Lisa Yuskavage: Northview Journal

This journal is a handy size for the most dedicated of writers or the quick note-taker! Featuring a drawing by Lisa Yuskavage, Northview (kk with weird monkey sculpture), 2000, this hardcover lined journal has soft-touch laminate cover for a silky smooth feel.

Yuskavage spent several years closely studying live models, often working with people she had grown up with, or with newer acquaintances who reminded her of her prior imagined figures. Her process moved in and out of fiction—for instance, when a European peasant shirt showed up in a painting, she bought a similar one and redrew it; or a model sparked her interest because they resembled a Bad Habits character. For Biting the Red Thing, Yuskavage hired a model who she thought people would mistake for her. She was starting to find a way to include herself in her work. Regardless of the project, Yuskavage has allowed her materials to be her guide. There is something about the wateriness of blue gouache, for example, that she associates with the realm of fiction, whereas the precision of pencil on paper demands a greater adherence to life.