Leaving for the Arctic!

I'm about to start my journey to the Arctic. I'll be making my way to Svalbard to participate in the Arctic Circle residency over the next week. to say I'm excited is an understatement!

Getting ready for this trip has been so interesting because it's not just about packing, it's about what do I want to draw with and what can I draw with. I wrote already about my experiments with materials, and wanted to share with you what I settled on. I would include pictures, but everything is packed :)

Sketchbooks

• Stillman & Birn alpha, 5x8 - taking two of these because they are my favorite
• Moleskine, 3.5 x 5.5 - I like carrying a smaller sketchbook along with the regular-sized one; also taking two of these
• Stillman & Birn alpha, 8x10 - this is already half full and I'm taking it just in case I want to use larger paper
• Oh you thought I was done? I threw in two Seawhite of Brighton sketchbooks because they are slim and have nice paper and are my usual trip backups

Materials - everyday carry

• Small watercolor palette from Art Toolkit
• Kuretake water brushes - I won't be able to use these outside, they freeze easily! But I'll have them around for the rest of the time.
• Kuretake water brushes with diluted sumi - These will also freeze! 
• Assorted pencils - Faber Castell oil base, Mitsubishi dual Prussian Blue & Vermilion, Prismacolor neon pink
• Pentel white gel pen even though those never work
• Rosemary & Co travel paintbrush

Materials - extra

• Colored pencils - Mostly Faber Castell Polychromos - and a sharpener
• Caran D'Ache neocolor pastels - These didn't seem to be affected when I put them in the freezer!
• Folio watercolor palette from Art Toolkit
• Extra water container to fill with vodka to use in the cold - I found that straight vodka worked best to paint with after sitting in the freezer for a while; when I tried diluting it, it froze.
• Sumi to mix with vodka to use in the cold
• Lots of clips to hold paper down in the wind - It's going to be super windy!

And that's it! It's not a lot but it's perfect for sketching. I will take pictures of all of it in use and will share when I return.

I want to extend a big thank you to everyone who has supported me with this residency and in my career in general. I couldn't do this without you.