Warm ups.
I didn’t really know what to draw this year. I started thinking of observational drawings, but didn’t quite feel that. So I did a couple of quick warm up drawings without any thought behind them I quickly come to think that I had been wanting to draw organisisms with ink. But seeing as they have bee drawn with pencils to get the light as good as I can, I have never really started. So my main goal now is to draw towards drawing my classic organisisms in ink.

Continuum
This year I thought I'd start a bigger drawing that I will draw a bit on every day for the duration of inktober. Hopefully this will culminate in a large finished drawing. A3 to be precise. I have yet to draw such a large ink drawing. I have simply found that ink suits me best i smaller sizes. I think the larges as of yet is just above A4. I will let each day of inktober decide what will be drawn that day, depending on how I have drawn that particular day. And I will post the progress, however small, here every time I post an new inktober update.

Inktober 1
Ok, lets dig into it. First drawing is.. well, nothing really. I simply do as I usually do when I draw, I play with shapes and lines and see what comes out of it. Drawing improvisation as I call it. You will probably see a lot of these kinds of drawings this year. But then again, you never know. That's the fun part of inktober. You never know what will come out of it.

Inktober 2
Another odd shape. Just playing around with textures, shading and shapes really.

Continuum 2
Still have no idea where this is going. But feel some multiple spacial dimensions might be coming into this.

Inktober 3
Today I decided to test out a type of shading that I have been wanting to try a long time, but never dared in fear of ruining a drawing. I have a hard time simply sketching. I always "need" to make a finished drawing. But being inktober and all,  my threshold for ruining something is lowered. 
Anyway, I think this worked pretty well. I will keep working on this technique and refining it.

Continumm 3
I see some bony structures emmerging here. Startet to shade more in the directional way, letting the shapes directions decide the direction of the shading lines. Think it works fairly well.

Inktober 4
Keeping it simpe today, since I'm off to nightwatch leter today. And have my Continumm drawing to update aswell. And dinner to make, and.... ok, see ya soon.

Continuum 4
I liked the boney strucktures, and continued drawing in some more today. Bone structures seems to work well with pen and ink in a more oldtime drawing styl. Which suits me fine

Inktober 5
This time I went for some classic huge cloudscape. I wanted to make a tall format drawing. I find those fun to compose, since they kind of go against classic compositional thinking.

Continuum 5
Today I wanted fit in some clouds into the drawing. I then it felt only natural to place them inside the "ring" of bones where I already had been thinking of placing another spacial dimension. I think it worked pretty well. The contrast of the darker bones of death against the soft lifegiving clouds feels right.

Inktober 6
Another cloudscape today. With a bit of forrest and fields aswell. Thought I'd give it a go to draw some huge rainy clouds. This time I didn't manage to render it as finished as I wanted. But hey, why not use inktober also to work on another of my issues; simply sketching. I have never really sketched. You see, I have never been able to not fully render a drawing. Can't stand unfinished work. My own that is. I love other artists sketches though.

Unfortunatly I dodn't have the time to draw on the Continuum today. Hopefully tomorrow 🙂

Inktober 7
Just keeping it sketchy. Got the idea on the tram this morning fon my way from work, so I did a quick preliminary sketch there which I rendered a bit more and in ink for inktober 7.

My idea was some kind of bony rings intertwined and floting in the sky. Might not be my best work, but then again I did go for a sketchy look. So maybe its not that bad after all.

Continuum 6
Managed to draw some more on this now. I have been uncertain as to were to take this, so I had to sketch up some in pencil first. Got time to ink it out afterwards.  Next I think I have to get something drawn up on the top of this sheet. Its always important to stay a few steps a head and not to overwork smaller areas.

Inktober 8
Today I wanted to do swooping lines, and got this idea for a kind of magical tree. Letting the movement of the hand and fingers decide the lines. And to give the drawing a bit of ambience, I put in some clouds.

Continuum 7
These bony structures are fun to draw. And these ones are more and more taking shape of decorative acanthus leaves and Norwegian rose painting. I also made finishing points to the more honlike structures aswell. I need to find some way to end the drawing on top of the paper. Still not sure what will be, but I feel I am nearing the solution.

Inktober 9
The sun pendant. Hanging in the sky as a jewel to shine for all of us.... or simply me wanting to draw a circular shape this time.
I think the birds worked very well this time. Giving the piece depth and life

Continuum 8
Today I had to start planning what to do next in pencil. Its all well and good to draw directly with pen, but sometimes its important to be able to erase things one don't like or doesn't work. I would be a bitch to have to chuck the whole thing in the bin be course you simply planned it wrong.

