A lovely day for our April KC-area sketchcrawl!

We met at Belvoir Winery in Liberty, Missouri, this time...a perfect day, and a good turnout of the day before Easter Sunday!

It was sunny and mild but very windy!  We had a terrific time...

This old place has seen a number of uses over the years--a hotel, the Odd Fellows Home, and now Belvoir Winery!  It's a great place to sketch, and we've been there twice before.  You can see an earlier crawl in these posts: http://urbansketchers-midwest.blogspot.com/2012/09/september-sketchcrawl.html 
and http://urbansketchers-midwest.blogspot.com/2012/06/sketchcrawl-at-belvoir-winery-in.html

Honest, the spatter was on purpose!

Malinda Welte sketched the grounds...

Susan White chose a small vignette.  She found little little watercolor kit in Europe when she discovered she'd left her paints at home!

Susan White and Sue Shelton Habib enjoy sketching on the front patio.

Warren Ludwig takes the long view at far left, while Keith Cobb focuses on the front of the old building.

Looking for line-of-site perspective.

Keith and Malinda, hard at work...

It was SO windy we went inside...this is the view out the back window!

Yes, actually is IS real..

This gentleman donated his body to science with the understanding that his skeleton would return to the Odd Fellows Home; he's part of Belvoir's miniature museum dedicated to the building's past.

After, all but Susan met at Conrad's Restaurant and Ale House, in Liberty, for sharing and great food.

Warren posted his sketches on his blog, here: http://www.ludstuff.blogspot.com/  Wish I had more shots of other peoples' art, sorry! 

June Sketchcrawl, KC area--VanTill's Winery

Joseph adds the finishing touches after the rain drove us indoors! Malinda's daughter looks on...

His is on the left, mine's on the right...

Lots of color, and good food and wine as well.

This is Carolyn, our newest member!

Sketching the folks at the next table

Our dear friend Malinda and her youngest...

Here's Malinda's sketch of the cob fence at the winery...

Carolyn and Holly enjoying pizza and goodies--the box was full of art supplies I was passing along!

Holly's gorgeous hand bound sketchbook...

And her sketch from last month...in a VERY large Moleskine.

I think the part we all enjoy most about our crawls is sharing the sketcbooks afterward!

We finished up and got back home in the nick of time--a BIG storm blew up and nearly took this tent arbor down!  Van Till's had to move all their visitors inside while the staff literally tried to hold everything down out here.

38th International Sketchcrawl, KCMO

 

We had a wonderful time and a good turnout for our Union Station sketchcrawl...so many interested watchers, as well, who shared their own stories of this magnificent old building.  It stood empty for years--I'm so grateful it was saved and is full of life and beauty again.

Imagine designing this place...I started out setting up my sketch stool so I could sit comfortably wherever I wanted, and craned my neck looking up at the chandeliers...

You don't see this kind of detail any more...

It was a warm January day, so I sat outside on a bench and sketched the Liberty Memorial, across the way...it was backlit and in deep shadow so the forms were very simplified.  Made me try a David Gentleman approach!

We always share food and journals and good talk afterward...Harvey's restaurant, in the station, had paper table covers, so of course I sketched as many of us as I could!

Here's the crew...less two of us.

Don's gorgeous sketch, which I hope he will scan and share...

I didn't manage to shoot Jeanette's sketch from the day, but her journal is an absolute joy...I get lost in it!

Malinda sketched Harvey's from the balcony!  Next time I think I need to branch out, what a great view!

I hope your day was as satisfying as ours was!

Our Sketchcrawl last weekend!

I'm glad to see this old car is back in the lobby of the Elms Hotel after its extensive renovation--couldn't resist sketching it!  Still using just the primaries on this one...nice range of neutrals!

My pen was acting up on the tree...so I did more writing than usual.  and at right, Malinda's young one was playing with his tablet...he moved a lot!

As always, we had a lovely late lunch/early dinner and shared our work.  Kelly's friend couldn't join us, but it was a good group for lunch!

We missed Christiana and Bill and Vicky this time, but hoping everyone else will add their sketches!

Fly-in at the Excelsior Springs Airport

Our August sketchcrawl and my finished sketch, once I'd added notes at home...

Cute little Piper Cub

Joseph and Malinda watch take-offs and landings

Malinda sketching

Airplanes...Malinda's dad used to own one, so she really understands how they're built.

The hangar just to the right of this one is where they had a huge BBQ spread.

Work in progress...

The Fokker triplane in the background was a magnet!

Chatting...

My quick sketch of the triplane...it was made from a kit, 3/4 size, with a VW engine!  The pilot says you have to fly it every minute...handles better on the ground than in the air...

The Red Baron takes off...

All in all, it was a great sketchcrawl, even though there were only a few of us.  The food was great, the pilots were terrific, the music was from the 40s and 50s--jitterbug, Sinatra--and we had a ball.