Helen Hallows -- a Sketchbook Conversation

Today I'm chatting with Helen Hallows. Her art immediately caught my eye when I first saw it. Her voice is so strong in her sketchbooks and I think you'll enjoy today's peek inside their pages. Here's Helen's story:

I am a mixed media artist based in the Midlands of the UK. A deep connection to nature flows through my work, inspired by the landscape and my garden. 

My work is about a sense of a place and I use colour to express my relationship to a place. 

I sell my original artworks in galleries and at art events as well as producing a range of limited edition prints that I sell through my website. 

I have recently published my 'Summer Sketchbook' which contains drawings from my sketchbooks, closeups of my artworks, photos of my studio and text that describes my process. It is the second of a series.

I keep a sketchbook so that I can experiment with compositions, find the narrative of my work and explore media and ways of seeing the world. It's where the process of making art happens.

I have been working in sketchbooks for about 25 years! 

Before that I kept diaries that also had a visual element. Sketchbooks were a way of keeping track of ideas when I was studying art and design. 

My background is in woven textiles so there was also an element of collating colour swatches, dye notes and technical information. 

As a textile designer, working to briefs I used my sketchbook to collect imagery and inspiration (this was before Pinterest existed!) and to work out new designs. 

Now my sketchbooks are drawing based as part of my process of creating mixed media art works in paint, collage and stitch. I draw to initiate a new project or series of work.

Going to new places inspires me. I draw in a naive style, and look for shape, colour and pattern in what I see. 

I teach workshops in creating mixed media sketchbooks and after teaching I always want to go home and do more drawing, inspired by how others have worked with my techniques and materials.

In my sketchbooks I work with paint, charcoal pencil and collage. 

I love to draw with a soft charcoal pencil, there’s a dynamic, grainy line that I love.

I always tell others not to whisper. I think it is important to draw with a decisive line. 

Also to turn off the negative voices and to listen for your own creative voice. Don’t get daunted, keep on keeping on.

Thank you, Helen, for sharing your story here with us.

Dear reader, you can connect with Helen:

• www.helenhallows.com
• www.facebook.com/helenhallowsstudio
• www.instagram.com/helen_hallows_studio
• www.pinterest.com/helenhallows
• www.twitter.com/helen_hallows

Missed the other Sketchbook Conversations posts? It's easy to catch up at the series web page.

And for even more inspiration, check out my Artist Interviews. 

*Photos in this post ©Helen Hallows. Used with permission.