Inktober 10
Once again I am going totally free and improvise 100%. Ok, I did "cheat" a tad this time, and started at work. I work as a nightwatch, and did some light drawing in between rounds. Before 00:00 o'clock. Buuuut anywho. I had no idea what these initial lines and blotches would be, bu I kept on drawing. Before I knew it I had something resembling the wings of a biplane. So a biplane it became.

Continuum 9
Today it finally loosened. I found out what to do in the top part of the drawing. The plan now is to make a dark environment inside the top bony oval shape. This will open up for me to maybe use white ink to draw the "figures" inside it. Not sure though. Much can change still in this old nugget of mine.
I really enjoy drawing these decorative bony acanthus shapes. The work very well with the properties of the black ink.

Inktober 12
Keeping it simple and not really well planned since I pretty soon have to go to work. Continuing on the bone sturctures I have been playing with in my Continuum drawing. And cruedly using more human anatomy as an inspiration.

Continuum 10
Got quite a lot done yesterday. I think I want to top oval with a black background, but its scary. Once its black there is no going back. I guess it depend on what I plan as the figures.

Inktober 13
Today I went way out of my comfort zone. Initially I wanted to do more inkwashes in the more classic chinese style, but my initial tests never worked the way I wanted. I guess I need to check out more papers and techniques first. 
But it being autumn now, and the place where I work have these insane autumn colors, I took some photos and gave it a go with an inkwash. I have to admit, albeit a simple motif, it worked very well.

Continuum 11
Slowly moving forward. Not much to say really, just been drawing bone structures.

Inktober 13
Still working outside my comfort zone today. And keeping to the autumn motifs. This time however, I felt a bit bolder. So I was a lot heavier on the ink. Darkening more and mixing the different colours together. I only use two colors. Yellow and blue, beides black. All indian ink. The black however is fairly reddish in hue, so I use this to make the more orange colours.

Continuum 12
Finally decided on making a black background in the upper ring. This is two layers of Talens black india ink applied with brush. This ink is very red-brown in its hue, so I will go over with another ink type that is more black and grey when applied thin or diluted. 
I will most likely draw something inside this ring in white ink. I have a small selection of white inks, så I will have to test out which is the best.

Inktober 15
Still in the autumn mood and outside my comfort zone. Allthough, its starting to feel more comfortable now. Tried a bit more complicated motif with more trees and colors to keep track of. I think I nailed this one pretty good.

Inktober 16
Had to make a drawing with a bit more simple motif this time since I have to go to work, nightwatch. Some places the leaves have almost fully left the trees. Fun to get a good balance between the orange leaves and the green  grass.

Inktober 17
A light veil of almost unnoticable fog covers the fields.
After work this morning it was so beautiful at Rykkinn I had to take some photos. This field with the road in the on the other side is something I have wanted to draw or paint for a long time. Today was just to great looking to pass up.

Inktober 18
Had a bit more time today,so I could do an autumn drawing that was a bit more complicated. This is still Talens india ink with brushes. This time I experimented with using white india ink for a few small details and the leafs on the ground. I also put a layer of white over the treetops where the morning sun hits them. First I painted it with yellow ink, then a layer of white. Then yellow and red as the last layers. 

Inktober 19
I am pressed for time this weekend, so I will only make three small fantasy insects. Sometimes one simply have to make things, well, simple. The goal is anyway to make one drawing each day throughout the month. I have kept the linework very loose, and lat the few colours I use run more freely with lots of water.

Inktober 20
Yet another insect. More off a lowrider this time.

Inktober 21
The Ghost crab. A "highrise" insect.

Inktober 19, 20, 21
And here they are, together as drawn

Inktober 22
I wanted to go back to the pure black ink and pen this time. That is, the Copic Multiliner 0.05 mm. This is the same landscape as inktober 17. But this time I finally managed to find a good organisism to incorporate into a natural landscape

Continuum 13
And finally I managed to find some time to work on my continuum drawing. I have to admit though that I have drawin with pencil yesterday on this to plan. But I figured since I am already late with these postings, and it looked the same as it does inked, I'd break my initial rule of posting every update.
It seems this will be quite filled with these acanthus, bony, decorative shapes.

Inktober 23
Back into the autumn mood. Wanted to do a drawing with lots of water. Specifically the mirror of the water. So much emotions can be put into the water mirror. Dark and gloomy, dark and mysterious, light and chipper, dancing happiness, anger and so on. But not to forget, one has to think of the waters own properties. The main being, its wet. And a fluid. All properties that has to be conveid .

