook Prompts
- Prompt 1: Draw vertical lines, using marks as diverse as possible. Switch to horizontal lines.
- Prompt 2: Draw what is right in front of you.
- Prompt 3: Draw anything from our free reference photo collection
- Prompt 4: Draw from an art book, or any book with visuals.
- Prompt 5: Blind contour self-portraits.
- Prompt 6: Rip up an old artwork and collage it together to create a new artwork.
- Prompt 7: Create a character or your worst trait and your best trait.
- Prompt 8: Create a drawing based on the most recent text message you received.
Jump to: Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5 · Lesson 6
