Art Supply Vacillation

I have this weird problem - I can’t decide on how much art material to carry when I go sketching.

I enjoy experimenting when I go on sketch outings. I love trying out different types of art material and playing with drawing styles, so my drawing pouch has all the supplies I need to indulge myself.

I use different types of pouches. Sometimes, I pick a small one and fill it with the basics. A pen, a couple of pencils and a small watercolour box.

Other times I pick a multi-pocketed monstrosity that contains… a lot! All sorts of pens - ballpoint, gel, regular and fude-nibbed fountain pens, a large set of pencils including graphite, charcoal and coloured ones. Then there are the brush-pens, the pastels, a spray bottle, a glue stick, a much larger watercolour box and so on.

When I carry the basic kit, I find myself missing a tool mid drawing, and wish I had carried the maximalist kit.

When I carry the maximalist kit I realise what a pain it is to lug it around and the decision fatigue it causes. I also tend to remember the benefits of scarcity and friction only when I carry this dump truck of a kit around. Less is somehow more.

When I make do with what I have, drawing somehow feels different. I have to be creative in capturing what I see with limited material. I like how that feels.

So yeah. I swing like a pendulum. Maximalist one week and minimalist the next.