Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
on Artistic Development
by Doug Jennings
Trinity Intl. Univ. Undergrad REACH progam, Deerfield, Illinois 1/29/93
From the age of 11 until the present (a twenty-year span) I have filled sketchbooks
with drawings in pencil, pen & ink, colored pencil and various media. This forms a sub-
as an important record.
young artist.
arena to allow inner and social conflicts to be played out harmlessly and creatively.
4) Pre-to-early adolescent male artists might sometimes pass through typical stages
in their interests and subject matter. This can include a period of fascination with violence
or the grotesque.
5) Art from sketch books can be useful in providing solutions to “real-world” art
assignments.
as an important record. I have yet to meet a serious or accomplished artist who does not
have at least a small collection of drawing pads containing their sketches. These “image
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reservoirs”, bound or loose leaf, are an artist’s laboratory. In my case, such a private arena
was invaluable for the practice of my skills of perceiving and creating images. To hone
Yet, to use another analogy, sketchbooks have also served my imagination as a play-
ground. In that private realm of line, shade, smudge and shape I can follow the contours of
my fancy to soar beyond the constraints of the second dimension. Sometimes, my efforts
come up short yet falter harmlessly against the non-condemning and confidential papyrus.
Happily, I have only to begin anew with the turn of the page.
Over time, as I looked back through my early books, I noticed improvement, which
inspired me to continue drawing. I endeavored, foremost, to learn the art of rendering the
human form. Many of my earlier books were filled with pages of awkwardly posed, man-
nikin-like, pencil-drawn figures (often one to a page) in various attire, modern or ancient.
I would begin with a skeleton sketch and build the basic musculature, then subsequently
add skin and clothing. Sometimes I would place the figures on backgrounds such as a city
street or in the context of some battle. However stilted and contrived these drawings, they
were valuable exercises that eventually aided my observation of the human figure and my
skill at drawing a natural-looking human form. Eventually the lines of the figures became
more confident and flowing. The drawings began to possess more depth and volume. I
also began to appreciate depicting the average, less-ideal human form (See FIGURE 1,
page 3).
my acquaintance of themes or techniques that I had toyed with but then abandoned. At
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1972 1973
1976 1987
FIGURE 1.
Progressive development of figure drawing techniques
displayed in respective sketchbooks.
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such times, I would take up the rediscovered imagery and methods again with new vision
My medium of choice was originally a 2B lead pencil. This was convenient for
erasing mistakes. As I experimented with softer leads, I discovered the useful shading
technique of controlled smudging which allowed for smooth light-to- dark tones. Harder
leads provided cleaner lines that gave my drawing a more finished look. Eschewing the
use of lines and smudges all together, I briefly, in the early days, tried the pointillistic
technique of shading with multitudinous dots created from the tip of a Flair brand marker.
The effect was exciting to me as I was entering a phase marked by interest in gory subject
matter. With the “dot” method of rendering, I could draw my monsters and melting figures
with almost clinical precision. A form of this technique would serve me later as I drew
point pen. Felt-tip markers tend to bleed through the paper over time and offer less of a
range of line than that of a ball-point. The ball-point pen does not smudge like a pencil
and such pens are almost as cheap as their graphite and wood forebears.
During the last half of my sketchbook-keeping career, I would most often fill the page
with sketches. They seem to spin around each other and sometimes overlap, occupying
the same space. Over the last few years, I have experimented with sketching with different
colored pens as each color represents a particular image or plane of thought. A sketch in
one particular color will be juxtaposed on top of another. The different colors allow me to
more easily keep the images separate when I view them later. Originally, I developed this
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(b) 1985
(a) 1982
(c) 1973
(d) 1990
FIGURE 2.
Samples of various kinds of medium used in my sketch books over the years:
2B pencil (a), Softer leads (b), Flair pen used in pointillistic technique (c), and ball-point pen (d).
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technique to save paper. Yet I became fascinated with it as a type of layering of realities.
