A lovely image of a notebook that belonged to Rodin. I found this on the website of an auction house, where it was sold for over 20,000 Euros. A little out of my price range! I guess I’ll have to stick to eBay for buying notebooks that belonged to artists! See the original image and … Continue reading Rodin’s Notebook
For years, I’ve wanted to find an example of the original “carnets moleskine” that existed for many decades before the capital-M Moleskine brand was founded. It’s difficult to research online, as the capital-M notebooks dominate the results if you try to search any related terms. I wrote about it in a blog post a few … Continue reading 1898 Agenda Notebook
I thought this was quite an intriguing presentation of an artist’s sketchbooks– though perhaps frustrating, as you’d want to be able to see more! It’s from an installation of artworks by Antonio Marras, who is best known as a fashion designer. He may have made a name for himself as a fashion designer, but the … Continue reading Notebooks Under Glass
I stumbled across an old article from Wallpaper about a 2015 exhibition of the sketchbooks of British architect Chris Wilkinson, at the Royal Academy. Looks like it must have been a very interesting show! Here is an image from one of Chris Wilkinson’s sketchbooks: I also love this image of his pile of sketchbooks. Almost … Continue reading Chris Wilkinson’s Sketchbooks
Photographer Nigel Shafran‘s “Work Books” were exhibited in 2018 as the first show at a new London gallery, Sion and Moore. Here’s a few photos from a Wallpaper article about the show: Rather than present the photographs he is celebrated for, the work books – part sketchbook, part diary – give a deeper, more intimate … Continue reading Nigel Shafran’s Notebooks
If you are fortunate enough to be anywhere near Leeds, you are lucky! An exhibition of Henry Moore’s notebooks and sketchbooks is opening this week: The Henry Moore Institute and Leeds Arts University are marking 100 years since Yorkshire’s own Henry Moore started studying sculpture, the first step on his journey to becoming a world … Continue reading Henry Moore’s Notebooks and Sketchbooks
The gallery exhibition below at An Lantair in Scotland looks like quite an amazing presentation of sketchbooks. The sketchbooks were created during the lockdown, and of course with pandemic precautions continuing, it’s difficult for many people to view it in person. But you can see it online in their virtual gallery. [An Lantair’s] Lockdown Sketchbooks exhibition is … Continue reading Scottish Lockdown Sketchbooks
I’ve previously featured Jordan Mechner’s Sketchbooks on this site, and more recently, I spotted an article he wrote on Medium about his habit of keeping a journal: I’m a journal-keeper. With over a hundred notebooks filled since 1982, it’s become part of who I am. I couldn’t have expected or anticipated all the ways my … Continue reading Jordan Mechner on Journaling
For me, size matters. When it comes to choosing a notebook, I mean. I have hundreds of notebooks, in a variety of styles, materials, colors, and brands, but most of them fall into a pretty narrow size range. My preferred size has evolved over time, perhaps in proportion to the size of my own hands: … Continue reading What Matters?
Australian artist John Lovett has a great article on his website about different kinds of sketchbook-keeping. Aside from using sketchbooks to capture ideas and practice drawing, he talks about using a notebook or sketchbook in the studio as a working book, for recording technical stuff about materials and methods: Artists Studio Notebooks I always have … Continue reading John Lovett on Artists’ Sketchbooks