New Art Supplies
I’ve been unsure for a while about what this blog should be. In my head, blogs are supposed to be educational, full of how-to's, tips and hacks. However, I'm an aspiring artist at the start of my journey. I don't feel I know enough to teach others what to do. So instead, I need to share the journey.
Each week I will post a studio edit full of updates on what I have been doing to improve my creative skills, from participating in art challenges to taking courses. There also might be a few more focused posts, perhaps reviewing some of the art supplies I'm trying out or sharing a new product launch.
Today I'm going to tell you about what I have been up to the last couple of weeks. There has been a significant shift in my creative output, and it has had some exciting consequences.
Catching You Up
To put things into context, I studied art and photography at A-Level but did nothing with them. My university course had a design element but turned out to be mostly coding. The most creative my career got after that was being a web designer in a digital agency. When I went self-employed, I worked on several web design projects and some brand identity designs. Other than these little design bits, I haven't done much creative work in the 12 years since A-Levels.
And then I got an iPad. I think I bought my iPad in 2020 because I started following illustrators on Instagram using them, and I wanted one too. I played around with Adobe Fresco, then invested in Procreate, and loved it. I loved that I could make artwork with the help of the tablet. I never thought I was talented enough to create good traditional art, so my creative career has never really kicked off. But, I thought the iPad was the answer. It certainly prompted me to start creating more.
Trying POSCA Pens
In the last few months, I have begun more experimenting with my sketchbook. Again, I was inspired by Instagram illustrators using different mediums, but I also wanted to spend a bit more time away from a screen. Domestika then advertised a POSCA painting course on Domestika, and I liked the look of it, so I spontaneously enrolled.
I enrolled in the course, made a quick trip to Hobbycraft for supplies and completed the course on the same day. I loved opening these new pens and experimenting with creating fun, vibrant designs. I had some recycled postcards from previous projects in my draw, so I started designing these. I loved it so much that I ordered 200 more postcards so I could keep practising painting and drawing on them.
New Pencils
I love the look of pencil art I see online, so I wanted to have another medium to add to the mix. About a week later, with approximately 15 postcards creatively used, I popped to Sainsbury's for some bits and came out with some colouring pencils. I created a rather lovely landscape drawing and filmed the process.
Another New Medium
I was hooked on buying and experimenting with new mediums by this point, so I ordered some Ohuhu alcohol markers. I have done a few little experiments with the Ohuhu pens, both quick little blending tests and full postcard designs. These will take a bit more practice to master using them well.
Each new medium brings excitement to create new things and try new styles. It's prompting me to create art daily, and it's now becoming a part of my evening routine to get out my art supplies, put on a podcast and get creative! I'm enjoying trying these new things. Getting away from the drawing assistance and the ability to undo on a tablet is challenging. There have been a few occasions where I have made the undo gesture in real life when I colour outside my lines or don't blend the colours well.
It's all taking some getting used to and will take a LOT of practice, but I enjoy the process and seeing progress in my work. I hope to continue practising art daily, trying new combinations of mediums and introducing new subject matter and styles to test what I'm capable of and try to find my voice as an artist.
Added benefits
Art is not only a fun hobby, away from a screen, occupying evenings. But getting more arty has led to other things. I'm now sharing more than ever on my @stephwelch.art Instagram page, making fun reels and seeing a little more engagement.
I have also had loads of fun creating videos for my YouTube channel, which I have rebranded slightly to include my love of art. As a result, my watch hours are increasing, and my channel is starting to grow. I now have so many creative ideas for how to share my content that I didn't have when I was creating digitally.
Long may this creative streak continue!