I feel this is analogous to objects in separate dimensions that are able to pass through one
another without losing the integrity of their individual boundaries. More specifically, I liken
it to the physical and spiritual realms as they interweave, overlap and interact.
like my initial volumes which typically devoted one small drawing to a single expansive
page. The difference could possibly reflect a more adult ability to entertain differing per-
Layering colored sketches and not being concerned about mistakes serves my
desire to record not just the final out-put of an idea, but the process by which I
developed the idea. In the past, the initial stages of my drawings were erased or covered
over. Using different colors in developing a sketch, can leave all levels of the draw-
ing’s composition intact. I begin sketching loosely with a light blue pen. As my idea
for the drawing becomes more focused, I then use a red pen to develop lines that are
more final. Sometimes I complete the sequence with a black pen to delineate the final
or near-final state of the drawing. If I plan to reproduce the layered drawing, I’ll make
a more refined tracing of it. Meanwhile the entire process of the work is recorded in my
sketch book.
This appreciation of the process involved in creating a drawing can apply to life.
Are we not all “drawings” wrought by God’s hand? And of who among the living can it
be said that God is finished in the process of creation? As I look back on my life as well
as my art, I marvel at the twists and turns of the lines rendered in the events of my life and
the changes in my outlook and personality. I am still in process of being “finished” under
the loving, interactive supervision of God. Furthermore, I have been given a role to play
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FIGURE 3.
Samples of overlapping lines in more recent sketches.
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in my own development through the choices I make during my time on earth.
Reflection on the process and progress of one’s life contributes to one’s wisdom.
Scripture condemns the one who “does not ponder the path of life” (Proverbs 5:6, NASB).
Also the writer of Psalm 78 exhorts the people of God to reflect upon God’s good acts to
them with conscious and deliberate regularity and to tell His exploits to succeeding genera-
tions.
The principles that apply to artists who benefit from maintaining sketchbooks and
reflecting on the progress and processes of their skill could easily apply to Christians who
keep a record of insights into God’s word and prayer requests offered and answered. A simple
notebook could be used for such regular exercise and could be a useful part of taking an active
role in one’s own spiritual development. I have kept such a journal off and on over the years.
When I peruse those pages from time to time, I am almost always encouraged by how God
has worked in my life, or I am admonished to turn back to the way of God more steadfastly
enter into less rigorous stages of life, such as when my infant daughters are older and less of
an all- consuming responsibility. In the meantime, another nugget of insight I believe I’ve
gained from my experience with keeping sketch books encourages me to take advantage of
2 Parental Encouragement
Parental encouragement (especially paternal) has an enormous impact on the young
artist specifically (as well as a child’s moral development in general). Most children enjoy
the tactile and visual experience of creating with paint, clay, blocks or even sticks and leaves.
I was no different. Yet around the time I entered Junior High, a gesture made by my father
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persuaded me to determine to make drawing much more than a peripheral interest. It was
at this time that my father bought me a sketch pad and set of colorful markers. The act
surprised me and filled me with feelings of value and pride in the revelation that my dad
considered me skillful enough in art to bestow such a gift. My father was, in many ways,
a distant figure to me. In that context, the unspoken message of the art gift had profoundly
Although perhaps the most significant adult to initiate and to encourage my artistic
aspirations, my father was not my only source of the motivating spark. An older brother’s
gift of an artist’s anatomy book was pivotal, I believe, as well as the frequent words of
So, not only did my father help begin my useful habit of keeping a sketch book, but
he and other adults kept me going along the way to eventually complete several volumes
of drawings. These sketchbooks represent practice, growth and the learning of what would
eventually become a vocational skill. Now that I am a parent, to think upon how my father
and other caring adults helped nurture my art skills engenders a humbling awareness of
my impact in the lives of my children. I hope to nurture them so that they might develop
their God-given skills and interests to the best possible ends. Such nurturing would mean
vided the materials and, when he paid for a correspondence art course, the training to help
me grow as an artist. Whether or not my children become artists, I know that to nurture
their productive interests will require my acting in some way as an underwriter of their
interests and goals. This could mean helping to supply materials and training. Or it might
require enlisting the aid of others who would be able and willing to help them.
