Inktober and the Insight of an Artist

Credit: Sahana Sangha @sahanaswrld

By: Jasmin Sangha

Inktober is a worldwide challenge that started in 2009 by Jake Parker, who is an illustrator and comic artist. He worked as a set and concept designer for Blue sky studio but is best known as the creator of Inktober. The challenge encourages artists to follow a specific prompt each day throughout the month of October and use their creative freedom to come up with an illustration. 

This year, my sister, who has always loved art, decided to take part in the challenge. I interviewed her to learn more about her creative process, her artwork, and what inspires her to keep creating.  

Interview:

Jasmin (Interviewer): I know you have been obsessed with art ever since we were kids and it’s your main hobby and passion. What is it about art or yourself that really interests you to keep making art and what do you like the most about creating your own pieces? 

Sahana (Artist): Okay, I would say that just the world around me and like nature and stuff inspires me to continue making art. Observing things from my day-to-day life whether it be small things, bigger life events, kind of inspired that. 

Jasmin (Interviewer): And then the thing you like most about creating your own pieces, would that be having creative freedom to make whatever you would like? 

Sahana (Artist): Yeah, I enjoy having creative freedom to an extent, but the entire process of making the piece itself and have it come to life is my favorite part. Figuring out what I want to draw and what I want to make is sometimes the hardest part for me but once I get that figured out and can make whatever I want from there, that is what I enjoy the most and what inspires me. 

Jasmin (Interviewer): Can you walk me through your creative process? 

Sahana (Artist): So, I wouldn’t say I really have a set creative process. I get a lot of inspiration from just pictures that I take when I’m hiking or I don’t know, just taking pictures throughout my day-to-day life. Or maybe I’ll remember something or sometimes even just random thoughts or ideas that pop into my head. And then I usually like to have an initial sketch before I do a bigger piece of work on a canvas or something, to kind of just map everything out. And then I usually sketch onto the canvas, start with an underpainting, block out shadows and light, and then begin painting over it with just more color. But a lot of my creative process does change a lot though, because with certain pieces I like to incorporate different ideas or different materials and mediums. So I wouldn’t say it’s the same for every single one, and a lot of the process does change throughout every piece, and not everything is the same. 

Jasmin (Interviewer): Okay, awesome. Now you already kind of answered where you find inspiration, but how do you make sure that you can turn those ideas into finished pieces?

Sahana (Artist): Well, that’s probably the hardest part for me. I feel like when I do start a piece, it’s hard for me to go through it and completely finish it sometimes because I get distracted and I’ll have another idea or I’ll not like the piece that I’m working on anymore. So it’s kind of rare, I’d say, for me to fully finish something. But when I do, I’m going to like that piece a lot! 

Jasmin (Interviewer): So you kind of go through the creative process, then you come up with ideas, then you map it out, draw it, but you usually don’t finish? 

Sahana (Artist): Yeah, sometimes I just stop liking it. 

Jasmin: Looking at some of the art you’ve created in the past, is there a piece that means a lot to you? What makes it so special?

Sahana (Artist): I would say that most of my AP Art portfolios pretty special to me because that’s the time that I had to sit down with myself and actually force myself to finish pieces. I had to actually complete things and get them done. So yes I do enjoy having creative freedom to an extent, but also my portfolio probably pushed me the most throughout my art journey which is really important to me and I had to follow a theme, and think of things that went with the theme. I would definitely say that that’s the portfolio or piece that I have the most connection to that was also very close and personal to me.

(Some of Sahana’s AP Art Pieces)

Jasmin (Interviewer): Love it. Great answer, so why did you decide to participate in Inktober this year? How has the challenge changed or influenced the way you approach art or your creative process? 

Sahana (Artist): I decided to do inktober this year because I noticed that I wasn’t making as much art as I used to make, just over this past year, because I’ve been really busy with other things. I wanted to be able to sit down and branch out my art more and since the prompts are so random and outlandish but also fun and halloween themed, I thought it would be a really good way for me to get out of my comfort zone more and really think outside the box and be creative with my artwork and make something everyday that would make my artwork better. 

Jasmin (Interviewer): Has it challenged you in any way?

Sahana (Artist): Yeah. I would say that there are prompts on the inktober list that don’t really make sense or I don’t know how to interpret them at first, but sitting there and letting myself think about it, what possible ways could I interpret the prompt has been challenging but also really helpful because it helps me push myself the most. 

Jasmin (Interviewer): Okay last question. Out of all the pieces you have created for inktober so far, what has been your favorite piece and why? 

Sahana (Artist): My favorite one is for the prompt mystical where I drew this pretty mermaid and although it’s kind of simple, it was the piece I definitely had the most fun with and I really liked the way it turned out.

Jasmin (Interviewer): Thank you so much for doing this with me!

Overall, I believe art can take many forms and be interpreted in many ways. Challenges like inktober are designed to give artists and people the ability to keep creating and express each theme in their own way. However, anyone can create art! 

Below are some of Sahana’s Inktober pieces so far!