Want to know what February’s #WalkToSee prompt is?

Are you joining in with #WalktoSee?

In this episode, we chat about how our Helen's hashtag Walk to See started, how it works, (there are basically no rules 😆), and why monthly prompts are muuch gentler on the brain/energy levels than daily prompts.

In this episode:
00:00 What Walk to See is
01:30 The only “rule”
02:30 Why the format changed
03:30 How often you actually need to draw
04:30 January’s prompt
05:30 Interpreting “wet”
06:30 Why daily challenges can be a bit much
07:30 Community stuff
08:30 Being seen on Instagram
09:30 Sharing / being shared
10:30 Drawing in the rain
11:30 Drawing in the dark
13:30 Walk to See GIFs
14:30 How to get a gold star
15:30 Imperfect drawings

How to join in:
Draw something from life <-- that's the only rule!
Take a photo.
Share it on Instagram using #WalkToSeeWet to join in with February's walk to see!

Byeeee for now!
x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania) 🚢✨

Come and say hello!

✏️ @thegoodshipillustration
🌏 www.thegoodshipillustration.com

p.s. We love answering your illustration questions. Click here to submit your question for The Good Ship Illustration Podcast 🎙

Transcript

[00:00:00]

Helen:
Hello? Hello. Shall we talk about Walk to See?

Katie:
Yes, let’s.

Helen:
Okay, so Walk to See, for people who haven’t heard about it, is a drawing prompt that I started… I think it was 2017-ish. Am I right? Hang on, I feel like it’s earlier than that. It feels older, but when I looked it up it was surprisingly recent. I can’t remember exactly when I started, but it’s been going for a few years and it’s got really big.

So I’ve been running Walk to See for a few years now, and it’s to celebrate drawings made from life in a sketchbook. There are basically no rules, except it must be drawn from life. You can draw in a sketchbook, on bits of paper, wherever you like, even on the backs of receipts. Then you take a photo of your drawing and post it on Instagram using the hashtag Walk to See.

It’s been running for years and years now. I think there are around 120,000 contributions so far, which is amazing. But Instagram has changed how the algorithm works, and I can’t see what’s been posted recently anymore. It’s so annoying. It just shows me things it thinks I’ll like, which means posts from years ago come to the top of my feed. And I like to share what people have done that week in my stories.

So, Tanya, you had the idea of doing a Walk to See drawing prompt every month. You’re looking at me blankly. Do you not remember this?

Tania:
A lot of stuff that happened in my past…

Helen:
Take the credit. See where this is going? It was a genius idea. So now, every month, I make a new prompt. It’s “Walk to See” something. December was Walk to See Festive, and January – drum roll – was Walk to See Wet.

Because it rains a lot, there’s lots of wet scenery outside, and then there’s bath time. You were talking about Edith having to wash in the sink.

Katie:
Yeah. If you want to occupy a three-year-old for half an hour and don’t mind the floor getting soaking wet, stick them in the sink with cups. You’ve got free hands to draw.

Helen:
You can draw splashy puddles while your toddler is in puddles.

And I know Australia, India, and everywhere else are listening thinking, “What are you talking about?” Swimming pools count. Or you can wet the page and draw into it. Or use wet drawing materials. So either what you’re drawing is wet, or how you’re drawing is wet.

Soup… I can’t think of what else. Wet materials, wet paper.

Tania:
Brilliant. So even if you’re not near anything wet, you can still depict wet. Get your inks and paper out and you’re already doing it. Easy.

Katie:
Questions people might have. When people hear “challenge”, they often think they have to draw something every single day. No. You can do what you like. One drawing, one a day, ten a day, or none.

Helen:
Some people are very keen and go, “Helen, I’ve done another one!” And if you like that, go for it. I really love seeing them.

Tania:
Or just one a month. I actually managed to do it this time. Daily prompts are great if you’ve got loads of time, but when you’re busy, they can turn into 30 days of kicking yourself.

Katie:
Set the bar low.

Helen:
There’s no keeping up with Walk to See. You do what you like. The pressure to do one every day is too much. Half-arse it. Try one.

And you don’t even have to share it if you can’t be bothered. Though I would prefer it if you did, because otherwise I won’t see it.

Tania:
It’s really interesting seeing how people interpret the prompt differently.

Helen:
That’s the brilliant thing. We’ve done Walk to See Cozy, Festive, Weather – and everyone’s interpretation is totally different. That’s part of the creativity. And it creates a really nice community. People see what everyone else is posting, and some have even met up in real life to draw together.

And publishers look at this kind of thing. This is the sort of place they’ll look for artists.

Tania:
I was talking to Margot Tinto recently, and she said people are still looking on Instagram. If your work connects with a product or theme, manufacturers, licensing companies, publishers – they’re all still looking.

Helen:
I share a big selection on my stories every weekend, which helps people get discovered by other Walk to See-ers. It really is a proper community.

Katie:
When I was starting out, Walk to See was a big thing for me. Even if I didn’t join in, I’d scroll the hashtag to see who was worth following.

Tania:
Especially when you work alone, it feels like a comfort blanket.

One thing though – we should probably spell out the hashtag.

Helen:
Yes. Walk – like walking with your legs – to – then see, with your eyes. Not the sea.

Tania:
That’s the hashtag.

Helen:
I also made some GIFs ages ago. If you search “Walk to See” in Instagram GIFs, you’ll find some. There are also special ones for drawing in the rain and drawing in the dark, which are my favourite ways to draw.

I love drawing in the rain because you lose complete control. Your page gets wet, and you get what you get. Some of my best drawings are done in the rain because perfectionism doesn’t stand a chance.

Tania:
You can see the weather in the drawing. It’s physical evidence that you were there.

Helen:
One of my favourite drawings was done in Iceland, drawing a wooden sailing boat. It started to drizzle, and the ink bloomed where the raindrops hit the paper. The rigging had these little bursts of ink. It was beautiful.

Drawing in the dark is similar. At the theatre, sketchbook on your knee, finger marking where your pen starts, drawing fast. Your eyes stay on the subject, not the drawing.

I did some great drawings at Swan Lake – the one with all the male ballerinas.

People who draw in the rain or dark get unofficial gold stars.

Katie:
You can find the GIFs by searching Walk to See, Draw in the Rain, or Draw in the Dark in Instagram GIFs.

Helen:
They make everything wiggle nicely.

Katie:
Feeling inspired now?

Helen:
These drawings are going to be the dirtiest ones we’ve ever seen at art club.

Tania:
Wet-on-wet is perfect for this.

Helen:
I love wet materials on white paper.

Katie:
I’m in. I’m doing it this month.

All:
Bye!

[00:11:00]