I learned about the artist Charles Ritchie from James Lancel McElhinney’s talk about the Painted Book. The image below is from Ritchie’s website, which is quite extensive.
The website even has a whole category for Journal Keeping, among other aspects of the creative process. And on this page, you can see more about Ritchie’s sketchbooks, which since 1992 his wife hand-binds for him. He has filled 146 sketchbooks so far.
In an interview with Larry Groff at the Painting Perceptions site, Ritchie talks a bit about how he uses his journals:
LG:Â Â How did your journals evolve and what makes them so important to you?
CR:   I left undergraduate school in 1977 and realized that having a small sketchbook in my pocket to record thoughts and images was an immediate grounding in a world of distractions. Working with pen and ink on paper in a palm-sized book had an immediacy and a feel that appealed to me. The content in the books has evolved over the years. Originally, there was a lot of open page with phrases and line drawings, mostly my attempts to track my thinking and seeing in the everyday world. Eventually, I started dating entries and began writing longer, more involved entries and also integrating images in black watercolor and brush. Dreams eventually presented themselves as an interesting way to push deeper toward my subconscious. When my wife and I moved into our home in 1984, I started working out of the same window and began to record the subjects I continue to work with. Eventually, the primary colors and then secondaries entered the mix and the journals became even more packed with images and writing. What I like best about my collection of journals is that I can look back over the chronology of my life and pick up recurring threads within the images and writings. The journals are the spine of my project. It’s very rewarding to look at my shelf of 144 books (and counting) and know that I can stride the years and see a picture of who I was at so many moments. I also appreciate what my dealer John Lee of BravinLee programs says about my books; they are stay-at-home travelogues. I do see myself as trying to see how far I can go in a single place.
pen and ink, graphite, and watercolor on Arches paper in bound volume, open book size: 4 x 12″ 2011
Be sure to check out Charles Ritchie’s Website and the Interview with Larry Groff for lots more images and insights about these beautiful works of art.
What a timely post. I was just thinking I ought to carry a sketchbook, with a limited pencil selection. Maybe an ink pen. Trying to do more (I am an artist), but time is limited. With a bujo, I really don’t want to draw in it much, as I use it for so much.