Gerri

Gerri was our model the other day at my morning portrait group. She brought along a book and asked if she could read while she posed. I think it made an interesting pose.

For those of you who have been following my blog for a while, tomorrow is April 1st which marks the beginning of International Fake Journal Month. Yes, I am participating again. This will be the 6th year for me. Once again I will have a new alter ego and sketch and write about this new character. I am including a link to the new blog that right now just has an introduction...but the title of the blog will give you a clue.

http://tracyattheranch.blogspot.com

City Visit

Last week my husband and I had tickets to see Hello Dolly in NYC. We went in early and had an early dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in the Theater District, Carmine's. While we were waiting for our food I sketched the bar area that I could see from our table. I finished up the color a little later...the food came and I was hungry. lol Dinner was excellent!

We had time before the show started to have a drink. We walked over to a piano bar to relax and listen to some music. The bar was called "Don't Tell Mama." It was fun.

I didn't sketch at the theater. We were a little too packed into our seats to risk taking out art supplies and dropping something. I would have never seen it again. Bette Middler was starring in "Hello Dolly" and the show was fantastic! I am a big fan of hers and it was great to see her in a show again.

Sayville Shop

I was driving around a few days ago looking for an interesting building that I could see from the side as well as the front. I found this one in Sayville. It is called Pet Port and I think it does pet grooming as well as sells pet supplies.

Local Parade

Many of the small towns around here have some sort of St. Patrick's Day Parade. Some celebrate before St. Patty's Day and some after. I decided to head over to Patchogue to sketch at their parade which was held on Sun, March 19. It was a cold, very windy day so I dressed in layers wearing warm boots and a hat. I tucked my supplies in my purse and headed over. I didn't bother bringing a chair since I wasn't sure how crowded it would be. I ended up sketching standing up leaning against a tree. I was lucky to have buildings behind me that blocked some of the wind. While I was waiting for the parade to start a bagpiper came out of the The Tap Room, a bar across from me. I sketched him quickly and it was a good thing I was quick because soon a police car came along and this bagpiper and a few others were whisked off to the start of the parade. I did some of the colors in his kilt from memory and had taken a photo so I could look back and see a little more of what the bagpipes looked like. I sketched a few of the other characters that were around me watching the parade.

I wanted to try and get the motion of the parade, but there was just too much movement and too many people coming along and blocking my view. Instead I did a few of the moms around me with their little kids and some of the marchers in the background.

It was a fun event to sketch...and I'm very glad I dressed warmly. 

Weeks Boat Yard

We have a lot of boatyards here on Long Island. Each one is different and each part of the yard is different. This was painted down by the water at Week's Boat Yard. On the left is a device that I think is used for lifting boats in harnesses and putting them in and out of the water.

Snowy Port Jeff View

Although we didn't have any accumulation of snow last week there were parts of Long Island that did get snow. Port Jefferson is about 20 minutes north of me and they had quite a bit. I liked this view from the parking lot looking at the backs of the buildings.

Missed a Day!

Can you believe it, I missed a day of posting! Yes...it is true. Yesterday was an extremely busy day. I had to drive up to Middletown, NY to pick up my paintings and those of 3 other artists from the NorthEast Watercolor Society Members Show. Middletown is a good 2 1/2 hrs from me, so Jerry and I left around 9, got up there about 11:40, and then drove to Queens so we could take the subway to Manhattan. We went to dinner and had tickets to see Bette Middler in "Hello Dolly" which was fabulous. We didn't get home until 1:00 am this morning. I went straight to bed and didn't even think about posting...hope you don't mind. 

Heres is another snow sketch that I did in my Strathmore Toned Gray sketchbook. This was done in Sayville.

Last week was my hubby's birthday so here are two things that were part of his birthday dinner...blueberry pie...

and his new favorite beer, Stella Artois.

From the Sea

The Patchogue Sketch Club met last week...indoors because of the temps that are still too cold for outdoor sketching in the evening. This week's theme was items from the sea. With all the different shells and beach glass we had lots to sketch.

Tree in Snow

The snow from our last storm lasted for a bit, so I headed out to sketch what was left of it. This was done in a Strathmore Gray Toned sketchbook using watercolors, ink, watercolor pencils, and a white colored pencil.

Welcome to Spring & The Final Part of the Urban Sketching Day

Happy First Day of Spring!!!
 In the spirit of the day I wanted to paint some outdoor flowers today. My good friend and fellow sketcher, Susan, who lives nearby is always ready to share her garden treasures with me. I called her this morning to check that something was in bloom in her garden and she told me to come on over. She works from home, so we chatted for a little while and then she went inside to work while I painted her crocuses, hellebores, and heather. Luckily it was sunny and warm enough to spend some time in the garden without freezing. Thanks, Susan!

On most occasions when the NYC Urban Sketchers gather, we meet at the end of our sketching day to share our work over drinks. I think we had about 20 people with us at the Brooklyn Museum and we headed out at about 4 to Tooker's Alley, a bar nearby. They open at 4 so we didn't worry about it being too crowded for us...and Mark always lets them know we are coming. Once everyone has a drink or whatever they order we start sharing our sketches from the day. It is always fun to see how everyone else captures the same or almost the same views. Some people do a lot of quick sketches and some people complete one longer piece. We have 2 rules when we share...you can't say anything negative about someone's sketches and you can't say anything negative about your own. The second rule is the hard one. LOL

In addition to sharing our sketches, almost everyone immediately whips out a sketchbook and starts sketching the other sketchers at the table or the other patrons where we are. It is good because the other sketchers usually don't get up and move...although they move around some talking to people to their right or left. I was able to get two sketches each with several people seated opposite me.

As you can see from the three days of posting...it was quite a busy day!

