Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Christmas Truce


I bought tickets for the John McCutcheon concert which was to feature his song "Christmas in the Trenches", about the Christmas Truce of WWI, held at the World War I Museum in KC. We missed the concert but spent about four hours going thru the Word War I Museum. I've seen the Kansas City monument for ages but haven't taken the time to visit it. My knowledge of WWI was minimal and I wanted to change that. The history is more engaging that I thought. It's a very involved history. Wilma and I absorbed it all. At their cafe for lunch I had Trench Stew (mmm!) with carrots, turnips and corned beef.

Sunday, December 21, 2014

December Sketchcrawl was fun!

 
I parked myself in a comfy chair in the atrium and sketched iconic Christmas figures...nice and quiet there! This was an old Sheaffer calligraphy pen and watercolor.

The light wasn't too great, but the place was...and I love Father Christmas!

Keith was sketching the trees beyond the door...lovely pen and ink work!

Kelly liked the golf course's tree...those are golf clubs coming out the top!

Cindy chose the Parks and Rec department's lovely natural tree...

Carolyn is sketching at the water bar, where they used to serve a variety of kinds of mineral water to visitors from around the world.  We still get visitors but the waters are not currently available.

Keith moved to the other side of the bar to sketch the mugs and so forth.

Here's Cindy working away!

And here is her tree!
my last of the day, with a Pentel Pocket Brush, watercolor added later...


I set up by the door to sketch outdoors...

I love this old Art Deco building, so many fascinating nooks and crannies!

My finished sketch...that blue detail defeated me! Konrad flex pen and De Atramentis Document Brown ink.

And as always, the fun afterward, sharing a meal and our sketchbooks!

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Trying to be a BIG City Urban Sketcher for a Week

I was in Brookline, Massachusetts for a week spanning Thanksgiving, spending time with family. Brookline is part of the greater Boston metropolitan area. My husband and I rented a pleasant flat in an apartment building, on a treed street.

From Beaconsfield Road Flat
Through the front windows, I did a Neocolor II wax pastel drawing of the apartment across the street. To my Midwestern sensibilities, the building was quintessentially Boston: brick facade, slate roof, copper flashing, bay windows and stone lintels. Snow remained on the roof from the flurry the day before.

Beaconsfield Road preparatory sketch

I had high hopes of doing a slew of big city urban sketching in-between family times--drawing on the trolleys and subways, sketching Boston landmarks, even fitting in the trademark Urban Sketchers coffee shop scenes. All that alluded me: I came down with the flu! After which, looking out from the inside of this cozy home away from home was all I could muster between fever, chills, and long naps.


My daughter-in-law sent over flowers.  I put them on the counter next to the kitchen window.


Drawing a minimal sketch of the utility pole from bed seemed a huge effort.

Luckily, on my first full day in Boston, before I got sick, I went to the Goya exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. What a world-class museum! What an inspired exhibit! See some of the works in the Goya exhibit and sketches I did at the museum in my Urban Sketcher International Blog post: Goya and his admirers in Boston HERE.











Monday, December 8, 2014

Happy Anniversary to all of us!



URBAN SKETCHERS CELEBRATES FIVE YEARS OF TRAVEL SKETCHING AND STORYTELLING

Seattle, WA, 05 December 2014 – Urban Sketchers.org, a non-profit organization, is celebrating its fifth anniversary since incorporating on December 6, 2009. Its mission is to promote on-location sketching and to connect people around the world who enjoy urban sketching. Wildly successful, the international community of urban sketchers is estimated at 50,000+ and almost 14 million page views on the Urban Sketchers (USk) blog.

Seattle-based journalist and illustrator Gabriel Campanario launched the group in 2007 by creating an online community of urban sketches on Flickr.com. Sketchers scan their drawings and share them on the group’s Flickr site, Facebook page or blog. The idea went viral. So far communities of sketchers have formed 60 regional chapters in 29 countries.

"Urban Sketchers is growing because sketchers are finding each other where they live and travel.” says Membership Director, Jessie Chapman. “Members are building relationships and communities with people who share the same interests, both online and at our events."

USk raises the artistic, storytelling and educational value of location drawing with workshops and events held all around the world. USk has organized five international symposiums in Portland, USA; Lisbon, Portugal; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Barcelona, Spain and Paraty, Brazil.

The 2015 Symposium will be held in Singapore July 22-25. Organizers expect 250+ attendees from around the world.

“Artists of all ages and skill levels have stories to tell,” says founder Gabi Campanario. “Urban Sketchers is a free group that provides a platform for them to renew their love of drawing and to learn more about storytelling.”

To find out more about Urban Sketchers or to locate a regional chapter near you, visit urbansketchers.org.

USk is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Donations are used to foster educational opportunities for sketching enthusiasts with workshops, events and symposiums. Donations made in the United States may be tax deductible.

Press Contact:
Brenda Murray
Communications Director
Urban Sketchers
519-896-4761
brenda@urbansketchers.org

Friday, December 5, 2014

Some coffeeshop time in Pre-Xmas Salina

I had the good fortune of having time on my hands while Wilma attended an activity of her own. That gave me the chance to find a neat little independent coffeeshop in Salina. Had some sketch time while I took in the local scene.

Monday, December 1, 2014

The Symposium for 2015 is on!

http://www.urbansketchers.org/2014/12/call-for-submissions-singapore-2015.html

In case you missed the announcement!

This should be good, the Singapore folk are very committed and active.  They just shared this video from one of their recent sketchcrawls...I would LOVE to be able to do something similar for our group!

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