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Being a constructive critic requires sensitivity as well as honesty. I have benefited
from both harsh and tactful criticism. Yet I believe that I gained the most, in the long run,
from criticism given with respect for my worth as a person. Such helpful, frank-but-loving
assessments provided two lessons. The first was insight into the artistic endeavor at hand and
the second, a lesson by example regarding how to treat other people. As a father, I realize
that it is important for me to discipline or admonish my children with love and respect rather
than with an attitude of punishment. Respectful discipline has a long-term purpose to help
the child grow and become more self-disciplined. By “the attitude of punishment”, I mean
discipline that is a type of lashing out with retribution or retaliation. I have reacted to my
child’s bad behavior with angry words and rough handling. As a little boy, I was sometimes
the object of similar explosive punishment. I recall not really learning anything from such
On one such occasion that I can vividly picture in my mind’s eye, I cannot even
remember the behavior that caused the infraction. So, I can more easily imagine my daugh-
ter’s feelings when I might retaliate and express anger during times of discipline. Such
a perspective has been helpful to me as I seek to firmly but gently, with love, teach my
children right behavior. This will not only help them understand the concept of a loving
I see the role of what I’d like to call the “affirmer of accomplishment” as being vital
to the sensibilities of most artists. While some personality types might have more or less
need for a pat on the back, I believe that the artistic temperament has a particular need for
his or her accomplishments to be recognized and praised. Praise and affirmation by older
artists went along way in keeping me interested in the pursuit of artistic excellence.
As a young husband, I have become more aware than any other time in my life of
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the need to be a facilitator, constructive critic and affirmer of accomplishment. My wife
needs me to make her work at home easier. I can do that by sharing household duties when
I am home. This would also include watching the kids while she runs errands or just takes
some “time off” with friends. I can also facilitate by doing my best to make sure she has
the resources she needs for day-to-day, household operations. Being a good listener to
discover needs also helps me, as a husband, fulfill the facilitator’s role.
sensitivity and respect that I appreciate from others. It is easy to be blunt or sarcastic, yet
these attitudes can distract from the helpful message the loving constructive critic wants
that notice of the little things she does to make our home pleasant and comfortable. Often
I’ll notice some the new curtains she made or the way the bathroom fixtures sparkle but it
does little good unless I tell my wife that I notice and express a grateful attitude as well.
The impact of kindly parents and other care-givers and/or “significant others” that
These would encompass Church and work and virtually any other situation involving hu-
man relations.
3 A valuable outlet
There have been a few times when I have been able to express hurt, jubilation,
puzzlement or other nameless feelings that defy words as I filled my sketch books. In the
sixth grade, I turned rejection by a girl I admired into the opportunity for a whimsical
likewise-dejected comic strip character (See FIGURE 4, page 12). Many of my doodles
and renderings over the years have served as a release for a range of emotions —sadness,
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(1) (2)
MEATHEAD: MEATHEAD:
I had to stay I bet Jenny
in the corner will laugh at
all day at me.
school today!
(3) (4)
JENNY: MEATHEAD:
Hi, Meathead! I wish I couldn't
I saw you in the tell the
corner! Ha! future!
Dead from the
neck up!
FIGURE 4a.
Sample of a cartoon sketch drawn in response to rejection by a girl I admired.
1972
1973 1985
tions and perhaps a means to embody them into drawings so as to allow me to confront
traits over the years has helped me to confront issues in my life. I might not have addressed
these problems had the effects of inner-conflicts on my countenance not been revealed
Those drawings also have revealed to me visual metaphors of the forces raging inside me
at that time. Such an expose has helped me to identify and confront unhealthy attitudes
In the same way that a diary can serve as a sounding board to help express thoughts
and feelings as a way of sorting them out, so can sketchbooks. The outlet they provide does
not have to be useful in times of pain, but also in times of meditation and creativity. As a
Christian, I have used my sketchbooks to visualize Biblical truth and express devotion for
Jesus Christ. I have several pages devoted to sketches I made to help me fix concrete im-
ages of Biblical principles (see pages 52 & 54, sample sketch copies in Appendix B). The
Early on, my drawings of Christ are of the weak, pitiable, doe-eyed variety. Later, as my
understanding of the divine humanity of Jesus gains more depth, the pictures become less
cliche and more expressive of both Christ’s suffering and his humanity (See FIGURE 4B,
page 12).
to which I have decided to devote the entire following chapter of this report.
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4 Possible marks of the passage between child and
young adult.
and bodily decomposition. This occurred most intensely during my eighth and ninth grade
years. Around the time I was in eighth grade, at approximately age 13, I rendered several
drawings of horror characters as well as figures with open sore- infested flesh melting off
of their skeletons (see FIGURE 2(c), page 5). Such subjects fascinated me for a while
before I became serious about the study of anatomy for artistic accuracy.
