The importance of sketches

By

Valentina Viskovic

Sketch, the ability to express actions, space and time throughout a single drawing. One of the first steps in the creative process that carries a multitude of unknowns that needs to be developed, the foundation from which everything else arises.

What actually is a sketch and its real meaning, nobody, easier and more accurately explained than Pablo Picasso, who once said: “In drawing, nothing is better than the first attempt.” That first attempt, our sketch is in fact the initiator of the whole process; not just one of the many tools, but a clear vision that helps in a realization of an idea and imagined concept.

Nowadays, due to the development of technology and the superiority of computer 3D software, fewer and fewer students coming from universities with the ability to hold a pen, work through their ideas, research different concepts or sit across from a client and talk with him/her through drawings. In architecture, sketch is there to make communication easier, because by using it through the conversation, information comes together and forms a complete picture. Perhaps, to a common man who is not an architect, sketch represents the impression of incompleteness, but he actually doesn’t realize her honesty and value.

How many times have you sat in a cafe, worked on a university project or in boredom took a paper and pencil and began to draw? After completing the sketch you’ve thought about, what would other people say about your work? You asked yourself whether your work is good enough and what would be a professional opinion about it? The same question was bothering the person, a sketching addict, who is behind the project that we will now present. The question was: “Why isn’t there a place where we could publish our work and get a professional opinion and advice about it or just sell it for a certain amount of money?”

The answer to this question is the “Sketchlane” – a project made by a young designer from Mostar with a goal of creating an international platform for designers and artists, on which they will have the opportunity to publish their works. Initially, the focus is cooperation between artists, but also a cooperation between artists and potential clients. This platform is currently the only place in the world reserved just for sketches and we hope that this will help artists to develop their career. By our opinion, the right way to offer artists and designers the best access to appropriate clients is to first become popular among themselves. The aim of this project is to create a community of designers, make a communication between them better and make them exchange opinions.

You are all familiar with the fact that you can always publish your finished works on web platforms such as ‘Dribble’ or ‘Behance’, but you can’t publish your sketches anywhere. We are focused on the ideas that you had on the side while you were working on projects and those ideas are in fact, raw diamonds that should be valued the most.

The sketches that could be published on our platform can be for architecture, portraits, various types of design (cars, fashion, graphic, interior, aircraft, robot, logo, etc), illustrations and in general for all that include drawing. Sketchlane is here to present daily exercises on items such as napkins, the back of the notebook or on empty piles of paper to the world. Exercises like this, in a form of a sketch can now be shown to the other artists who can give you their suggestions and ideas about it and in that way, assist you in improving your drawing skills. Such improvement can help you to find a job in the future.

As we said before, on Sketchlane, all of you can publish your works and in some way sell them, because, one of our goals is also a cooperation with regional and worldwide companies that are recognized in this area of work and enjoy good reputation among users. Their participation can contribute to the development of ideas appropriately. For example, one employer, who has access to the platform too, can view the works of our users and buy a drawing or hire somebody whose drawings he liked.

Furthermore, in order to get in touch with the appropriate clients, services of our registered users will be ‘sold’ also through the promotion and advertising on social networks. You can also follow us through profiles on social networks such as instagram.

In addition to benefits above, users will be able to cooperate with each other in the public or private groups that will be created by the user, colleges or companies.

With the support and recognition, this can be a great opportunity for all of you. We believe that drawings should not be accumulated in a pile of paper and never be available to the world. Through a global network of contacts and international environment on our platform, we want to provide everyone with the possibility of success, personal and professional development, as well as earnings.

Valentina Viskovic

Valentina Viskovic is currently a third year student of Computing at the Faculty of mechanical engineering and computing in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Besides studying, over the past few years, Valentina has worked as a volunteer for numerous NGOs on different projects. Some of her volunteering experiences include membership in student organizaton AIESEC in Mostar, volunteer for several summer festivals and in  ogranization of smaller promotion events.

In addition, considering her love for art and design, Valentina started to work as an android developer and now as marketing manager in startup ‘Sketchlane’ at the Spark-business park, which is also located in Mostar. Vision and main goal of this startup is to create an international platform for designers and artists, on which they will have the opportunity to publish their sketches. This platform is currently the only place in the world reserved just for sketches and in the Sketchlane team they really hope that this will help artists to develop their career in a proper way.