The Beginning Of A Sketchbook

Whilst perusing Instagram I saw that Shilpa Agashe, somebody who I have been following for quite some time was using a sketchbook, the way she was working in it really attracted my attention. There were painterly elements, text and collage. I really liked the aesthetics of it and it inspired me to have a go at using a sketchbook myself. I’ve never been much of a sketchbook user, I start them with good intentions but never seem to make it past the first few pages. I feel a bit like a bad artist for not using one, surely all good artists keep sketchbooks that could be works of art in themselves?! I only really kept them at university because they were a required element. I love seeing other peoples sketchbooks and find them to be a great insight into how an artist works. I tend to just draw on separate bits of paper, but I end up being very precious with it, hoping that whatever I make will be good enough to put in my shop and sell. There isn’t much room for experimentation with that kind of thinking.

So, with the U.K. in the middle of lockdown due to coronavirus I decided to start a sketchbook. I dug out an old book which I bought from L. Cornelissen & Son in London many years ago, I’d already ripped several of the first pages out so it was practically new. A fresh start. The only rule with my sketchbook was that there are no rules whatsoever. If I want to draw little landscapes, birds and flowers in my usual mediums then that’s fine, if I want to dip the whole thing in paint then that’s fine too. The point is to create, to gather ideas, to record what’s going on in my head and the outside world. To help inspire new work, to perfect techniques, to try something new, to work with colour and to continue with black and white. It’s all valid.

I’ve began making drawings in my sketchbook. A little pencil sketch from one of my last walks before lockdown, a sweet drawing of blossom made in fountain pen. A bright green tree with flecks of blue which I’m desperate to paste over with something else. Some birds chosen at random from my RSPB pocket guide, a detailed landscape of silhouetted trees in fine liner pen and a blousy daffodil with handmade paper collaged over the top. The sketchbook has already inspired ideas for future work, I’m excited to get stuck in to it when my son goes to sleep, it has ignited a need to draw again which I had been missing for a while.

Do you keep a sketchbook? If so then does it help you with your work?

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2019: In Review

2019, what a year.

A Collection of Commissioned Floral Drawings

I experienced the most change in 2019 than at any other time in my life. The year started with me being very heavily pregnant, anxiously waiting for exchange and completion on our first home together. The keys came in mid January and we had just enough time to give the flat an almighty clean and with (a lot of) help from friends paint a few rooms. We moved in and on the 8th February (nine days overdue) our son Harrison arrived. The next days/weeks passed in a blur. Sleepless nights, breastfeeding struggles, spontaneous tears all mixed in with pure joy, moments of disbelief that we had made something so perfect and a constant feeling of adjustment.

In April I picked up a pen to draw for the first time since Harrison arrived, I managed some simple sweet peas in fountain pen. In May we took a trip to Cornwall to visit my dad, it was our first little family holiday and felt so needed. In June I started working on a new ‘woodland study’ drawing for an exhibition with The Arborealists; an artist group whose focus is on trees. It was an honour to be asked by founder Tim Craven if I would take part in the exhibition at the Turbine House in Reading as a guest. The exhibition was a success and it was wonderful to be able to take some time to attend the private view and meet some of the participating artists in person. The exhibition coincided with me ‘solo-parenting’ for a week while Craig went to a festival, Harrison and I got on extremely well on our own though of course we were very happy when he returned.

Woodland Study VI at The Arborealists and Guests Exhibition at The Turbine House

Summer was spent picnicking with friends, fruit picking, taking walks, visiting National Trust gardens, Harrisons very first day at the beach and several trips to Lymington to indulge in pub lunches with my grandparents. Inspired by all the flowers we’d seen on our day trips I started making more and more floral drawings, most of which were on beautiful handmade paper that I’d sourced. The drawings that I made and shared led to a few commissions which I was grateful for but found to lead to a bit of anxiety as I felt under pressure to create the perfect drawing. Several of the floral drawings went on display at The Sheep Shed Gallery in Weyhill for an exhibition titled Where Flowers Bloom, as I’d hoped when I had a solo exhibition in 2018 I now have a lovely relationship with the gallery which has led to me being asked to exhibit in group shows a few times.

