Quick Sketches

Has a teacher ever asked you to find your voice as a writer? Perhaps you’re direct and to the point. Or descriptive and dreamy. When people read one of your stories, they immediately know you wrote it.

Artists can have a voice too. It’s called a visual voice. When you have a strong visual voice, your art has a style that is recognizably yours. You develop your visual voice the same way you would with writing—by exploring different techniques, dropping what you don’t like, keeping what you do, and making it yours.

The artists featured here knew that just as with a journal for writing, a sketchbook is a great place to find your visual voice.

Has a teacher ever asked you to find your voice in your writing? What they meant was for you to develop a unique style that’s all yours. For example, maybe you’re bold and honest. Or detailed and dreamy.

Artists have a voice too. It’s called a visual voice. When you have a strong visual voice, your art has a style that viewers know is yours. You can explore different methods to find what is right for your visual voice. 

The artists whose work is shown here knew that a sketchbook is a great place to find your visual voice.

When you hear the name Leonardo da Vinci, you probably think of the artist’s 1503-05 Mona Lisa. But do you think of flying machines, devices to measure wind speed, and clocks? Probably not.

Leonardo was one of the greatest thinkers of the Italian Renaissance, a period of achievement in science, art, and ideas in the 15th and 16th centuries. He was interested in science as well as art, and he recorded his observations and ideas in more than 6,000 pages of sketchbooks.

In his notes, Leonardo often made technical drawings—precise diagrams like the one shown above. The fine lines and details in sketches like this one echo the style Leonardo used in preparatory drawings for his paintings, creating a clear visual link between his sketchbooks and his masterpieces.

Leonardo da Vinci is most famous for his 1503-05 Mona Lisa. But did you know that he studied flying machines and clocks too? Probably not!

Leonardo was one of the greatest thinkers of the Italian Renaissance. This was a time of big achievements in science and art in the 15th and 16th centuries. Leonardo kept his ideas about science and art in more than 6,000 pages of sketchbooks.

Leonardo’s sketchbooks included diagrams like the one shown above. The fine lines and details look like the sketches he’d make to plan his paintings. Leonardo’s sketchbooks are a visual connection to his paintings. They demonstrate his strong visual voice.

Painter Eugène Delacroix (oo-ZHEHN de-lah-KRWAH) visited North Africa for six months in 1832. He filled seven notebooks with sketches and notes about what he saw.

In the example above, the French artist uses gesture drawings, or loose, simplified sketches, to represent his subjects. He emphasizes their contours—curved edges—with dark lines and then adds light washes of color. “The first and most important thing in painting is the contour,” Delacroix wrote in his journal. “Even if all the rest were to be neglected, provided the contours were there, the painting would be strong and finished.”

After returning to France, Delacroix referred to his notebooks when creating what would become his famous series of paintings of North Africa.

French painter Eugène Delacroix (oo-ZHEHN de-lah-KRWAH) visited North Africa for six months in 1832. There he filled seven notebooks with sketches. The notebooks later inspired his famous paintings of North Africa.

In the example above, Delacroix uses loose, simple sketches to show his subjects. He draws the contours—curved edges—with dark lines and then adds areas of light color. Delacroix believed contours are the most important part of a finished painting.

Though Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh did not keep a journal, he wrote hundreds of letters—which often included drawings. As a collection, they read like a diary. One of those letters, above, dated October 17, 1888, was to fellow artist Paul Gauguin. Van Gogh wrote, “I’m sure that once here, like me, you’ll be seized with a fury to paint.” He added a sketch to show Gauguin how nice his bedroom would be when he visited.

The sketch consists only of black outlines. Van Gogh also made five paintings of the bedroom, which all include these black outlines. This style became a hallmark of the artist’s work.

Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh didn’t keep a journal. But he wrote hundreds of letters—and often included drawings. One letter above, dated October 17, 1888, was to an artist named Paul Gauguin. In the letter, Van Gogh sketched his bedroom.

Van Gogh used only black outlines in the sketch. He also made five paintings of the same room, which all include black outlines. This became a recognizable part of Van Gogh’s work and visual voice.

Frida Kahlo’s paintings explore the most personal aspects of her life. The Mexican artist contracted polio as a child and was in a serious bus accident when she was 18 years old. Her paintings often reflected her physical and emotional pain. She explored her experiences in her diary—which she filled with quickly made illustrations and few words.

Overlapping heads appear on page 52 of Kahlo’s diary, above. Unlike the other artists featured here, the rough sketches in Kahlo’s diary look different than her finished paintings, which are highly detailed and refined. The diary was a place for her to jot down ideas quickly, putting her feelings onto paper before they vanished.

Think about your own sketchbook or journal. How might the techniques and ideas you experiment with find their way into finished artworks?

Frida Kahlo explored her personal struggles in her paintings. The Mexican artist had polio as a child and was seriously injured in a bus accident at age 18. Her work often reflects her pain.

Kahlo explored these experiences in a diary. She filled it with quickly made drawings and few words. Overlapping heads appear on page 52 of Kahlo’s diary, above. Her diary sketches look different from her finished paintings, which are very detailed. Kahlo used her diary to quickly jot down ideas and feelings before they disappeared.

How can you turn drawings and ideas in your sketchbook into finished artworks?