As an adult I had been unsettled at that past record of the macabre and grotesque
until I began teaching a cartooning class five years ago to junior high and high school
students. It seems that boys around that age almost universally go through periods of de-
siring to draw violent, gory pictures. I believe that there could be a number of influences
that fascinate adolescent boys with themes of violence and morbidity. One cause could
be the glut of violence depicted in the media. Movies in which bodies are dismembered
and characters are blown to bits are shown in theatres and aired on television to a massive
Violence is a hot commodity in the American Media. Yet this alone is not enough
to account for the commonality of interest among young male artists in morbid subject
matter. Growing up in the sixties and seventies, I was not subjected through the media to
nearly the amount of routine violence that my modern counterparts are, yet I drew some
hideous things. Part of my obsession with drawing horror figures, such as vampires, were-
wolves, mummies and the like, could have stemmed from the fact that those characters
frightened me as a child. In drawing them, I was able to exert control over my fears. The
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pen was in my hand and I could create the monsters that once terrified me. As I conjured
them to appear upon the page, I held them in my thrall, or so I felt. I could then turn the
page and be done with them or make them trivial and familiar so that I transcended the
objects of my fright.
Another catalyst for my preoccupation with gory subject matter could have been the
a heightened awareness and interest in human figures that were similarly destabilized or
“disfigured” in general. The world is often a scary, unstable place for the early adolescent.
Depicting violence in drawings could be a way for the adolescent male artist to react to
Even so, these themes eventually gave way to traditional themes and subject matter.
The early adolescent drawings are, in their own way, attempts at problem solving. Such
practice at dealing with life-issues could lay the foundation for vocational problem solv-
ing. My sketchbooks have aided me considerably as a resource to bring into the solution
since I have started raising a family. However, I still use sketch books as one of many
means to generate ideas for art solutions to graphic problems I encounter as a member of
I believe that I have been helped most dramatically by sketches I made for fun
rather than for professional research. Two examples would be drawings I made of Biblical
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figures from prints of paintings by a 19th Century artist. I was taken with the way the artist
depicted such characters as Sarah, Rebekah, Samson and other Old Testament inhabitants.
The folds of the clothing and the hairstyles intrigued me so much that I based some line
drawings on them for my sketch diary (see page 59, sample sketch copy in Appendix B).
Months later, I was assigned to depict Sarah and Hagar for a transparency in a Sun-
day School adult curriculum teaching packet. Remembering my sketches of Old Testament
women I had deposited in my drawing pad, I was able to use them as source material to
This happened again when I was given the assignment to develop an activity book
for grade-school-age VBS students. The theme was dinosaurs yet I was not restricted to
“search” puzzle for the VBS activity book. The key was to make it fun for kids. I recalled
that years earlier I had filled three pages of a sketch book with numerous skate-boarding
figures in various airborne or on-ground positions (see FIGURE 5, page 17). A page teem-
ing with skateboarding dinosaurs would fulfill the theme requirements while interjecting
the right amount of whimsy for our target age group. I made the original sketches of skate
boarders years earlier for the fun of collecting imagery for a birthday card to give a friend
who was into “thrashing” (as skate-boarders call the pastime). Those drawings became
twice fruitful as I used them again for the VBS assignment (See FIGURE 6, page 18). In
effect, the doodles and drawings in my sketchbooks have been like seeds sown once but
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FIGURE 5.
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Conclusion
I have discussed the learning outcomes resulting from my experience through the 21 years
able developmental tool for me as an artist. It helped me experiment with techniques and medium
as well record my improvement. I mentioned that the discipline of keeping sketchbooks could
transfer with much benefit to the recording of spiritual lessons, insights and answered prayers
into a journal of spiritual growth. I shared how parental encouragement as well as encouragement
from other adults had an enormous impact on me as a young artist in beginning my practice of
keeping sketchbooks. I mentioned how the roles of facilitator, constructive critic and affirmer of
accomplishment helped me, and how I can use them at home and other areas.
inner and social conflicts to be played out creatively was a Topic I related from my experiences.
Not only does drawing in sketchbooks provide an outlet for inner conflicts but also for meditation
I also drew upon the record of my development in my sketchbooks to theorize that pre-
to-early adolescent male artists might sometimes pass through typical stages in their interests and
subject matter. This can include a period of fascination with violence or the grotesque. I attributed
such fascination to a psychological mechanism in dealing with fears and the physical, emotional
turmoil that often accompanies the onset of adolescence. Finally, I shared how art from sketch books
can be useful in providing solutions to “real-world” art assignments. I have discovered that ideas
from old sketches, done for fun can have new life as they are applied in the professional arena.
