The year has started with lots of art here in the studio. And, as far as I can remember, I keep a sketchbook with me to draw new ideas and keep notes about my process. However, I decided to level up my sketchbook practice in 2022 with 3 different books: one for drawing, one for painting, and one for keeping notes about my process.

“Why do you keep 3 separate books?”

You might ask. Because I’m trying to keep my creative process more organized. Since the drawing sketchbook is the first place where I capture my inspiration and translate it into some kind of art, that is where my raw ideas live. At this stage, my focus is on the subject and the composition.

Then, after making dozens of drawings, I transfer those primary ideas into the painting sketchbook. This is when I choose the color palette, identify the light and dark areas on my painting, and select a solid background color to contrast the main subject of the painting.

Parallel to the drawing and painting sketchbook phases, I have my creative practice notebook around to log the ideas, thoughts, and inspirations while I draw and paint. This has been a new practice for me since I used to make a whole new body of work, and only after it was completed, I would write about the story behind the art. But now, just to have the notebook around to write about my creative process has been transformative. I’m getting clearer about my process, and why I do certain choices in my art.

Here is a glimpse of this year’s painting sketchbook so far:

Now, let me know…

Do you also keep a sketchbook or a book where you keep your ideas? If the answer is yes, what kind of sketchbook do you have? And how many? I’m curious if you have a different process to document your ideas and inspirations.