A sketchbook is a book or pad with blank pages for sketching and is frequently used by artists for drawing or painting as a part of their creative process. Some also use sketchbooks as a sort of blueprint for future art pieces.
In Japan, fans often bring sketchbooks to dōjinshi (independent manga or fanzine) conventions to get drawings from their favorite artists.
The exhibition of sketchbooks at the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University in 2006 suggested that there were two broad categories for classifying sketches:
Observation: this focuses on the documentation of the external world and includes many such travel and nature studies and sketches recording an artist's travels.
Invention: this follows the artists' digressions and internal journeys as they develop compositional ideas.
Contents
Types of sketchbooks
Sketchbooks come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, with varied covers, and differing numbers of pages. Sketchbooks began as a way to provide a readily available supply of drawing paper in the convenient form of a book. The finish of work found in the sketchbook varies widely depending on the artist and their style of work, with some having very simple drawings and notes, and some having highly worked images. Over time, it might allow others to see the artist's progress, as their style and skills develop. Many artists personalize their sketchbook by decorating the covers. Sketches are sometimes removed from sketchbooks at a later date.
Sketchbooks made out of high quality paper, differentiated by weight (referring to density of the sheets) and tooth (also called grain), allow for a wide variety of techniques to be used, ranging from pencil drawings, to watercolor, to colored pencil, to pen and ink, and so on. Certain paper characteristics might be more desirable for use with certain mediums. Sketchbook paper comes in a variety of tones, ranging from pure white, to cream, and includes less common varieties, such as gray.
In displays of contemporary art, as well as historical retrospectives, intimate and ephemeral records are increasingly valued, resulting in the exhibition of sketchbooks alongside "finished" artworks.
Computer technology has allowed for the development of digital sketchbooks, such as Apple's iPad devices and Microsoft's Surface tablets.
Online sketchbooks
The internet has increased access to documents such as the sketchbooks of famous artists which previously would only be seen in an exhibition. A number of the sketchbooks of famous artists have been digitally recorded and are now available online. Links are provided in the external links section below.
Leonardo da Vinci (Italian 1452–1519) made hundreds of pages of sketchbooks during his life, filled with drawings and writings that went along with his very curious mind, you can find some of his sketchbook pages at the following link:
www.unmuseum.org
Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch 1606–1669) Good example of Rembrandt's sketches and drawings can be found in:
the British Museum and
Getty Museum – sketch of an artist in his studio
Goya (Spanish 1746- 1828) was a painter and print maker and made an important contribution to the art of drawing.
The Italian Sketchbook created in the 1770s and currently in the Museo del Prado
Eight albums of sketchbooks by Goya This link provides a summary of each of the albums, what it contains and what materials were used — the site is still under construction.
sketchbook drawings held by Museum of Fine Art in Boston
J. M. W. Turner (English 1775–1851) produced 300 sketchbooks and around 30,000 sketches and watercolours on his travels. Five years after his death, the majority of his art was bequeathed to the nation and is housed at Tate Britain
Turner sketchbooks, Turner Bequest, Tate Britain This link provides access to all 300 sketchbooks.