One Week 100 People - Day 1

 For the 6th year Marc Holmes and Liz Steel have challenged artists to sketch 100 people in the span of 1 week. For some reason their week only lasts for 5 days. I've done this challenge several times before and I always enjoy it. It pushes me to do something that I need to practice anyway. I am finally relaxing enough that I will venture into the mall, but I'm still wearing my mask.

For Day 1 I headed over to the Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove thinking that would be a great place to find a lot of people. Thinking ahead I knew I needed to find mall locations where people would be relatively still. First I headed to Barnes and Noble which is right outside the mall itself. I know there are small tables by the Starbucks Cafe and a window ledge by the magazines. (Yes, I've sketched there before.)

Next I headed to the Food Court. There were lots of subjects to sketch and I waited for people to sit down at a table which was an indication that they would be there for a while since they were eating. I completed 2 pages of sketches there.

On my way out of the mall I passed the Apple Store. There were charging stations right opposite the store and there were stools to sit on. They were just asking me to sit down and sketch weren't they? The Apple Store has captive models who stand for a long time checking out the iPhones and other merchandise.

I was able to complete 43 sketches in one day!!!

Tiana Dunes

 I was out driving along Dune Road in the Hamptons the other day and stopped at Tiana Beach. I spent a lot of time there when I was young and single, and it is part of my nostalgia drive that I take once in a while. There has been a lot of loss of the dunes since the last time I stopped there.

Patchogue House

I like finding houses that have character. There are quite a few interesting houses along South Ocean Ave in Patchogue. This one got my attention the other day.

 

Harlequins

 The Patchogue Sketch Club met on Zoom on Wednesday night to sketch two different harlequin paintings. Hopefully we will get back to meeting in person soon. I think a model is posing for us next week but we have company coming from out of town to visit for a few days, so I can't make it.

Surf, Skate and Snow

Sayville has a surf, skate and snow shop that attracts my attention each time I pass heading east through town. The whale mural and the airstream catch my eye each time. Due to the layout of the building there is no good way to get the name of the shop as well as the rest of the view all at the same time. Since the airstream and the mural are what calls to me, I had to make those the dominant subjects. It makes me smile every time I see it. The shop is actually called Bunger Sayville.

 

White Cap Fish Market

 White Cap Fish Market is located in Islip and is tucked away along a small canal in Islip. It has an actual fish market as well as a small restaurant with an outside deck. It is a rather rustic place where I've sketched many times. There are usually commercial fishing boats tied up around the dock area. 

Linen Shop

Back in the fall before Covid hit I had started an accordion sketchbook of scenes along the North Fork of Long Island. My original thought was to start with one view and then drive about 1 mile and sketch the next view I found, continuing until I reached Greenport, the last town along Route 25. Of course that wasn't so practical because often when I drove the next mile there wasn't anything scenic to sketch or there wasn't any place to park safely. So instead I sketched things that caught my attention as I drove along. The sketching in the book was halted due to Jerry's health and then the pandemic. I was staying home or at least staying much closer to home and it wasn't the right time to work on this. 

Recently when I thought about resuming the sketches I couldn't find the sketchbook! It was a book I had made and it had no cover yet. I had pretty much given up finding it when I discovered it hiding in a clear zip-lock bag right where I had been looking for it. Isn't it strange how that happens? Anyway over the weekend I drove out along Route 25 on the North Fork past the last location I had sketched and found the Bath & Linen Shop of Southold. It shares building space with Carol's Kid's Corner. I have to decide if I want to do additional sketches. There is only one blank page left and I haven't reached Greenport yet. Many people who use accordion sketchbooks also use the backs of the pages. I don't know if I want to do that. I like being able to see all the sketches when I stretch the book out. What do you think?