Continuum 14
Having more time these days, means more of this drawing getting done. 
I love the intricacy of the bony acanthus shapes. Its getting more and more an obsession to draw these. So, there its said. And I guess any old day now I will get bored of them. Usually do when I make myself aware of these hangups 🙂

Inktober 24
This time I thought I'd do a fairly simple cloudscape. Typically of me then to choose a landscape that one simply have to do in shading. To bring across the sun shining through the clouds, I really didn't see any other way then to shade. I tried to let the lines make up the dynamics of the clouds by following the shapes, and at the same break that dynamic up with more chaotis line/shadework.

Continuum 15
It's beginning to be harder to find good complimenting movements of the shapes in this drawing. It is happening so much, its a danger it will all become pure chaos. But I am more or less decided on filling the whole paper with these shapes. 
Though, I also felt like putting in something like the clouds from inktober 15. Fog, smoke... I don't know yet.

Inktober 25
Ok, so I fucked up todays drawing. Been working most of the day on it. It was initially going to be black and white, but I figured it could be nice with color. So I gave it a go. Even though it was a very wrong paper that cant take that much water. But what really ruined it, was me using to much color in the start and hasting it all. And no, you can not see it 🙂
So I just drew this little fella. A little cute and mean insect. Well, thats inktober for ya. Sometimes you fuck things up.

Continuum 16
More planning in graphite. Really not much I can say about this drawing now without repeating myself, so I'll shut up and let the drawing speak for it self.

Inktober 26
"The columns of Atlas". This one I felt needed a name. No particular reason other then be course.

Continuum 17
Today I have just inked the pencil drawing from yesterday.

Inktober 27
Going back to the biplanes. I found a photo on facebook from which I took a lot of inspiration from in this drawing. I wanted a sea of clouds, but I'm not sure weather they look like clouds or waves to hones. Of well, thats what can happen when I am pressed for time. I need time to think as I need time to draw. Thinking and contemplating a piece of art. Sometimes as much as the time I need to make it.
Oh well, I like it no matter if its waves or clouds.

Inktober 29
Today I just wanted to relax with a doodle. A so called zenmeditionimprovdrawing. Just letting the pencil work freely on the paper and seeing what shapes come up. Then clean them up and draw them properly with ink. Keep doing that until one is pleased with the result.
This did however become the first drawing I did not finish this year. But I don't mind. These kinds of drawings is meant to be done over time as a meditation anyway.

Inktober 29
Today's drawing started as another idea. I wanted to draw a landscape with some sort of organisism in it, and in colour. I found a fitting photo amongst my photos, and started to sketch in up. Whilst doing this, I figured I needed to sketch the organisisms as well. So I thought I might just let these studies become today's drawing.

Inktober 30
It seemed I needed to get to know the motif better before the colour version I was supposed to make today, so I made a black and white version....
Nah, worked to slow so I had to make a last minute thing.
Hopefully there will be a colour version of this tomorrow.

Inktober 31
MADE IT!!

Phu, I can finally bearth out. I made inktober 2018 with no hickups.  Today is the day where I compile mye two latest drawings into the final inkpainting. More of a sci fi painting in which I combine my organisisms and real earth landscape. This painting is a good example on why one have to be able to improvise. I accidentally dripped som green ink onto the sky. Ink is impossible to remove from paper, I had to draw something in to cover it.

I did ponder a bit about draing in a hovering organisism, but ended up on a cloud. So that I wouldn't steal to much attention from the pylon and the cables. Now, I could have drawn in more cables, but due to short time, I diceded against it. It still looks good with this amount.

Continuum 18
I've got balls! Balls in the drawing that is. I have a long time felt I needed som other shapes in this pattern. Today I gave it a shot with spheres. And I think it worked very well. The only problem now is how to shade them. I started to think about doing them in colour, like in some of my organisism pencil drawings, but did the first one in ink. After sketching in the shades with pencil in the second, I found that I liked the look of pencil together with the black ink. I will leave the rest un-drawn for now, and probably decide when most of the drawing is done.

Continuum 19

So I have finally filled the whole A3 sheet with my bony acanthus pattern. And balls. Now for the tedious though meditative labour of shading it. I find this shading very satisfying.
When it comes to the spheres, I am lightly trying out graphite for the shading. I can do this be course its easy to erase if I dont want it. I think I will draw one or two spheres with coloured pencil on another paper sheet, and cut them out and lay them onto the drawing to see if that works. Coloured pencil is not that easy to erease, you see.
Tomorrow I'm going away to our mountain cabin. So I wont get anything done on this for about a week. Only healthy with a small break anywho.