There’s something very refreshing about going back to the basics. I’ve forgotten what it’s like to rely on life rather than my imagination to draw. Struggling to figure out how shadows fall and light hits is mentally exhausting. So when I saw some sketchbook photos of various Instagrammers over the past few months, I was completely inspired to buy a sketchbook and ‘start anew’. The inspiration for this book came initially from Juriko Kosaka and Thuraya Lynn. The way they effortlessly sketch furniture and other architectural forms in their sketchbooks made me realize how rusty I have become (I draw shitty sofas and beds) and how much I’ve got to learn. My latest inspiration (and the one that got me running to Maghawi stationary store to purchase yet another sketchbook) came from Waleed Shaalan. His photos of him using watercolor in a cheap spiral sketchbook reminded me of the pleasure I got when I used poster paints in one of my sketchbooks years and years ago. The crinkle of the paper, the smell of dry paint, the architectural forms that I need to acquaint myself with and eventually perfect.
