Grand Central Bakery in Pioneer Square

More experiments with dry-brush technique in a Stillman & Birn Nova tan sketchbook. I did the line drawing on location and most of the tone and hatching was finished later.

Inktober 29-31

It is with a bit of relief that I post my final #inktober2017 #inktober sketches. There is also a little regret too. I know that, without the daily challenge, I won't draw as frequently as I did in October. That challenge to draw each day made me try new techniques and made me draw things that I would not ordinarily draw.



I did not limit myself to any particular theme or type of drawing. I knew it would be a challenge just to finish. And, technically, I missed two days. And there were some days I made myself draw something, just to get it done. But there were also a lot of drawings that I really enjoyed making, and I am glad the Inktober challenge gave me the push to do them.

Most of Inktober 19-27

A little bit of everything in the penultimate week of #Inktober #Inktober2017. I have been having a good run with the new Stillman & Birn Nova sketchbook. Once we settle back down to a normal sketching schedule, I should post more info about the paper. Meanwhile, to see all the Inktober sketches, hit that Flickr button in the sidebar.

Inktober 14-18

Putting five days of #intober #inktober2017 sketches on one page might seem a little like cheating. But, if I want to do an ink drawing every day in October, I can not spend hours on every one. During a busy week, drawing the same ordinary object every day meant I didn't need to spend time asking myself, "What to draw?"

Inktober 7-13

Still on track for #inktober2017 with 13 ink drawings on the 13th! My rules (since everyone can customize this challenge to suit themself) are:
1. I can draw from photos, which I do not usually do. But 3 of the sketches above were done from photos, and I think I learned things from each one.
2. I can do more than one drawing to catch up if I miss a day. But I am not letting myself do extra drawings for upcoming days. Arbitrary, yes. But the idea is to get in the habit of drawing more regularly, using small bites of time in my day.
But all of the drawings below were done from life. The windbreak at Steamboat Rock State Park was so absorbing to draw that I lost track of time!

Intober 2017 sketches 2-6

A mixed bag here, but that is what you get in #inktober #inktober2017. A few sketches of the fans at the Copper Coin during the Seahawk's game on Sunday. And some small sketches of two of Seattle's best parks. I have discovered Ian Sidaway's blog - which I recommend for anyone who loves pen and ink - and you can see his influence on these sketches.

A Don Colley Workshop and #Inktober!

Sunday I attended a workshop with Chicago artist, and Urban Sketcher Don Colley. I have admired his lush, textural drawings for years, and never miss an opportunity to see his work in person. It was under his influence that I first started sketching with the Faber Castell Pitt Markers, although my techniques evolved in a more minimalist direction. If you are interested in a detailed description of the workshop, check out Sketcher Tina's post.

It is also #inktober2017 #inktober and I am counting this as my first ink drawing of the month. Only 30 to go. Actually, it is the scanning/posting that I fall behind on (I am on track for drawing), so I will probably post in 2 or 3 batches for the month.

A Grumpy Sketcher

The USk Sunday meeting was at Ballard Locks this month, and I was feeling contrary. It was the first day I had to put on a raincoat since June, and I wasn't in a "scenic" mood. So I sat on one of the benches, with no view of the locks at all, and drew what was in front of me!

Coastal Trees

I love the wind sculpted forms of coastal trees. We spent a couple days camping at Kalaloch in Olympic National Park on the Washington coast. Simple pen and ink wash seemed enough.

Perspective Practice: Beacon Hill Light Rail Station

A recent outing with the Urban Sketchers at the Beacon Hill Light Rail Station gave me a good opportunity to practice basic one point perspective. It was hard to spend a sunny August morning underground, but I am hoping for a few more weeks of outdoor sketching this year!

Markers - how I use them

With a class coming up this weekend on sketching with markers, I thought I would show a few examples of how I use markers when I sketch on location.


Just three markers - a light, medium and dark - can be really effective. I start sketching with the lightest marker and then fill in shadows and tones with the middle and dark marker. Your markers don't need to be traditional gray for this, either!



Often, I mix markers with a variety of media. In this case I used them with ink, white gouache and gray-toned paper. (This is "Whale Tail Park", in West Seattle.)



By far my favorite way uses just one medium value color marker with a pen and ink line drawing. This is a simple way to do location sketches quickly with a very small, light kit.

Markers are such a useful addition to a sketcher's kit. If you are interested in the class I am teaching next Saturday, call the Daniel Smith Seattle store to register: 206-223-9599.

Upcoming Classes at Daniel Smith

I will be teaching a couple of Saturday classes this month as part of the Summer Drawing Series at the Daniel Smith Seattle store.
On the 22nd it will be grayscale markers. We will practice using them to do quick compositional studies, and also for finished drawings. I use them frequently for on-location, urban sketching because they are so light and portable.
On the 29th we will be drawing on toned paper. This is another favorite of mine for location drawings and there are lots of different drawing materials that can be used on toned and colored papers.
See Daniel Smith's events calendar for details and registration information and materials lists.

#oneweek100people2017 days 3-5

Yup, there are a few missing. Thursday I went to life drawing at Daniel Smith. Those sketches will not fit on my scanner, but I did actually draw 100 people this week. I enjoyed it, but I like drawing people. I was thinking that it would be harder for me if the challenge was to draw a building every day.

#oneweek100people2017 days one and two

Two days worth of sketches for #oneweek100people2017. If you haven't heard of this, it is a week long sketching challenge that I read about on Urban Sketcher Mark Taro Holmes blog. I like drawing people, and it seemed like a good fit. So, I decided to give it a go. Three more days... (at a rate of 20 people per day).

Seattle Urban Sketchers 10th Anniversary Workshop Series

     Urban Sketchers are celebrating their 10th anniversary (!). To celebrate, the local Urban Sketchers chapters in 26 different cities around the world will each be hosting a series 10 workshops on sketching their city.

I am so excited to be presenting one of the workshops in the series which the Seattle Urban Sketchers have put together. This is an amazing group of instructors, many of whom have taught at the annual Urban Sketchers Symposiums. An informational lecture will be held on January 28 at the Daniel Smith Seattle store and a schedule of the classes with the dates, instructors and planned locations can be found here, along with information on how to register:

http://www.urbansketchers.org/2017/01/10-years-x-10-classes-in-seattle.html

The meeting on Jan. 28 will be a great time to meet the instructors and see their work. But registration has started and some classes are filling up fast! So my advice is not to wait if there is a class you know that you want to sign up for.

Seahawks Game Day Sketches

>
We're not gonna talk about what a bad blogger I've been. Today is a big game for the Seattle Seahawks, and I thought I would just put up a few of the sketches I have drawn this season on previous game days. Commercial breaks and half-time give a sketcher lots of opportunity to get in some drawing without missing any of the action. And, if you are curious about what else I have been drawing, hop on over to Flickr.



And one more...



Hopefully another happy crowd to sketch today at the Copper Coin!