Happy Halloween and Inktober Day 27

Happy Halloween

The NYC Urban Sketchers Zoom group met on Saturday to do Halloween related scenes. A website was provided with links to assorted Halloween references. I found one of an abandoned building and put it in a setting with a spooky sky with a big moon. Then I added a few bats to liven it up a bit. Since this was not done from life it isn't an urban sketch.

I hope your Halloween was fun! 

Here is another Inktober sketch done with a twig and Chinese ink. For those of you who are wondering what kind of twig I'm using, it is just a regular twig that I've let dry out and then sharpened with a razor.  This was done from the dock in West Sayville.

I do have one special twig that was given to me by Kiah Kiean Chng when I took his workshop at the Urban Sketchers Symposium in Chicago. He provided a twig for each of us. He uses a soft twig from Malaysia. I posted a photo below of a few of my twigs. The one he provided is in the middle.

Lefty Lucy Poses

 It has been a long time since I've been able to sketch Lefty Lucy. The storm that hit New Orleans a while back wrecked havoc on her apartment and the area was without power for a long time. Then she had a gig up in Provincetown and was gone for a bit. She returned to posing a few weeks ago but I wasn't able to get to do the Zoom sessions....but finally got there this Wednesday. It was great to be back! Her theme was some sort of clown.

Inktober Day 26

 Once in a while the weather keeps me from going out to sketch. This past week we had what around here is usually called a nor'easter but this time was renamed a bomb cyclone. I don't know who made up the term but I do know that the west coast was also affected by one. We had heavy rain and strong winds, so I stayed home. Of course I needed a subject for my Inktober sketch so I looked around and spied a cluster of tomatoes. Not only would they suffice for Inktober, they would fit in the current Wet Canvas scavenger hunt. I just didn't have the heart to forgo color for this and pulled out the Zebra Zensations fountain pens I have. I wasn't sure I would be able to get the colors I needed but they worked using the red, the (bright) green and the purple. It gave me more shades than I had expected...and helped brighten the day a bit.

Inktober Day 25

 There is an area in Oakdale that was once part of an artist's colony. It has these quaint brick buildings but unless you live there you don't have anywhere to park. I roamed around there the other day and found a small parking area around the back of one of the buildings. This part is called Tower Mews. I sat in my mobile studio (just in case I wasn't allowed to park there) and sketched that way. I use the Noodler's brown ink for this sketch.

Inktober Day 24

 On Sunday the NYC Urban Sketchers met at Inwood Park which is at the very upper edge of Manhattan, across the river from the Bronx and an area known as Spuyten Duyval. It is an area that I'm not familiar with at all, but the views from the park were great. Muscota Marsh meets the Spuyten Duyval Creek in this area which is near Columbia University. The big C on the cliffside stands for Columbia. The view looks toward the Henry Hudson Bridge.

When I first got to the park I stood by the street level entrance and decided to do my Inktober Day 24 sketch of the Columbia University Boathouse. This is a quick line sketch done with my Lamy pen with no shading.

Next I joined the other sketchers down below on the walkway along the creek/river. It had that great view that I mentioned above. Instead of doing a sketch I did an actual painting on some sample Hahnemuhle watercolor paper that was about 6 x 8.

In the afternoon I did a sketch of a similar view including some of my sketching friends hard at work. For this one I used my Lamy pen and watercolors. I started this one with the figure of my friend, Dana. I was amazed that she stood holding her sketchbook in the air for so long while she worked. I did the figures before working on the background. Even with fellow sketchers there is a good chance they will move out of the scene before you finish. lol It turned out to be a great location for sketching and one that we will probably return to in the future.

