Madison Square Park Fountain

 My second sketch on Saturday was done inside Madison Square Park. There is a fountain on the south end of the park and a small round pond on the north end of the park. The fountain was in a perfect sunlit spot and the bench I sat on was in the shade. A jazz group was playing nearby.

Another NYC Urban Sketcher came along when I was nearly done and we started talking and sharing stories. Then a photographer came along and told us he was doing a project on groups of people in the park and how they use the park. He asked if he could take some photos of us working. Later when we were doing our show-and-tell he took photos of everyone and their work to use in the project. 

It turned out to be a productive day for the group. Two of the sketchers actually sold the pieces they had done on site.

Madison Square Park Area

 On Saturday I joined about 40 other NYC Urban Sketchers in the Madison Square Park area. On the left is the Flatiron Building. I liked the vibrancy of the yellow umbrellas and foliage in the foreground of the sketch. I was sitting on the outside sidewalk by Madison Square Park which is located near 23rd Street between 5th Ave and Madison Ave.

Sayville Park View

 This was painted by the park down on the bay in Sayville. It looks out toward Fire Island.

Lenny Bruno's Farm

 My plein air group went to Lenny Bruno's Farm in Manorville. There were sunflowers in the field and a nice road heading back toward the barn. Of course I was sitting there and a truck came along bringing produce back to the barn and the farm stand, so I had to move over a bit. I think I need to lighten the red truck on the left by the barn...or at least give it some light on top of it.

Clouds Over Land's End Marina

I like sketching at the Land's End Marina in Sayville because the view seems to go on forever. We have been having some wild clouds in the sky lately so I thought it was a nice combination. 

Elise's Niece's Cafe

 Isn't that a catchy name for a cafe? I found a listing for this place and it sounded like it would be a good sport for sketching. The cafe and back deck are behind an antique store. Aside from beverages and some pastries there isn't much food in the cafe, but on the back deck there are tables, benches, a bar area, a performance area, and another small building the I believe is for kids. You walk down an alley to the back. The staff is very accommodating and told us we are welcome to come any time. The day we were there a duo was playing in the back. I sketched the back deck and Suzala sketched the view down the alley with me sitting at the table there.

317 Main Street

 My friend, Suzala and I were on Main Street in Farmingdale and saw 317 Main Street with the colorful orange umbrellas out front and had to stop to sketch. The restaurant was in the middle of the block and there were parking spots along both sided of the street. Luckily when we sat down to sketch the parking spot right in front of the restaurant was empty and so was the spot right in front of us on the other side. But for how long?? Suzala said just sketch fast...so I went directly in with watercolors. We painted for about 30 minutes before any cars blocked our view but eventually there was a large SUV parked right in front of the restaurant. Luckily I had mostly finished the bottom and was able to see the sign above the restaurant so I was able to continue working on the view.