This blog has the results of sketching from an online (non sketching) event. It was the first time I have done this and it was a learning experience.

The event was the relaunch of TROVE.

Trove is a collaboration between the National Library of Australia and hundreds of Partner organisations around Australia.
Trove provides access to over 6 billion records about Australia or of interest to the Australian community. Trove focuses on freely available digital content created by Australians and held in the collections of Australian Libraries, Archives, Museums, Galleries, University, Research and community organisations.

Search for digital copies of newspapers, Government Gazettes, maps, magazines and newsletters. Or books, pictures, photographs, archived websites, music and interviews. Even information about famous Australians, including copies of letters, diaries and personal archives.Search Trove to locate books and other physical items held in libraries and organisations around Australia.

I use Trove a lot personally for family history and at work as well. The launch was for an updated Trove, including the homepage and landing pages, Collection Features, and more.

It was live online and I decided to sketch it. I often sketch at events and conferences and was not sure how different it would be. It was very different ! I have scanned my sketches as they were done on the night, (apologies to all speakers) as well as the notes I made – quotes from the speakers.

I have only added the names of the panelists (online and live) , which I had to look up after. Usually, when going to an event I will know the names of panellists.

When sketching from an online or tv event, you have no control over the camera, and how long it will spend on a particular speaker. I assumed they would be asked further questions, which some were, and thankfully the speakers did not move position, and I could add a little bit more. When I am sketching on location at an event I never know how long the speaker will be on the stand, but I can get an idea fairly quickly. And I can often still sketch them after they have left the stage and sat down.

I liked the immediacy of grabbing comments the speakers made that connected with me and scribbling them down. Unfortunately, they were written with the soft watercolour pencil and are almost unreadable.

This week I will take the time to rubout and rewrite in pen.

I then discovered that this event is available to view and therefore available to pause and sketch. I will probably go back and improve the sketches. Capturing the likeness of a person is a skill that requires practice. I have seen this accomplished by some people with just a few strokes of pencil on the paper. I will have to practice and practice this.

I felt a lot more pressure and I did not take in the content of the conversation as I would have when sketching on location. When I attend an event, such as Melbourne Rare Book Week events, I usually sit at the back of the room, listen to the fascinating speakers and sketching is automatic. I usually focus my sketches on the audience (lots of backs of heads of people) and the features of the room (if there are any). In fact, if I am not sketching I always wish I was. This time I was out of my comfort zone and it was learning experience.

Does anyone have any hints or tips of sketching live in these days of Zoom meetings?

I like to draw food with my watercolour pencils. (I also enjoy urban sketching, sketching nature drawings, and objects). I have been drawing my food since I started my daily sketching over 10 years ago. I don’t enjoy cooking and do not have a strong sense of taste or smell, but love the visual. everything is sketchable, however, I have been known to choose my meal for its sketching possibilities.

Over the last few months, I have purchased takeaway dinner from Il Duca, a local restaurant. I bring it home and set up my white table cloth and wine glass and enjoy ! -and also sketch. This week I asked the owner Dom to suggest a colourful meal to order, as sometimes the pasta and risotto are not as visually exciting as other meals.

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I was generously given a delicious meal of Lamb Shanks with salad. Lots of colours and interesting shapes (and then sketching the end of the meal). .Enough for two meals for me and more protein than I have had all week !

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During the year I usually run a number of Watercolour Pencil Sketching classes in Melbourne. These include food sketching and High Tea sketching classes. They are always great fun, with lots of food to sketch and eat . They are on hold at the moment, but the sketching has not stopped. Food is great to sketch as it is instantly obtainable, you can control it, and (as always) there is no right on wrong.

Here are some hints and tips and my approach

• it is not a still life or finished piece, it captures the suggestion of the food
• you can write notes on the page about your experience – taste, smell, who you were with and where
• just draw the food, not the plate
• choose where to add the colour – it does not all have to be coloured in
• choose a part of the meal, not all of it
• draw on overview or focus on detail

Yes, I eat a bit of cold food! However many meals have repetitive shapes and ingredients. Once I have sketched in the major shapes and the detail and colour of some major ingredients, the rest can be sketched in while eating.

and a link to a previous blog post on step-by-step sketching lunch. to see my approach to sketching this meal below.

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Click through to see my Flickr albums to see my watercolour pencil sketches of sweets, raw food, and food,

Do you sketch food now? I hope that this inspires you to sketch the everyday – the food on your plate.

As I am still working full time and also have some commissions, I have not been as prolific in my everyday sketching this week. When I don’t have the time, or brain space I fall into my comfort zone of sketching subjects that I sketching regularly. These include food, objects, the local park. Each sketch is new and exciting, but there is a level of knowledge that I already have. I know that approach I will have, which watercolour pencils I may potentially use, and how I will place it on the page. These are all challenges to think about when confronted with a new and different subject.

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I sketched some food. As I do .

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I bought some tights. I usually sketch my legs/feet like this when I am in a waiting room. I usually have black tights on and the feature is my shoes. This time the drawing of the legs was in my comfort zone, however, the challenge was the tartan and houndstooth patterns.

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Sketching the same tree from March to June. Fitzroy Gardens in Melbourne, are over 150 years old with trees that line many of the pathways. They are a mixture of Australian trees such as  Spotted Gum,  Moreton Bay Fig as well as imported Canary Island Pine, Canary Island Date Palm, and then the English Elm, Linden, and Chestnut. So, some trees are bare and others are thick and green. It was interesting to see the change in this one.

Have a good week. Happy sketching. Send me any questions you have about watercolour pencils or my art practice. Watercolour pencils are so much fun to use and you can get so much depth and texture on the page!

Ever since I began working from home in mid-March , I have been taking my lunch hour to go for a walk. I am fortunate to live near some beautiful gardens and I have enjoyed walking up and down the various pathways that criss-cross these Gardens. I have been sketching too, with my watercolour pencils.

A few times I have noticed different types of mushrooms at the base of different trees. The mushrooms were there one day gone the next. I took the opportunity to try and capture them on the page.

I have no idea what type they are. In hindsight, I should have been more curious about which trees they were growing under. I do remember that some were under a eucalyptus, which surprised me. The Gardens have a variety of English and Australian trees.

It has been a good opportunity to slow down and observe. By visiting the same place on a regular basis I noticed changes in the Gardens, as the Park crews trimmed, chopped, and mowed various areas. It has been good to see more people walking and exercising and appreciating our local backyard. See more of my East Melbourne sketches here.

I have a detailed fungi drawing available printed on a greeting card on my ETSY store