Tag: inktober

Inktober 2022

~ Ari October ~ 1 Comment


To view all 31 illustrations, click here to visit the Google Drive folder!

Well folks, I did it. 31 illustrations in 31 days. Some took several days to complete, some of them I only spent a few minutes on. Either way, I got it done. Now I am exhausted and never want to look at another micron pen for the rest of my life! (Just kidding.) I’ve already complained enough about how hard this was in the previous post, so I will focus on the positives now.

I really did learn a lot from this challenge, and even walked away with more confidence in my abilities! The prompts helped me come up with ideas I never would have thought of on my own, and I got several illustrations I love out of the deal. Noticing which illustrations I enjoyed making the most was very enlightening, and I will definitely be using that knowledge going forward.

For the record, I got most of my references from Pexels and Unsplash. Some were also referenced from my own photos, (such as the shed,) and a few were referenced from my imagination or memories! Another thing I’ve learned from this challenge is just how important building a visual library through mileage is. The more you draw from seeing, the more you’ll be able to draw from muscle memory! I’ve found that I really like drawing my own memories.

While I’m really grateful that I finally completed Inktober for the first time, I’m not sure it’s something I’m going to do every year. By the time next October rolls around I’m sure I’ll be considering trying again, but I will be more willing to drop it if I feel it is doing me more harm than good.

If you have any questions or comments about any of the illustrations, please feel welcome to leave a comment! Thanks for stopping by, I hope you have a wonderful day!

Inktober Burnout

~ Ari October ~ 1 Comment
On day 27 I did a very low effort sketch and filled the rest of the page with journaling about how burnt out I was feeling.

Undertaking any art challenge comes with the risk of burnout. Inktober is a 31 day challenge that asks you to create 31 inked drawings in that time period, and even assumes you will work at a 1:1 day to illustration ratio. On top of that, it is probably today’s most popular art challenge, meaning you have endless options for art to compare yours to, which adds a significant amount of pressure to make each illustration good.

Inktober is the perfect recipe for burnout, and many artists acknowledge this. Some artists simply refuse to do Inktober for this exact reason. I decided to take it on anyway, knowing full well the potential consequences. Thankfully I took steps to make it easier on myself, and I know I would not have completed the challenge otherwise. Despite my efforts to streamline the challenge, I am still left feeling incredibly drained! Even as someone who draws almost every day for pleasure, Inktober really pushed me to my limit.

Currently, I don’t even want to take photos of my Inktober drawings. Looking for a place with good, consistent lighting and then setting up my desk easel and then meticulously framing each shot… It all sounds like too much for me. I’ve also been waiting for a sunny day that probably won’t come, November is very cloudy and rainy here, so I will end up having to settle for subpar indoor lighting and photo editing. More work for me!

It really doesn’t help that problems in my personal life have come up at the same time as I was working through this challenge. Even without a day job, I find myself overburdened with responsibilities. Currently I am juggling: Raising a one year old, caring for three cats (including one who is elderly and terminally ill,) house chores, running errands, countless appointments with Doctors and the like, caring for myself, my romantic relationship with my partner, and a primarily text-based social life. It is important to note that I also struggle with physical and mental disabilities! I think the fact that I completed all 31 prompts within the 31 day period is nothing short of a miracle.

Honestly, the truth of my victory is messy. Sometimes I would push off my other responsibilities until the next day, or stay up too late and sacrifice my sleep so I could work while our baby slept. Ironically, I seem to do my best work while tired, so this worked both for and against me. I often had to sketch ahead of time to account for the days I would just not be feeling up to creating. Sometimes I would just count starting the illustration as a victory and then work on it little by little in the days following. This experience has made me incredibly grateful that I don’t sell my art for a living, and especially grateful that I rarely take on commissions.

Now I question if I will ever do Inktober again. Maybe when our daughter is older, and by then we will also have less cats. While I am extremely satisfied by my success and all that I learned through this challenge, I’m not sure if it was worth the blow I took to my mental health.

I am excited to share what I made with you all, but please be patient with me while I heal and rest. Take care of yourselves, have a wonderful day, and I will see you again soon.

Jeltober!

~ Ari October ~ 1 Comment

Disappointment came over me when I previewed the 2022 Inktober prompt list, I just didn’t feel inspired by this year’s prompts. I’ve decided to do JelArts’ alternative prompt list instead! This will be my 3rd time attempting any sort of October daily drawing challenge.

Life is very busy for me currently so I’m going to be very lenient and forgiving towards myself this year. In both of my previous attempts I ended up quitting pretty early on, and that was before I became a mother, so I know what to expect out of myself. Giving up is an option, I’ll just be happy to say I tried.

The goal will not be to produce a finished illustration every day. I will feel satisfied if I get even a tiny doodle or messy sketch down. At least then I can potentially go back and finish it later. My goal will simply be to follow a prompt list for the duration of the month, regardless of the results.

Will you be doing Inktober this year, or any of its alternatives? I did a mandala theme last year, do you have any themes you’d like to incorporate into your Inktober? Let’s chat, I’d love to hear from you!

I am wishing you all health and safety, as well as a wonderful rest of your day!

Okay, I did it. I drew. Here’s #Inktober day 1: “Fish”

~ Ari October ~ Leave a comment
Edit: Broken image? I will fix this soon when I have some time

I’m quite rusty after a few weeks of not drawing, but something is better than nothing!
He’s based on a butterfish. I think they just look much like the quintessential fish to me.

I’m going to be doing all my inktober sketches in the same small sketchpad I’m bringing with me on my trip to Texas later this month, for consistency, and because the small format is less intimidating given I’m just now getting back into daily drawing.

I will probably continue to do small doodle-y things like this, nothing too fancy because I’d like to complete the monthly challenge for once and if I try to be too detailed every day it’s going to wear me out. Which is exactly what happened last year, lol.

I’m proud of myself for pushing through the very strong feelings of not wanting to draw and making this little guy. He’s cute.

Inktober 2019

~ Ari October ~ Leave a comment

Unfortunately I ended up giving up in the first week, but I’m still really happy with the illustrations that came of it.
I’m really excited to give it another go this year, probably trying to theme mandalas around the prompts! I haven’t done a themed mandala in a while because they’re more effort, but they are so much more interesting.
Whatever I decide to do, I do plan on at least participating to the best of my ability. Wouldn’t be right if I didn’t, being an artist under the name October and all 😉