A Favourite Commission - Seeded Eucalyptus

Gardenia Commission

August 28th was a heartbreaking day as we had to say goodbye to our beloved golden retriever, Megan. She loved us unconditionally and brought us 14 years of joy and laughs. We still miss her everyday.

In September we attended the wedding of one of my dear university friends, Harrison stopped breastfeeding and we finished two terms worth of Baby Sensory classes. It really felt like Harrison was starting to go from baby to little boy. In October we were gifted five nights stay in Craig’s sisters caravan in the New Forest. We went for windy walks along the coast of Milford-on-Sea, ate pub lunches and drank hot chocolates, visited beautiful Exbury Gardens and took a walk from Beaulieu to Bucklers Hard. Since moving into our flat in January we had experienced some really awful noise disturbances from our upstairs neighbour, combined with lack of sleep and a fairly constant feeling of exhaustion we were so grateful to be able to escape for a few days to enjoy true peace and quiet. A new mortgage, new car and a new baby on basically one income meant that ‘adventures’ were a little few and far between throughout the year so a free trip really meant a lot and gave us some lovely memories - our first holiday just us three!

In November Craig and I celebrated 13 years together, we got to enjoy an uninterrupted brunch while Harrison slept peacefully in his pram and in the afternoon we took him to our local National Trust estate, The Vyne for a little DIY family portrait session. I also released two brand new giclée prints taken from my ‘woodland study’ series of drawings, they came out better than expected and I hope that many will find new homes.

In December I had two drawings on display at The Sheep Shed Gallery in Weyhill at an exhibition titled Synergy. I was pleased to learn that both drawings sold. The rest of the month was all about enjoying our first festive season together as a new family. I took some time away from social media after the results of the general election and realised that I’d like to take a break more often, I’m so guilty of constantly scrolling and spend a lot of my time liking, commenting and sharing other peoples work that I frankly felt quite burnt out. It’s great to support other people by engaging as it does make a difference but I was making it too much of a priority, feeling bad if I missed somebody’s post.

Winter Tree, pen on paper

It’s been a big year personally and that’s one of the reasons why my art business has not done as well as 2018 as I haven’t been able to devote as much time to it. In 2018 I sold over 100 drawings, in 2019 I sold around 40. In 2018 my website received over 7000 unique visitors, in 2019 just under 4000. I only managed a few journal entries in all of 2019 whereas in 2018 I ran an artist interview series and wrote some very personal posts too which got a lot of traction. Without new posts being added regularly it’s hard to get people to click on to your website, this year I’d like to increase my journal entries again, possibly by doing ‘artist spotlights’ where I write about other artists work, like an interview but without having to bother the artists with lots of questions.

Mottisfont in July - A New Woodland Study Drawing

I would also like to create more drawings that I can make prints from to create a little bit more passive income, I’m in receipt of child benefit as our household income is under the £50,000 threshold but I don’t receive maternity pay. The only money I have is money I make from my shop, child benefit and money that Craig gives me. I very rarely buy myself anything, most of the money that goes into my account goes on formula for Harrison, activities for him like ‘messy play’ and other baby groups, food shopping and household essentials. I’d love to be able to make enough that I don’t have to ask for money from my partner, can buy things that I need easily and things that Harrison needs too. Ultimately I’d like to earn enough to be able to have my income taken into account when we move on from our flat and into a house, it’s going to be a big financial struggle moving on as house prices in our area of north Hampshire get more expensive and not enough affordable housing is built.

It’s been one hell of a year, we’re used to working hard and travelling hard - our twenties were all about adventures to faraway lands but 2019 was probably our biggest adventure yet; parenthood. We couldn’t be prouder parents of our little boy, he’s fast approaching his first birthday and has such a big personality, mischievous, cheeky with an eye for trouble. We love making memories with him and hope 2020 will be a great year full of fun. My art making and business running has to slot in around Harrison these days but I like to think that I can make 2020 more productive so that I can spin both plates of artist and mum.

Harrison’s First Christmas

Have you written a review of your year or hopes and goals for 2020? I'd love to read if so, let me know in the comments below. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them. ❤️

2018: In Review

What a difference a year makes!