Inktober Day 23

 On Saturday I was looking for a scenic farmstead to sketch. I headed out to Eastport to Olish's Farm but their displays hadn't changed and it was too crowded. I continued driving heading toward East Moriches when I saw this small farm stand called Baha Farm. I pulled over to the side of the road and found a parking spot with a view. I started sketching this focusing on the truck figuring it was going to disappear soon, and I was right. I barely got the shape done before it pulled out. I sketched for a bit and the owners started moving things. Uh-oh...they were packing up. Who packs up their farm stand at 2:00 in the afternoon? I tried to get as much into the sketch as I could before they moved it and was fairly successful before the tables were bare. It was a cute spot and I'd like to go back at some point and maybe sketch the view from across the street. I used assorted inks for this one.

Inktober Day 22

 I headed out east of me to find something different to sketch and to see if the leaves out there had better color than here. (They didn't.) I stopped at Jason's Vineyard in Jamesport and looked for a spot with vines that was scenic. Before working on my Inktober sketch I did a small 5 x 8 painting of the vines. I didn't go in to try the wine...maybe another time.

The view of the vines was behind the vineyard building so I was parked in the back of the property. It was a nice day so I sat outside my car to paint. Looking back at the building there was an interesting view of some wine barrels that I sketched for Day 22 using assorted inks including Noodler's Brown ink, Noodler's Lexington Gray and Platinum Carbon Ink.

Inktober Day 21 and Beach Sketches

 For my Inktober Day 21 I headed over to sketch the Fire Island Lighthouse at Robert Moses State Park. It was a beautiful, sunny, warm day....and about 79 degrees. This view was from the parking lot and done with Chinese ink and a twig.

Somehow I don't think these beach scenes ever got posted.

Inktober Day 20

 I don't think I've been to the Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank since the start of the pandemic. I missed seeing and sketching the animals. So I headed there for my Inktober Day 20 sketch of the chickens and roosters.

Inktober Day 19 & Random Food Sketches

 I'm still practicing using the Chinese ink and my twigs to do sketches. Inktober Day 19 was done down by Sayville Beach looking from the parking lot.

These food sketches were done at assorted times for the WetCanvas Scavenger Hunts. I hope they don't make you too hungry. The top one is octopus salad and the bottom one is half of my hubby's crab leg sandwich.

Inktober Day 18

I used my Noodler's Brown ink in my Lamy pen for this Inktober Day 18 sketch. It was done down by the bay in Blue Point.

Inktober Day 17

 My Day 17 Inktober was sketched at Deer Run Farm in Bellport using my Lamy pen, my Sailor Fude Pen, and an orange Sakura Micron Pen.

Inktober Day 16

 My Inktober Day 16 sketch was done at Fantastic Gardens in Patchogue. I love seeing all the tables filled with plants outside the greenhouses. This was done with a dip pen and sepia ink.

Inktober Day 15

 While the twig and Chinese ink were still in my sketch bag I found myself down along Brown's River in Sayville for my Inktober Day 15 sketch. The twig seems to work best for soft types of foliage.

Inktober Day 14 - Smith Point Bridge

 I headed over to Smith Point Beach in Shirley and sketched the grasses and shrubs along the bayside looking toward the Smith Point Bridge. I am still playing with my twig and Chinese ink.

Medieval Sketches

Now that it is getting dark by 6 PM the Patchogue Sketch Club isn't going outdoors to sketch. This week we did a Zoom meeting where we sketched portions of Medieval tapestries. We had about 20 minutes to work on each piece which wasn't really enough time to do the whole thing. I concentrated on a section that appealed to me.

This one was done in my Strathmore gray toned sketchbook.

 

Inktober Day 13

I've had a bottle of Noodler's Purple Martin Ink for quite a few years and I don't remember the last time I used it. This Day 13 Inktober sketch was done near La Tavola in Sayville using a dip pen...another material I never use.

 

Inktober Day 12

I was out east for plein air painting on Tuesday and on the way home I stopped to do my Inktober Day 12 of this view looking toward some greenhouses in Calverton.

Olish's Farm Display

 The other day when I was at Olish's Farm in Eastport there was so much color everywhere that I couldn't

leave without doing one of the displays in color.

