Also known as graphic recording, sketch noting or visual minutes.
What is it?
'Sketch noting' is a term for having artwork created live during an event. It has other names like visual minutes, sketch noting, graphic recording and graphic facilitation. It's the process of capturing a live event as engaging colourful visuals. It's a great way to engage and support individuals and teams.
It can take various forms;
Capturing a speaker's words as visuals as they deliver their talk at a conference
Working with a team at a company away day, turning feedback into posters
Capturing company's core values as spoken notes and turning them into highly polished illustrations
(90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual.)
Sketch noting is a great way to enhance the impact and takeaways from an event. With the live art I create for clients, all artwork is owned by the clients once it has been created, and can be reused however they like. Often on office walls or social media.
Sketch noting (Graphic recording) is thinking fast with visuals. Creating engaging illustrations during a talk, conference or event. It has other names like visual minutes, live scribing and graphic facilitation.
Connecting what speakers are saying with what images are commonly represented by the subject being spoken about. There's also humour, as I like to add appropriate humour to visuals. Just my opinion, though I think with more serious topics, using a little light humour can help with how people engage with difficult subjects, and some of my clients agree.
It’s a great way to make an event memorable and informally promote learning.
90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual, so more information is retained.
Artwork created can be shared in social media.
It’s human-made content.
Conferences, seminars and plenaries.
Community engagement sessions (Eg. local council and residents, board and stakeholders)
Education and training events
Capturing talks and keynote speakers.
Team feedback, discussion and ideation sessions.
Company retreats and away days.
I've covered a broad range of subjects, often briefed by clients with specific needs. Here are some examples:
Greater Manchester Live Well Strategy (GMCA).
Developing programmes for young people in care & supported accommodation (GMYN).
National BCorp Conference.
Addressing the cost of living crisis (NECA).
Housing association and tenants plenary.
Further education seminars (NIHR).
Health and Safety (NFCC).
Arts Festivals
Traditional live scribing is done using board or large sheets of paper and marker pens. It’s very flexible for most events.
Digital scribing is created on a pen tablet (a Movink, Galaxy Tab or Ipad) which is displayed on a monitor or projector screen.
Virtual scribing is done over a meeting app like zoom or teams.
Both are great, considerations are a mixture of the available technology in the event space, and personal choice.
Traditional live scribing is created using many sheets/boards and can slow fill a wall over the course of an event so everything is on show, the whole day can be seen. It’s a very tactile experience for an audience to observe.
Digital scribing can look more slick, with art appearing on a screen. A main consideration for talks if the speaker has a slide deck is having a second screen for live scribing. A projector can be supplied too, to project art at scale on a wall.
With John Cooper, all artwork is owned by the clients once it has been created and can be reused however they like (with the exception of feeding AI models!)
Check with the live scribe you’re using if they have any specific licencing conditions.
Watch my comedy show from the 2026 Manchester Improv Festival
Whats that? You don't you have the time? It's only five minutes long.
'Blink and You'll Miss It!' was billed as a 'comedy show for people with very short attention spans' and 'Micro-improv'. You'd only have known that by following the QR code on the show poster or by going to my website.
This included audience interaction, four games and the audience leaving before a timer ran out. If the show overran by even one second, it would be regarded as an artistic failure.
Was it a failure? Did the audience read the show description in advance?
Pre-Show Advertising.
Even though it was only five minutes, I still promoted properly with social media, posters and video;
Easily distracted? Have trouble focusing? Has your attention span shrunk to a tiny walnut from too much interweb doom scroobling and eye-boggling the TiketyTok? This show is for you!
Please note: This show is 5 MINUTES LONG.
Only 5 Minutes? What a Swizz!
All audience members will get a mystery gift as a bit of reimbursement. Festival rules say all tickets are £5 across the board for all shows, so this is my way of making up for that. That said, the audience is very much part of the show because....
This Show Must Not Overrun!
If the show overruns by even one second, it will be regarded as an artistic failure.
The showing running time includes audience 'get in' and 'get out', so all audience members are complicit in the success or failure of the show.
The show will consist of no less than three 'micro-form'* improv games.
This show will start exactly on time. No late entry is permitted.
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