Urban Sketchers in Sydney met at the National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour on a glorious sunny morning. Liz was not able to attend, but ten of us sketched from 10am til 12.30, some continuing on after lunch. Anthony, Jennifer, Annie, Wendy, Chantal, Ethna, Phil, John and Peter are in the photo below. Phil showed great enthusiasm and had a very early start to the day, travelling from Lake Macquarie.
There is so much to sketch outside the Maritime Museum, without even entering its doors. Lots of old and new boats, the lighthouse, city skyline, tourists, to name a few. It was hard to know where to begin.
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| our sketchbooks. |
I am still on a holiday high, even though I returned from Barcelona and London two weeks ago. Scanning my drawings every night helps me continue this feeling, as does sharing my experiences with anyone who will listen ! I gave an overview of my Barcelona Urban Sketching Symposium experience and was happy to talk to anyone who had questions.
All of my London sketches are gradually being put in the SET on flickr
All Barcelona sketches from the holiday have been uploaded and in the following SET on flickr
All Barcelona sketches from the holiday have been uploaded and in the following SET on flickr
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My sketches from the day
I began with a little 1903 built boat, moored amongst the tallships and warships. I consciously tried to think about some of the lessons that I learned at the Barcelona Urban Sketching Symposium. For this I recalled the discussions at Barry Jacksons wonderful “Hither Thither and Yon” workshop. I concentrated on the Thither space. I leant SO much at Barcelona, both in the Workshops and from other participants I spoke to.
I realised that in my drawings I am building on the generous knowledge and advice shared by many online artists. From Kate Johnson, one of the many techniques I use is the Derwent Blue Grey (not watercolour) to draw the background buildings It is a nice soft tone and colour.
I then sat down with Ethna and distracted her by chatting. After an hour I moved on.
The skyline of Sydney. It was 15 minutes til lunch. But I HAD to add the blue sky as it was such a lovely day
A very aggressive seagull at my feet ( I had no food, so I don’t know why he was picking on me )
Lovely sketches. Maybe the seagull thought you were bluffing?
What a great place to draw! It must be great to now be able to apply all the things you learned in Barcelona. I also like the idea of sketching with the blue grey – nice. Hope the travel high continues as long as possible!
Thanks Sue. The seagulls can be cheeky ,but nowhere near as aggressive and big as those in the UK. In Cornwall it was like a scene from the Hitchcock movie “The Birds”
It s a great place to draw- although I always think the same when I see your Melbourne sketchcrawls. (and anywhere else too).
The BlueGrey pencil is great. It is a definite mark (not easy to rub out like graphite) and can be coloured over. It is just good for leaving as background, or putting in initial marks.
So much to take in from Barcelona !!!!!!