Sweet Peas by Claire Leach

2018 turned out to be a life changing year, my partner Craig and I started looking for a home of our own and decided to start a family too. Today, Wednesday 16th January marks my 38th week of pregnancy and the day that Craig and I are finally able to pick up the keys to our first home together! Buying a home and having a baby are huge decisions, ones that we’ve spent years talking about. 2018 finally felt like the right time to make our ‘next chapter’ plans a reality.  So in spring and summer of 2018 our ‘next chapter’ began as we found out that we were expecting and an offer was accepted on a home of our own. These two big changes shaped our year dramatically and mine in particular as my original plan to get a part time job went out the window. I worked out that with sales from my shop I could still afford to pay my way and decided that being self-employed would work best when it came to welcoming our little one into the world. Luckily Craig’s salary meant that we were able to get the mortgage we needed to get a foot on the first rung of the property ladder.

Wren and Sprig of Leaves by Claire Leach

Besides the big changes personally I found 2018 to be a challenging and rewarding year for my art career. January started fantastically well in my online shop. I added the remaining 50 of my 100 day postcard project as well as woodland landscapes and a series on native British trees to my shop which went down very well earning me over £600 for the month. I also wrote a personal blog post in January all about my struggles with the title ‘artist’ and how I overcame my confidence issues and started referring to myself as an artist without hesitation. The post was shared by Jackson Art Supplies on Facebook and has had to date over 1,000 views making it my most read, liked and commented on journal entry.

The first half of the year was spent making drawings inspired by my eleven month travels from 2016-17 for my solo exhibition at The Sheep Shed Gallery in Weyhill, Andover. The exhibition took place in July and went well, helping me to establish a working relationship with the gallery and getting my work outside the studio and onto gallery walls. Exhibiting at The Sheep Shed Gallery in July meant that when a spot opened up unexpectedly in September I was one of the first to be offered some wall space which I graciously accepted. I created a small series of tree and landscape drawings to display alongside a fellow local artist and was pleased to be able to add another bit of exhibiting experience to my artist CV.

I had my first commissions in 2018, a set of two trees and a robin which I found challenging as I’d only ever been used to making work to my own specification rather than somebody else’s. Luckily the drawings went down very well and gave me confidence in my ability to work to a brief.

Silver Birch and Veteran Oak by Claire Leach

My social media presence went from strength to strength over the year, I finally achieved over 2,000 Instagram followers and increased my Twitter following from roughly 900 to over 2,000 followers. Focusing on growing my social media helped massively with sales as many of my drawings were bought by people who found me via these channels.

I entered a couple of open submission exhibitions with my drawing Woodland Study IV including the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy for the first time. Unfortunately both attempts were unsuccessful and led me to wonder whether the money and effort of entering open submissions was worth it. I shared my thoughts on Twitter and Instagram and was met with such a lovely and supportive response from fellow artists and creatives.

A campaign that I greatly admire and support called Just A Card featured me on their blog and Instagram account which was such an honour. I also used my own online space to interview ten artists over the year that I admire with the hope of learning from them and increasing their reach online.

Woodland Study IV by Claire Leach

Woodland Study V by Claire Leach

As the year drew on my income fluctuated massively, one month I made just £30 from my online shop while other months I’d earn more than enough to pay my rent and bills. I went through some tough moments where I felt irresponsible for deciding to start a family without having built up my art business enough. In the end I had to accept that I was at a point where I couldn’t change things and had to learn to accept help financially from my partner. My hope is that in the future as my online following grows and my work progresses and hopefully improves that I’ll be able to earn more from my shop with original drawings and perhaps develop a range of work that can be made into prints to create a more passive income. Despite the income fluctuations I ended the year with 102 drawings sold, something that I’m very proud of as I think of how far I’ve come since opening my online shop in July 2017.

Alongside a year of drawing, pregnancy and house buying I also turned 30 in March, celebrating with a wonderful trip to snowy Norway. I was lucky enough to have a family holiday in Spain in May and a trip to Cornwall and the Forest of Dean where yet again I managed to gather so much inspiration for future work.

It’s been quite a year and I have so much to look forward to in 2019 too. I’ve decided to refrain from making goals this year as I have no idea how I’ll adapt to motherhood and how that will affect my life as an artist. Hopefully I’ll be back to drawing in time and my art career will enable me to contribute financially to our little family.

Have you written a review of your year or hopes and goals for 2019? I'd love to read if so, let me know in the comments below. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them. ❤️