Inktober Day 10 & 11

 I have a hibiscus plant out on my porch patio that bloomed again this week after several weeks of no flowers. It looked so pretty in pink, but I sketched it using sepia acrylic inks instead. This is my Inktober Day 10 sketch.

Back a few years ago when I went to the Urban Sketchers Symposium in Chicago I took a workshop with Kiah Kiean Chng from Malaysia on painting with Chinese ink and a twig. Of course I don't have KK's magic twig that gives him such wonderful sketches, but I was fairly happy with this one that I did down the street nearby. Of course I probably haven't tried this method in over a year, and the twig needs to be scraped down to a better point, but it was fun to do it again for my Day 11 Inktober sketch.

Japanese Stroll Garden

 Since the Japanese Stroll Garden was so relaxing I looked for another view to paint. I found this stone lantern and this very Japanese-looking tree by the pond.

Inktober Day 9 -

On Saturday a small group of NYC Urban Sketchers, most of whom live on Long Island, met at the John P. Humes Japanese Stroll Garden in Locust Valley. This unique and historic garden is part of the North Shore Land Alliance and has an impressive collection of North American and Asian plants. 

 I did this sketch of the rocky steps going up to the cement lantern first in ink only and then I added color to the sketch. While we were painting and sketching we were treated to lovely traditional flute music by Daniel Nyohaku Soergel.

 

 

Hector

 On Wednesday night the Patchogue Sketch Club had a model pose for us. Hector did an outstanding job! After a few 2 minute poses he did 15 and 20 minute poses. I used a blackwing pencil for the sketches.

Inktober Day 8

 All the farmsteads and markets are full of pumpkin displays and mums so that is what I sketched for my Day 8 Inktober. This was done with my Sailor fude pen and Platinum Carbon Ink at Olish's Farm in Eastport.

Inktober Day 7

 I have a floral arrangement that has been sitting in front of me for days. Usually I have good intentions and plan to sketch it...but often by the time I get around to it the flowers are past their prime. Today I used a Zebra Sensations fountain pen to sketch the arrangement for Inktober, and I resisted adding any color. 

A while ago a representative of Zebra sent me a variety of their pens to try and asked me to let her know my thoughts about how practical they would be in my outdoor sketching. I'm sure I tried one of the fountain pens at the time but I don't remember what I told her about that specific pen. The ones that I have are in a package of 7 assorted colors. The ink seems to be permanent and flows very nicely. I don't usually use colored ink when I'm sketching, especially the 2 red/pinks or the green colors. 

Inktober Day 6

Today I sketched with my Elegant Writer pen. I am always surprised by the way it bleeds so nicely when you add water. This was done at a preserve in Bay Shore.

 

Inktober Days 4 & 5

For my Inktober Day 5 sketch I used my Lamy Safari with Noodler's Brown Ink. To me the color looks more like sepia than brow.  The ink is water-soluble so you can get some nice shading. My model was a rooster fountain in front of Bello Poultry Market in Holbrook. I've sketched the rooster before but they seem to have spruced up the entrance to the market.

Today's Inktober sketch was done with my PALS Plein Air group. We met down at Corey Beach in Blue Point on a damp, chilly morning. All of us were bundled up in fleece jackets or heavy sweatshirts. I didn't think I was going to last for too long so I didn't work on actual watercolor paper (mistake) but on sketch paper. First I sketched it with my Micron black pen...but you know how I love color so I added it after I took a photo of the ink only version.

 

Inktober Day 2 & 3

While I was in Bryant Park on Saturday I did my Day 2 Inktober sketch with my Lamy Safari pen and Platinum Carbon Ink. That is such a great park for sketching...so many good views. 

The sketch below was done down by the bay in Sayville. I used a black Uniball Signo gel pen for this sketch. It skipped a bit which ended up working well for all those bare branches and the beach grasses.