Concertina Montage Sketchbook

I have just completed a concertina montage sketchbook. Travelling in the United Arab Emirates, then down through India, Colombo (Sri Lanka), and Singapore I had an enormous amount of sketches.

These countries are so rich in colour, atmosphere, sights and sounds. I never tire of the multituide of experiences that flood the senses.  So I decided to complete a montage sketchbook. This way I could record all my favourite things and capture the colour and vibrancy of these countries.

The page on the left is the basic pen drawing. These were done from my iPad images. Every drawing brought back such wonderful memories. The drawing on the right shows when I begin painting one of the buildings in Little India, in Singapore.

Working with this method of montages, you chose just sections of an image that really appeals to you. It also allows you to stop and start, whenever you have the time to add more drawings, or finish of paintings, as each drawing is really a minature painting (or sketch).

On the left is page one of the concertina sketchbook, which shows the map of where I travelled.
On the right is a page including Goa and Cochin in India. Sometimes the simplest subject has the most interest, and I love working with texture, shape and colour.

Here is the finished concertina sketchbook. Each page is 14cm wide and just over 20cms high, slightly smaller than an A5. I bought this sketchbook while in London, but would not use it again as I do not like the paper.  It is easy enough to make your own sketchbook and that allows you to choose the size and type of watercolour paper to use.

There are YouTube videos on making sketchbooks and these can be as easy or as complex as you wish. 

Happy sketching!