My experience with sketchbooks over the years has been an important part of my creative
development while providing insights into my psychological growth and ways to relate to other
people. The several volumes of sketches made over time should serve as an interesting resource
to examine for patterns of growth and to mine for creative ideas in the years ahead.
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Appendix A
Catalogue list of Sketchbooks dated and grouped into “portfolios” and “volumes”.
Portfolio A
8 sketchbooks including fragments (less than 10 pages extant)
1) 1972-3 , 18"x12" (17 pages) A gift from my father
✍
Large Sketchbooks
2) 1974, 18"x12" (12 pages) Mostly super-hero drawings representative of the
3) Fragment, 1976 (one page) 1987- 88 (five pages), 14"x11" entire collection,
4) Fragment, 9"x12" 1979-80 (nine pages) work related Portfolio A could be
5) Fragment, (two pages) 1980, 11"x 14" called a visual over-
6) Fragment, (eight pages) 1983-84, 11"x 14" ture of the rest of the
{
1) 1985-86 , 18"x12" (14 pages) work related sketches and
8) 1987-88 12"x 18", (11 pages) studies
books’ themes.
Portfolio B
13 Sketchbooks including fragments
1) 1972, 12"x9", (14 pages), handmade
2) 1972, 12"x9", (18 pages)
3) 1972-73, 12"x9", (33 pages)
✍
4) 1973, 12"x9", (27 pages) Learning a founda-
5) 1973-74, 12"x9", (20 pages) tion in artistic anat-
6) 1974, 12"x9", (23 pages) omy and resolving
7) 1974, 12"x9", (17 pages) adolescent conflicts
8) 1974, 12"x9", (17 pages) are major themes in
9) Fragment 1974, 12"x9", (six pages) Portfolio B.
10) Late 1974, 12"x9", (14 pages)
11) Fragment 1975, 9"x12", (7 pages)
12) Fragment 1979, 9"x12", (3 pages)
13) 1988, 12"x9", (17 pages)
Portfolio C
1 bound sketchbook, 1976-77, 9"x12", (19 pages)
1 set of spiral sketchbook pages, unbound, latter half of 1977, 8"x6"
(13 pages)
5 Fragment sets, Unbound ✍
7 pages, 8x10.5", 1975-76 (mostly mythological drawings and Portfolio C shows
superheroes) broadened experi-
2 pages, 8x11", 1977, (including one self- portrait) mentation, refinement
5 pages, 8.5"x12", Summer/Fall 1978 of technique and the
8 pages, 9"x12", 1976, (horse studies for clay sculpture) influences of formal
2 Finished Drawing sets, Ink, colored marker and colored pencil art training
5 pages, 8.5"x11", 1975, mythological creatures
15 pages, 9"x12" construction paper, 1975, illustrations for
uncompleted slide presentation
1 set of 8 Misc. Drawings, various media and sizes (9"x12" - 7"x9"),
1975 -1976
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Diary Fragment, 8"x11", 1978-79, (24 pages) only drawings are 4 self
portraits.
Portfolio D
3 hard-bound diary volumes
158 pages, 8"x11", 1979-1980, containing five sketches, including
✍
Although Portfolio D
two self-portraits diary volumes have a
195 pages, 5.25"x8.5", 1980-82, containing 11 sketches, including relatively small collec-
two self-portraits tion of drawings and
257 pages, 8.25"x10.75", 1982-85 containing 40 sketches, includ- sketches, It has the
ing nine self-portraits most self portraits of
1 unbound fragment set of eight drawings (ball point pen) on 7"x12" strips any of the other
of grocery bag paper (drawn on a camping trip) 1980. portfolios.
Portfolio E
1 set of 14 spiral sketchbook pages, unbound, 1978-1979, 11"x14",
numerous colored chalk drawings and colored pencil sketches.
1 set of five charcoal sketches on newsprint, 18"x24", 1979,
✍
"contour drawings" for college art class School assignments
Spiral bound sketchpad, 18"x24, 1979 (12 pages) take up most of
college art-class assignments Portfolio E
Other
I am keeping two small paper-back sketch books that I began in the Fall
of 1992. They have identical covers. I keep one at work and one at home
(or in my brief case). Both are 3.25"x5" (128 pages). The "work copy"
has 16 pages filled and the "home copy" has 11 pages used.
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Appendix B
Selected sketchbook (photo copies) samples from 1971-1992
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