Creative work in my vacations is usually hit or miss. Sometimes I don't do anything at all, sometimes I just keep a regular journal and sometimes, like this time on Schiermonnikoog, I do some very specific creative work in a travel journal every day. Sometimes my only memories are my photographs and sometimes I have a very specific book for a very specific vacation.
I'm quite happy that this time I made a very physical reminder of these two weeks, but it is by no means certain that I will be doing that again next time. It all depends on my mood and intentions.
Anyway, here is the second part of my travel journal/sketchbook from Schiermonnikoog:
I spoke in my last post about how challenging I find landscapes and that hasn't changed, but during the weeks gradually I did learn to enjoy making them a little more. I also learned that many problems can be solved by a little bit of opaque white paint. For some reason that gives the whole thing a little more depth. All these paintings had stages where I jus knew I totally ruined it and somehow they all ended up okay anyway.
All the paintings were done after my own photographs in the comfort of my appartment. I am not a plein air painter or sketcher at all. I like to sit behind a table in a warm space with no wind, and trust me, on the islands wind is pretty much a given.
Just a little credit where it's due: the beautiful postcards that I pasted in here and there are made by Marieke Feenstra. They were so stunning I just had to add them to my journal. If you want to see more of her work go here: https://www.mariekefeenstra.com
Well, that's all I have to share about Schiermonnikoog. I will probably turn my own photography postcards of my first two posts into a photobook as a companion to this travel journal.
As I post this my vacation freedom has been over for several weeks already and I am back to work and the daily grind. But I'm sure I'll have plenty of art and photography to show you in the coming time from my own home.
For now I wish you all a wonderful and artsy day.