The Memory of Sketching

Yesterday I blogged about using a few techniques to help me create a piece in my studio and how, to my mind, the most important one is the memory of making a sketch. In my example I talked about sketching from life but I think this applies even when you're drawing from your imagination.

When I sketch, from life or from my imagination, I am seeing in a way that imprints detail and the uniqueness of a thing on my memory. Using my hand to reproduce what I see etches the experience on my mind and helps me remember. (My son attends a Montessori school and the teachers there use this 'muscle memory' technique to teach children the shape of letters.) As I look at that sketch I am reminded, not just of what it looks like, but of the time I spent drawing. All my senses are involved and I get to be in that moment again. And, if I can remember all those things, I can try and get them into the piece I am creating. My work will have life, will reflect my emotions & thoughts at the time, will have depth, and will be more than just a copy of photo or what's in front of me. In some ways it will be as real as the original. In some ways it will be more. That's what I'm aiming for when I'm creating and it is the memory of sketching that brings this to my work.