Simply Draw & Paint it
Hi !
Here I share my thoughts about living a creative life, about how I found more and more fun and joy in making art and looking for creativity by getting rid of my demons like fear, perfectionism, what-might-other-people-think, ugliness (what’s that anyway?), Art with a big A, dogma’s …. Everybody is an artist and everybody is creative!
Please feel free to share your story in the comments in my posts! I read all the comments and I would love to hear from you!
Tell me your story here: info @ barbaraluel.com
Sketching Portugal… in 2015 and in 2024!
I have been looking at old sketchbooks again to see how my skills and style evolved. What I notice is that the 2015-me was so afraid to express herself and afraid to ruin the sketchbook, that the drawing is barely visible… no shadows, very weak colors and weak line...
Drawing as a mindfulness exercise
It's as if a month disappeared out of my life. On 21st August I lost unexpectedly my best childhood friend, Samanta. We were friends since we were 2 years old. So we just celebrated our 50th friendship anniversary. It's as if I lost my big sister. Grief is a thing...
10 Years of Sketchbook Progress
On my YouTube channel I published a video where I show a sketchbook from about 10 years ago from now: 2015....And I show a sketch from my home 10 years ago and one of the same subject 6 years later: 2021.... I find the difference spetctacular. I made this video to...
My Best Art Advice Ever ?
The Best Art Avice Ever? I got from Leslie Stroz resuming what I try to apply and transmit from Betty Edwards' book "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain". Leslie puts it in a more clear way I think: "Pretent you're an Alien" ! That means: try prentending to be an...
Urbansketching Portugal: On Keeping a Travel Sketchbook
I’m off again to my next trip in Portugal to work on my book. In the meantime I just published my new Skillshare class featuring video’s of my previous trips in portugal. I also show you how I prepare my sketchbook and what I take with me on my trips. I’ve been...
Drawing Happy Lines
Guess who visited Brussels again to do a sketchwalk with us and to give 2 workshops? The King of Happy Lines: Ch’ng Kiah Kiean from Malaysia ! The sketchwalk we organized with Urbansketchers Belgium was part of the 50th Citydev.Brussels Anniversary, were...
How “Good Enough” can make you enjoy your Sketchbook Practice
A friendly reminder (also to myself): "No Progress without Action!" While I'm making my new online class about travel sketching in Portugal I am thinking about how to make people engage better and post drawings in the classes. I get a lot of reviews from people who...
About “Messy” Watercolor with Reham Ali…
Urbansketchers Belgium had the honor to have Reham Ali visiting for several days, thanks to Citydev.Brussels 50th Anniversary we're documenting. We had a great sketchwalk on Friday, but also a wonderful workshop with Reham on Saturday. Here are some takeaways from the...
Breaking routines with urbansketching
Spring is there, so it's time to gather your art supplies and go sketching outside! Urbansketching events are flourishing all over the world, and also in Brussels! You don't need to fly away to mix up your day-to-day and draw in your sketchbooks like I did by going to...
Preparing my Portugal sketchbook
Yay I'm leaving to Portugal to go sketchbing for my new book for Akinome and my new Skillshare class I love to paint the map and my art supplies in my new sketchbooks and I made a video this time to show you how I prepare my trip. I also show you how I mix my...
Learning New Sketching Ways in Finland
I just came back from Finland, pushing my sketching bounderies with artist Marie Detrée (https://www.mariedetree.com/).First I went 5 days to Helsinki to see back old friends I know from my architecture studies in Oulu 30 years ago. It was amazing to see them. (We...
How to keep going
Did you also already quit your new year’s resolutions? What do you do about it?
Byebye 2023 – Hello 2024
What kind of a year was 2023 for you? For a lot of people it was a dark year of war time... and Climate Change... Quite stressfull of course.... So I'm very grateful and lucky to live in Belgium... I feel very privileged for the moment.... being busy with work and...
The 2 Things that Changed my Creative Journey
I have constant self-doubt when I write an email, a book or a blog post, and also when I draw… When I make a new online class for Skillshare it’s even worse. Why should anyone care and watch my classes? Of course when I get good reviews the self-doubt, or imposter...
Beating the Inner Critic with Tea Cups and My Autumn Palette
I’m feeling a lot of resistance lately in my creative work and can’t seem to get going…. My inner critic is louder than ever: everything I draw looks like crap and I’m overwhelmed by the violence in the world, and with work in the office. And in the evening I just...
Getting Out of a Creative Dip
It has been about 2 weeks now that I don’t seem to be able to enjoy my drawing and painting. I have some hard days and a very low dip! What do you do on those days when you just can't get anywhere? Those days when you're tired, when your patience fails you at every...
Why Don’t You Make a Book about Brussels?
Why don't you make a book about Brussels? Someone asked me on Instagram. Who cares about Brussels really? It is soiled, polluted, messily patched together. It demonstrates little self-esteem, and doesn’t seem to manage its own protection. “Bruxellisation” is now a...
How to Use Curiosity to Find Your Drawing Style
Hi dear artist friends! I made a sketchbook tour video of my travel in Portugal beginning of August and I also show the art supplies I traveled with. You can watch below if you like and subscribe to my You Tube channel. I decided to make more tutorial...
Looking for “your style”?
“Once is a mistake. Twice is an idea. Three times is style.” - Miles Davis. I got this great question from Katherine in my mailbox 10 days ago (please send me your questions: I love receiving questions because it gives me great ideas about what to write about!) : “I...
Create More Depth in your Watercolor
What I find most tricky to do when I'm out sketching is to create depth in a watercolor sketch! Creating depth in a watercolor painting involves understanding the principles of perspective, value, color, and composition. Here are some tips to help you achieve a sense...
