ARTIST HUB SPECIAL GUEST DAWN DeVRIES SOKOL

This months Artist Hub Exposé is all about a very talented doodler and art journaler called Dawn Sokol. Dawn has a fabulous layered and painterly style. Her love of Typography is a strong component in her work. Lettering, quotes and song verses inspire and take center stage in most of her work with a touch of doodling thrown into the mix…lets have a closer look at this vibrant and fun artist!
Introducing the amazing.... DAWN DeVRIES SOKOL

Here is her story...
Tell us a little bit about you.

After getting a journalism degree, working in newspapers, magazines, and books, and taking A LOT of art workshops, I evolved into an author, artist, and designer. My life revolves around creating and has for a long time. I have a studio in my home and it's a total mess! All of my favorite things surround me there: my laptop, my easel, my books, and my journals and paints. I really felt as if I had found my creative love when I started art journaling. It's the format from which all opportunities for me have evolved. My art is a mixture of collage, paint, and doodling.

This year, my work has developed from journal to canvas. I still LOVE my journals, but have been painting larger when I can. It's been a difficult step for me to take because for the longest time I couldn't even face a blank canvas. It seemed so vast. But since I've discovered wood panels and cardboard, it's not an issue. Obviously, canvas doesn't work for me. It's expensive and I don't like the texture with what I do.

I love to hold doodling and art journaling workshops and am conducting my fifth annual holiday art journaling e-course on my blog, starting mid-November. This year we'll make a journal in two weeks and then I will send out doodling prompts daily throughout December.

What is your greatest influence and where do you find inspiration?

I usually turn on some music to start. Sometimes it takes trying out a few songs or different artists to see what I'm in the mood for, but when it strikes me I know it. Either a song will inspire me to do some lettering of the lyrics or just help me to get into a zone. Sometimes it's just me sort of forcing myself to sketch or journal that will get me into that zone, but that's if I'm not feeling it at all.

Lettering and fonts greatly influence my work and much of what I create is based on words. I was commissioned to paint a utility box for my city last year, so I painted a positive message with a bevy of color wrapping around the structure. The design also covers a library card for the city as well.

What is your favourite piece of artwork you have created and why?

This piece was one of the first big pieces I did. I painted it after losing my Lucy. She was about 15 years old and we had had her for 13. She was my constant companion in the studio and during the last year of her life it was the only room she truly seemed to enjoy being in. I'll never know another like her, and I miss her so much. But I painted this knowing that she's still with me and always will be.

Are you currently exhibiting and or do you have any publications you;d liek to share with us?

I hope to hang my paintings in a gallery some day, but for now, I'm authoring books. My fifth book, The Doodle Circle: A Fill-In Journal for BFFs to Share has just been released and I've built a large Facebook group around my book, Art Doodle Love. I'm currently working on my next book, a follow-up to my first book (1000 Artist Journal Pages), which will be published Spring 2015 by Abrams/STC Craft.

 Can you share one final extra something maybe a link to a video or a favourite quote?

I love to do lettering and this quote is from one of my favorite Katie Herzig songs, "Jack and Jill":

 Here is the video that inspired Dawns beautiful image above.