Then On To The Brooklyn Museum

After sketching the flowers that I posted yesterday, Susan and I went to meet the other NYC Urban Sketchers at the Brooklyn Museum. We spent most of the day in the African wing where there were great sculptures and artifacts to sketch. The museum didn't stop us from using ink or watercolors so my sketches are a combination of both.

My two sketches done before lunch:

Sketches done after lunch.

There was time for one more sketch before we were meeting to share our work...but no time to add color. (He looks like he's undergoing some kind of acupuncture.)

Then it was off to have drinks and share our work...more tomorrow.

Quick Trip to the Botanic Gardens

Last Saturday the NYC Urban Sketchers were meeting at the Brooklyn Museum. My friend and I like to get an early start from out here and the museum didn't open until 11. But right next door is the Brooklyn Botanic Garden (how lucky) and they open at 10. So we headed to the garden and had time for a quick 30 minute sketch of one of the indoor exhibits in the greenhouse. I did this directly in watercolors.

Outside the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens looked much different than when we usually visit in the spring. We had snow the day before. Here is the Japanese pond...the snowy version.

Snowy Branch

In the past week or so we have had snow twice. The first snowstorm was last Friday and we got about  12 inches of snow. It was thick and heavy and looked so pretty. Once it stopped I had to go out and sketch it. I walked around our apartment complex and had to sketch this while the snow was still clustered on the tree branches. Even as I was sketching the snow was falling off the branches onto my page. lol This was sketched with my Elegant Writer pen so I could let it bleed for shadows.

Our second snowstorm was this Tuesday. They predicted 10-14 inches but the storm turned and we got about 4-5 inches before it turned over to sleet and then heavy rain. It washed away most of it here, but ride north on Long Island about 25 minutes and there is a big difference. I really didn't mind more snow...I think I've had enough, but it is pretty when it is freshly fallen like the first storm.

Beach Dunes

All those people for so many days made me need to get back to the beach and sketch. It was still too cold here to sit outside, but since it isn't beach season I was able to park anywhere I wanted in the parking lot and found a great view from the car.

Pre-Dr. Sketchy Sketches

I guess I did this sort of backwards. We got to the Dr. Sketchy venue a little early to make sure we got good seats. Of course everyone there was an artist, and typical of most artists they made the best of their time before the model came out and sketched each other...so did I.

These people were seated closer to the bar across from me. The good thing about sketching artists is that they usually aren't going anywhere so they stay put. lol

This guy had the right idea. He had a bottle of champagne in a bucket while he was sketching.

This artist was ready with her materials, but had to check her phone one last time. lol

Dr. Sketchy's Dior

After the Turnstyle location a few of us went to another event, Dr. Sketchy, at the Flute Bar. For those of you who don't know about Dr. Sketchy here is a blurb from their website or you can click on the link above:

Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art school is the world's premier alt.drawing movement. Artists draw glamorous underground performers in an atmosphere of boozy conviviality. Found in 2005 in a dive bar in Brooklyn, Dr. Sketchy's has now spread to over 100 cities around the world.

The theme for the afternoon was Dior. Normally there are several models in various stages of dress/undress. We had one lovely model, Chantal, who started out posing in her vintage 60's bra and panties and proceeded to put on more clothing as the poses went on. They usually begin with several 1 minute poses, moving on to 5 minute poses, then longer poses, and back to short poses again. You really have to sketch quickly for many of the poses, and use a medium that you can use easily. I used either pencil or a water-soluble pencil for the beginning poses, adding watercolors and ink for the longer poses.

Chantal had some gorgeous clothes that are original Dior's. She said later that about 90% of the time she dresses in vintage clothing.

Sketching at the Turnstyle

The NYC Urban Sketchers met at the Turnstyle, an underground shopping and eating establishment located near Columbus Circle in Manhattan two Saturday's ago. It was a bitterly cold day...only 16 degrees when my friend, Susan and I left Long Island. The Turnstyle is located just after you exit the turnstyles at the subway exit for Columbus Circle near 8th Ave and 59th St. Unfortunately since the staircases leading up to the street are wide open, it was a bit cold down below too. We wore our coats the entire time we were sketching.

I sat in front of Lush Cosmetics to do my first sketch. They weren't open yet, but the sales people were busy stocking the shelves. They noticed that we were sketching and asked us to stop by and show them the finished sketches. They loved it and asked if they could take a photo for their Facebook page. I'll have to check and see if they posted it.

Next I moved over to Casa Toscana an Italian eatery. Everything looked so delicious!

By Suzette made savory and sweet crepes and was a colorful spot to sketch too.

Due to the cold weather we didn't have a great turnout of sketchers, but those of us who showed up had a great time.

Bay Shore Deli

I was down by the ferries in Bay Shore one day and found this deli near the dock. I loved the colors and the building. I was attracted to this location after seeing a post by Shari Blaukauf about how she likes painting buildings on corners, so you can see two sides of the building. This deli serves Mexican food, so I'll have to go in the next time I'm down there. 

Center Moriches View

I found a spot down by the water in Center Moriches that looked so pretty with the dried grasses and the deep green trees. It was windy and cold so I sat in my car to paint.

Fireplace Boat Basin and Long Island Snow

Now that I'm finished with the 100 People challenge, I can get back to posting some of my other work. This was painted down at the Fireplace Boat Basin in Brookhaven. In season it is filled with boats, but at this time of year there was not one boat in the water. I didn't let that stop me. Since nobody else was around I parked my car at the end of the little boardwalk going to the water by this shack. It was a good vantage point for sketching from my "mobile studio."

Today we had a snowstorm here on Long Island with about 5 inches of wet snow by me. Here are a few photos I took when I walked around my complex when the snow stopped, as well as a sketch of some of the snow on the branches of one of the trees.

This was done with my Elegant Writer which shades so nicely.